Holy but not Blessed
When I think of religion, I think of Jerusalem, every one’s holy land.
Moses led the exodus of the enslaved Hebrews from Egypt to the promised land of Israel. Alas, he died before he set foot in holy Jerusalem. However, King David was later able to establish a state for the Jews. His son, Solomon, succeeded him by building The First Temple to pray for God in the city of Jerusalem.
About one thousand years later, in the same city, a baby called Jesus was born to a virgin mother. Not far from the city, Jesus was crucified and then buried in a tomb in Jerusalem. After three days, Jesus was brought back to life as Christ the Lord. Jerusalem became a holy site to all Christians who sought the city for pilgrimage.
Six hundred years later, the angel Gabriel visited Prophet Mohammad and brought him revelations from Allah. Although Mohammad lived in Mecca, the same angel visited him some years later to transport him on a white beast from Mecca to, you guessed it, Jerusalem! It was there in Al Quds where he led a prayer in front of all the prophets who preceded him. Mohammad then transcended to the heavens. This story, or miracle, came to be known as Al Isra’a wal Miraj, and Jerusalem was yet again the host for more miracles and a holy land for Islam as well.
Despite the significance of Jerusalem to all religions, the city has rarely known peace. The people of Jerusalem witnessed heartless wars that mostly revolved around religion. The Jews and Romans fought during the years 66 and 135 CE. The Crusades were a series of wars led by Christians to take Jerusalem from Islamic rule between the years 1095 and 1271. Lastly, for the past 73 years, the Israeli Jews and Palestinian Muslims and Christians have all been fighting over The Holy Land.
What makes this story even more complex is the fact that all three religions have more in common than the differences that separate them into “we” and “they”. In fact, all three religions descend from the Abrahamic religion and are known to share all core values.
Is it the details that caused the people to fight ruthlessly and endlessly over the thousands of years? It is how each religious group defines Jesus? A god? A prophet? Not the real Messiah?
I believe not. I think it is the strong belief of each cult that they hold the singular truth that is exclusive. For one book to be true, the others must be false. Nonetheless, religion is not limited to those three cults as it dates back to the ancient history of humankind. In fact, we don’t need to go much back in time to find an example of religious groups who better embraced their differences.
A few years before Jesus was born, Jerusalem was under the realm of the Roman Empire. The Romans almost ruled the world. The map of the Roman Empire extends from Britannia to Italia, Germania, Algeria, Egypt, Arabia, the Levant, and more. Each land had its own god(s). As the Roman empire expanded, the Romans added the new gods to their array of Roman gods. They chose to refrain from imposing their beliefs upon those they conquered.
In fact, the war between the Romans and Jews erupted when the Jews refused to receive a statue of a Roman God in their holy Temple. The Jews also refused to pay sacrifices to Roman Gods because they believed there was one God to pray and sacrifice for. In contrast, other polytheistic tribes did not mind sacrificing to new Gods because God, or truth, was never exclusive.
This approach did not last with all Roman emperors. At some point, Christianity was embraced as the sole religion of The Roman Empire. “In the eyes of some, this change brought about the decline of the empire.” (Wasson, World History Encyclopedia)
Give us this day
more Gods
or less
whatever it takes
to bless
Jerusalem.