Oh, Jerusalem
Today, the 28th of Iyar, is Yom Yerushalayim, the anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem by the Israel Defense Forces. Yes, it also happened on June 7th, but dates related to Jerusalem are better marked by the Hebrew calendar. Jerusalem is the eternal, indivisible capital of the Jewish people as well as the capital of the sovereign State of Israel.
Today, the 28th of Iyar, is Yom Yerushalayim, the anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem by the Israel Defense Forces. Yes, it also happened on June 7th, but dates related to Jerusalem are better marked by the Hebrew calendar. Jerusalem is the eternal, indivisible capital of the Jewish people as well as the capital of the sovereign State of Israel.
The first is a matter of history, love and religion, regardless of sovereign status. Jews spent 1,900 years in the Diaspora saying, “Next year in Jerusalem”; celebrating planting time and harvest time according to the seasons in the holy land (leading to the incongruity of North American children celebrating Arbor Day when the snow is piled outside the door and sleeping in flimsy Succot with frost on the pumpkins); and sending their loved ones to be buried in the place nearest where the Messiah will appear. There were no Jewish “crusades” to “liberate” the city because Jews didn’t have to be politically sovereign in Jerusalem in order for the city to be holy to Jews.
However, the second – sovereign rule – is a matter of ugly, hard-won, 20th Century practical experience. It surely is the case that Jews have to rule Jerusalem for its holiness to be accessible to Jews.
In its modern, political incarnation, Jerusalem is generally understood as a sticking point between Arabs and Israelis. People try mightily to “resolve the issue” of Jerusalem. Interestingly, the UN “resolved” in 1947:
Existing rights in respect of Holy Places and religious buildings or sites shall not be denied or impaired… liberty of access, visit, and transit shall be guaranteed, in conformity with existing rights, to all residents and citizen of the other State and of the City of Jerusalem, as well as to aliens, without distinction as to nationality… Freedom of worship shall be guaranteed… Holy Places and religious buildings or sites shall be preserved. No act shall be permitted which may in any way impair their sacred character… Freedom of conscience and the free exercise of all forms of worship… No discrimination of any kind shall be made…on the ground of race, religion, language or sex.
All of those “resolves” were honored only in the breech from 1948 when the Jordanian Arab Legion occupied it, through 1950 when the Jordanian government annexed it (recognized only by Great Britain and Pakistan, who were also alone in recognizing the illegal Jordanian occupation of the West Bank) until 1967. What is often and foolishly called “Arab East Jerusalem” is “Arab” because the Jordanian Arab Legion laid siege to the east and forced out the Jewish population. The Mount of Olives Cemetery was desecrated and its stones used as latrines; 58 synagogues (including the 700-year-old Hurva Synagogue in the Old City) were destroyed; Jews of all nationalities were prevented from visiting Jewish holy sites; and Israeli Muslims were denied the mosques of the Old City.
None of this altered or diminished the holiness of Jerusalem. But only the convergence of the capital of the Jewish people and the capital of the State of Israel, only Israeli sovereignty from 28 Iyar 1967 forward, has ensured the accessibility of Jerusalem to those who love the city. The division was 19 difficult, dangerous and unpleasant years. We salute the reunification at 40 and look forward to many more years of a unified, open, accessible Jerusalem.