Jewish visitors gesture as Israeli security forces secure the area at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque, known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, in Jerusalem’s Old City, Photo: May 5, 2022. REUTERS/Ammar Awad

Patheos, a leading online forum for discussing religion and spirituality, has included seven Jewish sites in its ranking of “The 100 Most Holy Places on Earth” — giving the number one spot to Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.

The top-ranked holy landmark is revered by followers of Judaism and Christianity because Solomon’s Temple, Zerubbabel’s Temple, and Herod’s Temple were all located on the same site. It is also the location where the Jewish biblical figure Abraham tried to sacrifice his son Isaac to God. The Temple Mount is sacred in the Islamic faith for being the site of the Dome of the Rock, which is one of Islam’s holiest sites, in addition to the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The Temple Mount attracts five million visitors a year, according to Patheos, but non-Muslims are not allowed to enter the Dome of the Rock or the mosque.

Mount Sinai in the Sinai Peninsula — the hilltop where Jews, Christians, and Muslims believe that the Biblical figure Moses communicated with God — is at number three on the list compiled by Patheos, and the Mount of Olives comes in at number six. Some of the most important figures in Israeli and Jewish history are buried in the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives, and many Jews believe that the Messiah will enter Jerusalem through the holy site. It is estimated that over two million people visit the Mount of Olives every year, Patheos noted.

Jerusalem’s Western Wall ranked number 10 on the list and has 12 million visitors a year. Known as the Kotel in Hebrew, it is what remains of the retaining wall that once supported the western side of the Temple Mount where the Jewish temple once stood. The wall dates back to around 19 BCE and is sacred to Jews.

Another Jerusalem location, Mount Zion — considered sacred by both Christians and Jews — comes in at number 38 on the list. It was the city that King David conquered in the 10th century BCE, and the site includes a sarcophagus used as a memorial for the Jewish leader. It is also identified as a location of the grave of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and on Mount Zion is the location of the Last Supper. Mount Zion has five million annual visitors.

At number 63 is the Spanish Synagogue in Prague, the Czech Republic. Completed in 1868, the Ashkenazi conservative Jewish congregation gets it name from its architectural style and serves now as mostly a museum.

Finishing off the list at number 100 is El Ghriba Synagogue — also known as Djerba Synagogue — in Tunisia. The Orthodox Jewish temple is the oldest Jewish house of worship in the country and the only synagogue on the Tunisian island of Djerba that has its own Torah scroll. It is believed that El Ghriba Synagogue has also incorporated in it a door and building stone from Solomon’s Temple, which was completely destroyed in 586 BCE. Jews make an annual pilgrimage to the Tunisian synagogue on the holiday of Lag B’Omer.

The list also included sites in Israel that are sacred to religions not including Judaism. Those landmarks include the Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh in Acre; Via Dolorosa, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem; the Jordan River; the Capernaum Synagogue in the fishing village of Capernaum; Bahai Garden in Haifa; the Church of Annunciation in Nazareth; the Church of the Beatitudes on the Korazim Plateau in northern Israel; and the Church of Mary Magdalene in Jerusalem.

Patheos said it compiled its list with expert advise from Alonzo Gaskill, an esteemed world religion expert. The website also considered multiple factors in creating the ranking, including the number of faiths that consider each site holy, how often each location is searched for online, the number of visitors for each physical location, as well as voting by the website’s editorial staff, religious leaders, and scholars.