Question

What are some of your hopes for Jerusalem?

David Arnow Jewish

The Dome of the Rock, Islam’s third holiest site, rests on the very spot where the Second Temple stood. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher lies a stone’s throw away. Such a concentration of holiness creates two possibilities. Jerusalem will either ignite an explosion that will turn the world upside down. Or Jerusalem will teach us how to live in peace. Visitors to the Western Wall in Jerusalem, a retaining wall for the Second Temple, often write important notes and insert them into crevices in the Wall. If God did so, the note might say: “O, Jerusalem, holy city, you have seen enough blood. Let my children finally grant you peace.” We are all created in God’s image. We pray to the same God. God doesn’t want us to kill one another—over Jerusalem, or anything else.

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Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. May those who love you be at peace. May there be peace within your ramparts, serenity in your citadels…. If I forget you Jerusalem, let my right hand wither, let my tongue stick to my palate if I cease to think of you, if I do not keep Jerusalem in memory even at my happiest hour.
— Psalms 122:6-7 and 137:5

My heart’s in the east and I languish on the margins of the west. How taste or savor what I eat? How fulfill my vows and pledges while Zion is shackled to Edom and I am fettered to Arabia? I’d gladly give up all the luxuries of Spain if only to see the dust and rubble of the Shrine.
— Judah Halevi (c. 1075-1141), My Heart’s in the East

For your name scorches the lips
Like the kiss of a seraph
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
Which is all gold . . .
Jerusalem of gold, and of bronze, and of light
Behold I am a violin for all your songs.
— Naomi Shemer (1930-2004), Jerusalem of Gold*

Mary C. Boys Christian

Jerusalem, it has been said, is not a single city but a multitude of cities “built over the same spot, operating at the same moment, and contending for hegemony.”* And within that multitude of cities dwell adherents of the world’s monotheistic religions, living on top of one another—and too often striving with each other. One hopes for religious leaders audacious enough to advance interreligious dialogue. One hopes as well for a thriving Christian community engaged in the imperative of peace-making and interreligious/inter-cultural dialogue.

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For Christians, the Holy Land is not simply an illustrious chapter in the Christian past. As Jerome wrote to his friend Paula in Rome urging her to come and live in the Holy Land, “the whole mystery of our faith is native to this country and city. Nothing else in Christian experience can make this claim; nothing has such fixity. No matter how many centuries have passed, no matter where the Christian religion has set down roots, Christians are wedded to the land that gave birth to Christ and the Christian religion.
— Robert Wilken, The Land Called Holy: Palestine in Christian History and Thought (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1992), 254

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them, he will wipe every tear from their eyes.”
— Revelation 21:1-4

The land of Israel has always been of central significance to the Jewish people. However, Christian theology charged that the Jews had condemned themselves to homelessness by rejecting God’s Messiah. Such supersessionism precluded any possibility for Christian understanding of Jewish attachment to the land of Israel. Christian theologians can no longer avoid this crucial issue, especially in light of the complex and persistent conflict over the land. Recognizing that both Israelis and Palestinians have the right to live in peace and security in a homeland of their own, we call for efforts that contribute to a just peace among all the peoples in the region.
— Excerpt from “A Sacred Obligation,” 2002 by the Christian Scholars Group on Christian-Jewish Relations

Muhammad Shafiq Muslim

Jerusalem is an Abrahamic city, sacred to Muslims, Christians and Jews. To Muslims, it is called al Quds – noble, sacred, or Bait al Maqdas – a sacred house or place. Our hopes are that interfaith dialogue will take root in Jerusalem to bring peace and harmony among the Abrahamic people. We hope for lasting peace there through the implementation of a U.N. Resolution to promote peaceful coexistence among the three monotheistic faiths.

Note: Translation of the Qur’anic verses and many of the Hadith translation with references were taken from Islamicity.com; some translations of and references to the Hadith were taken from ahadith.co.uk.

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What are some of your hopes for Jerusalem?

