Every hour, Bus 163 departs from Jerusalem’s central station toward Rachel’s Tomb. On board are young and old, strollers beside wheelchairs, all turning a simple ride into a journey of faith, memory, and identity. The route through Sarei Israel, Malchei Israel and Shivtei Israel streets feels like a symbolic road uniting Jewish history on the way to the mother who still watches over her children
Bus 163 from Jerusalem to Rachel’s Tomb
The road to the matriarch’s resting place passes Jerusalem’s walls, church towers, and historic buildings alongside new cranes and traffic lights, blending past and present. For some, the ride becomes a spiritual ritual
(Video – Jerusalem Online, Barry Shahar)
Yael Levi from Netanya, a frequent passenger, shares: “Since the age of three my life has been filled with miracles. This is not just a visit, it is a meeting with the one who protects me from above
Ninety-year-old Malchi Cohen, accompanied by a caregiver, adds: “For decades I have taken this route almost daily. This place is holier than the Western Wall. Here the Shekhinah dwells, here Rachel’s soul hovers, the mother who gave up for fourteen years while waiting for Jacob. Her sacrifice founded eternal values
Hebron Road in Jerusalem and the hostages in Gaza
As the bus continues along Jerusalem’s Hebron Road, the landscape shifts. Rachel herself would no longer recognize the fields once leading to Bethlehem. Towering apartment blocks, heavy traffic and yellow flags recall that dozens of hostages remain in Gaza’s tunnels. Yet stubborn olive groves, centuries old, still cling to the hills, silent witnesses that history is not just written in books but rooted in the land itself
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Rachel’s Tomb as a mirror of Israel’s society
The road from Jerusalem to Rachel’s Tomb is more than a commute – it is a reflection of a nation. On Bus 163, people come seeking health, marriage, livelihood, and peace. When the bus reaches its secure gates, men and women divide into separate sections, each whispering prayers at the tomb
A journey of less than an hour transforms into sacred moments of faith and collective memory. Each stop along the way becomes a testimony, each passenger carrying a personal basket of hopes, emptied and filled again – just as the cycle of life continues
