Mount Sinai's Arabic name, Gebel Musa, means "Mountain of Moses."
By any other standards, Mt. Sinai would be just another barren peak lost among the Martian landscape of Southern Sinai. It is neither the highest mountain in the region, nor the most dramatic; there is no soaring, heaven-reaching apex, and it is rare to see anything resembling a divine shroud of clouds hugging its peak.
Were it not for a single, overwhelming belief that has endured for over fifteen centuries, Mt. Sinai would probably be a topographical footnote.
However this is the mountain where God spoke to Moses, that at least, is the overwhelming belief of Christians, Jews and Muslims, all of whom believe it is the place where Moses received the Ten Commandments and it is this belief that has drawn pilgrims for over a thousand years.
Although no archeological evidence of Moses' presence on the mountain exists, there are abundant relics of faith throughout the area. Ancient chapels and structures honoring saints and the Virgin Mary appear all along the main route, called Sikkct Saydna Musa ("The Path of Moses"), including a stone-hewn arch where, long ago, a monk once sat and heard confession from the pilgrims.
At the summit 2285 meters above sea levelstands a small Orthodox church and a mosque at . The most common route to the peak is from the Monastery via the “Steps of Repentance” built by monks or via the camel path built by Viceroy of Egypt. The walk to the summit is well worth it, especially to view the early morning sunrise.
Back to Excursions
Were it not for a single, overwhelming belief that has endured for over fifteen centuries, Mt. Sinai would probably be a topographical footnote.
However this is the mountain where God spoke to Moses, that at least, is the overwhelming belief of Christians, Jews and Muslims, all of whom believe it is the place where Moses received the Ten Commandments and it is this belief that has drawn pilgrims for over a thousand years.
Although no archeological evidence of Moses' presence on the mountain exists, there are abundant relics of faith throughout the area. Ancient chapels and structures honoring saints and the Virgin Mary appear all along the main route, called Sikkct Saydna Musa ("The Path of Moses"), including a stone-hewn arch where, long ago, a monk once sat and heard confession from the pilgrims.
At the summit 2285 meters above sea levelstands a small Orthodox church and a mosque at . The most common route to the peak is from the Monastery via the “Steps of Repentance” built by monks or via the camel path built by Viceroy of Egypt. The walk to the summit is well worth it, especially to view the early morning sunrise.
Back to Excursions