Jerusalem is an Abrahamic city, sacred to Muslims, Christians and Jews. To Muslims, it is called al Quds – noble, sacred, or Bait al Maqdas – a sacred house or place. Our hopes are that interfaith dialogue will take root in Jerusalem to bring peace and harmony among the Abrahamic people. We hope for lasting peace there through the implementation of a U.N. Resolution to promote peaceful coexistence among the three monotheistic faiths.

What is the spiritual significance of Jerusalem in our traditions?

  • Jerusalem was the original place (Qibla) toward which Muslims turned for their five-times-daily prayer. Some years later Muhammad (peace be upon him) was told to change the Qibla from Jerusalem to Makkah (2:142-144).
  • Jerusalem is the home of our Qur’anic and Muslim prophets (peace be upon them). Muslims respect the Biblical prophets including Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, Jesus, Moses, David and Solomon, from whom we learned the Oneness of God.
  • Jerusalem is al Quds (noble, sacred) and Al Quddus is one of the attributes of God in Islam. It is an al-ard al-Muqaddasah (the Sacred Land, 5:21) and its surroundings are called Barakna Hawlaha (God blessed its precincts, 17:1).
  • Jerusalem is the third holiest city in Islam after the cities of Makkah, Madina.
  • Jerusalem is the site of Isra (Muhammad’s night journey from Makkah to Jerusalem) and Mi`raj (Muhammad’s ascension to heaven). The importance of these two events for Muslims is reflected in their reverence for the two sacred places.
  • Muslims believe that Jerusalem is the only place on earth where God brought together all prophets during Muhammad’s ascension to heaven and they prayed together and Muhammad was asked to lead them in prayers.
  • Al Aqsa in Jerusalem and the Ka`ba in Makkah are the only two mosques mentioned by name in the Qur’an.
  • Some great companions of prophet Muhammad are buried in Jerusalem
  • Most significant is the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, a great monument of Muslim architecture.

What are some of your tradition’s myths concerning Jerusalem?

Muhammad’s night journey and ascension into heaven (al-lsra’ and al Mi’raj is significant in Muslim tradition. According to Muslim tradition, Muhammad was transported one night on a winged mule (Burraq) from Mecca (Makkah) to Jerusalem. The archangel Gabriel was riding the mule. According to some narrations, he was welcomed at Jerusalem by all the prophets, including Abraham, Moses and Jesus (peace be upon all of them). After meeting them, Gabriel asked Muhammad to lead the prophets in prayers. Afterwards, Muhammad was brought to the place where the Dome of the Rock is built and ascended to heaven accompanied by Gabriel.

It is said that the top portion of the Rock ascended with Muhammad until he reached heaven and then it returned to its place. Today it sits on the top of the rock like a canopy. There is a mark on the top of the Rock that is said to be Muhammad’s footprint. There is also is a mark of Abraham’s feet on a stone on which, according to Muslim tradition, he stood to build the Ka`ba — the House of God at Makkah. In his ascension, Muhammad passed through the seven heavens where he encountered earlier prophets.

During his ascension to heaven, Muhammad received the command to establish five daily prayers (Salat) that all Muslims must perform. It is said that God first commanded him to worship 50 times a day. When Moses heard about it, he persuaded Muhammad to go back to God to reduce the number. Because of Muhammad’s plea, God reduced it to 10 times. Moses insisted that also was too many and said he must go back to God to further reduce the number. Again at Muhammad’s request, God reduced it to five times a day. He said whoever would pray five times daily would be rewarded as though the person had prayed 50 times. Moses told Muhammad that even five times were too many because his people found it hard to pray just three times a day. Muhammad responded that he hoped the community would fulfill its obligation of five times.

The story of Isra and Miraj is full of wonderful signs and symbols. Muslim scholars, Sufis (mystics) and poets have interpreted it in deep, meaningful ways. There is, however, one essential point: It is an example of every Muslim’s deep devotion and spiritual connection with Jerusalem.

The whole journey happened in a portion of a night, although some critics argue Muhammad’s journey was spiritual and not physical. Like Christians and Muslims who believe that Jesus physically ascended to heaven, most Muslims believe in Muhammad’s physical ascension to the heavens on that night. them for being patient throughout their ordeal. God blessed the Israelites with power and destroyed the Pharaoh and his army (7:137).

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