A burning beginning

Today's first lines are from the first page of The Jerusalem Scrolls by Bodie and Brock Thoene, 2001.

"The night sky glowed orange by the light of the flames that consumed the Great Hurva Synagogue."

Summary:  After days of brutal fighting against Arab forces in Jerusalem in 1948, Moshe Sachar escapes to a tunnel under the Old City, where he discovers sacred scrolls that tell the history of his faith and people. Opening a scroll, Moshe becomes immersed in the extraordinary story from the first century A.D. of Miryam, a beautiful yet troubled young widow, and Marcus, her Roman suitor.

Although I'd read the dust jacket summary, I was left wondering if this first line was about the burning of a synagogue in 1948 or in the first century BCE (Before the Common Era, which is used now rather than A.D., which is from the Latin Anno Domini, meaning "in the year of our Lord").  That is, I was confused until I got to this in the fifth paragraph:

"The grief of Jewish defeat was palpable.  As the flames licked the sky some spoke of the burning of the Warsaw Ghetto.  Others remembered the furnaces of Auschwitz.  Still others whispered of the destruction of Jerusalem, when the Roman general Titus led the Jewish populace away in chains and torched the temple and the city."

I know the Romans destroyed the city of Jerusalem in 70 CE (Common Era).  Auschwitz and the horrors of the Warsaw Ghetto occurred during World War Two.  The novel starts in the twentieth century, and I want to know what happens.

If you want to play along, this meme is hosted by Katy at A Few More Pages.  Share the first sentence or two of the book you are reading.  (Sometimes it takes several sentences to get the full thought.)  Then, share your impressions of that beginning.  Click this link to see what others say about the books they are reading this week.