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{{Short description|Religious ties to a specific geography}}
{{Jerusalem}}
{{Jerusalem large}}
The city of ] is sacred to many religious traditions, including the ]s of ], ] and ] which consider it a holy city.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Zamfir |first=Ioana |date=2021-08-01 |title=Jerusalem in Motion. Images of Jerusalem in the Bible and Beyond
|journal=Review of Ecumenical Studies Sibiu |language=en |volume=13 |issue=2 |pages=160–174 |doi=10.2478/ress-2021-0019|doi-access=free }}</ref> Some of the most sacred places for each of these religions are found in Jerusalem, most prominently, the ]/].<ref>"Al Aqsa Mosque, The." GoJerusalem.com</ref>{{full reference needed|date=June 2024}}


==In Judaism==
The city of ''']''', located in modern-day ], is significant in a number of religious traditions, including the ]s ], ], and ].
{{Main|Jerusalem in Judaism}}
{{See also|Judaization of Jerusalem}}
Jerusalem has been the ] in ] and the spiritual land of the ] since the 10th century BC.<ref name=1000BC>Since the 10th century BC:
* "Israel was first forged into a unified nation from Jerusalem some three thousand years ago, when King David probably seized the crown and united the twelve tribes from this city... For a thousand years Jerusalem was the seat of Jewish sovereignty, the household site of kings, the location of its legislative councils and courts. In exile, the Jewish nation came to be identified with the city that had been the site of its ancient capital. Jews, wherever they were, prayed for its restoration." Roger Friedland, Richard D. Hecht. ''To Rule Jerusalem'', University of California Press, 2000, p. 8. {{ISBN|0-520-22092-7}}
* "The Jewish bond to Jerusalem was never broken. For three millennia, Jerusalem has been the center of the Jewish faith, retaining its symbolic value throughout the generations." , Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, February 23, 2003. Accessed March 24, 2007.
* "The centrality of Jerusalem to Judaism is so strong that even secular Jews express their devotion and attachment to the city and cannot conceive of a modern State of Israel without it... For Jews Jerusalem is sacred simply because it exists... Though Jerusalem's sacred character goes back three millennia". Leslie J. Hoppe. ''The Holy City:Jerusalem in the theology of the Old Testament'', Liturgical Press, 2000, p. 6. {{ISBN|0-8146-5081-3}}
* "Ever since King David made Jerusalem the capital of Israel 3,000 years ago, the city has played a central role in Jewish existence." Mitchell Geoffrey Bard, ''The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Middle East Conflict'', Alpha Books, 2002, p. 330. {{ISBN|0-02-864410-7}}
* "For Jews the city has been the pre-eminent focus of their spiritual, cultural, and national life throughout three millennia." Yossi Feintuch, ''U.S. Policy on Jerusalem'', Greenwood Publishing Group, 1987, p. 1. {{ISBN|0-313-25700-0}}
* "Jerusalem became the center of the Jewish people some 3,000 years ago" Moshe Ma'oz, Sari Nusseibeh, ''Jerusalem: Points of Friction - And Beyond'', Brill Academic Publishers, 2000, p. 1. {{ISBN|90-411-8843-6}}
* "The Jewish people are inextricably bound to the city of Jerusalem. No other city has played such a dominant role in the history, politics, culture, religion, national life and consciousness of a people as has Jerusalem in the life of Jewry and Judaism. Since King David established the city as the capital of the Jewish state c. 1000 BCE, it has served as the symbol and most profound expression of the Jewish people's identity as a nation." {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130104013732/http://www.adl.org/israel/advocacy/glossary/Jerusalem.asp |date=2013-01-04 }}, ], 2007. Accessed March 28, 2007.</ref> During ], Jerusalem was considered the center of the world, where God resided.<ref>Korb, Scott. ''Life in Year One.'' New York: Riverhead books, 2010. print, 155. {{ISBN|978-1-59448-899-3}}.</ref>


The city of Jerusalem is given special status in ]. In particular, Jews outside Jerusalem pray facing its direction, and the {{transliteration|he|], ]}} and ] must be eaten in Jerusalem. Any expansion of the city for these purposes must be approved by the ].{{Citation needed|date=December 2007}} When the ] was standing, Jerusalem also observed special laws regarding the ] on ], and the ] on ].
==Jerusalem, Jews and Judaism==
] which was also the symbol of the ], ] signifying Peace and the common trees in the region, and the ] in the background]]


{{rquote|left|And God said: "Take now thy son, thine only son, whom thou lovest, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah ; and offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of."|Genesis 22:2<ref>{{bibleverse|Genesis|22:2|HE}}</ref>}}
===Jerusalem in the Tanakh===
Jerusalem has long been embedded into the religious consciousness of the Jewish people. ]s have always studied and personalized the struggle by ] to capture Jerusalem and his desire to build the ] there, as described in the ] and the ]. Many of King David's yearnings about Jerusalem have been adapted into popular prayers and songs.


Jerusalem has long been embedded into Jewish religious consciousness. Jews have studied and personalized the struggle by ] to capture Jerusalem and his desire to build the ] there, as described in the ] and the ]. Many of King David's yearnings about Jerusalem have been adapted into popular prayers and songs.
===Jerusalem and the Jewish religious calendar===
]
Two major Jewish festivals observed by most ]s conclude with the words: "Next Year in Jerusalem" ("''l'shanah haba'ah birushalayim''") or "Next Year in the Rebuilt Jerusalem" ("''l'shanah haba'ah birushalayim hab'nuyah''"):


Jerusalem appears in the ] (]) 669 times and ] (which usually means Jerusalem, sometimes the ]) appears 154 times. The first section, the ], only mentions ], the mountain range believed to be the location of the ] and the ] in Jerusalem, and in later parts of the ] the city is written explicitly. The Tanakh (or ]), is a text sacred to both ] and ]. In Judaism it is considered the ], the basis for the ] (], ] and ]) studied, practiced and treasured by ]s and ] for three millennia.<ref>]</ref> The Talmud elaborates in great depth the Jewish connection with the city.
* At the conclusion of the ] ] on each night, participants break out into joyous, repetitious singing of "Next Year in Jerusalem".
* The holiest day on the Jewish calendar, ], also concludes the ] service with the Affirmation of Faith, a final great blast of the ] and exclamation and singing of "Next Year in Jerusalem".
Each of these days has an associated holy text, the '']'' for ''Pesach'' (Passover) and the '']'' for ''Yom Kippur'' (Day of Atonement), which stresses the desire to return to Jerusalem.


According to the Hebrew Bible, the First Temple, at the site known as the Temple Mount today, was built by King Solomon and finished in 930 BC,<ref>Lacey, Ian. "Judaism as a Religious Tradition – Israel & Judaism Studies" Israel and Judaism Studies.</ref> and Mount Moriah is where Abraham almost sacrificed his son and talked to God. When the ]ns captured the city in 587/6 BC, they destroyed the temple and sent the Jews into exile;<ref>"Temple Mount, The," GoJerusalem.com.</ref>{{full reference needed|date=June 2024}} as all worshiping was practiced in the temple and only the temple, from the time of Babylonian capture, Judaism was codified.<ref>Lacey, Ian. "Judaism as a Religious Tradition – Israel & Judaism Studies" Israel and Judaism Studies.</ref> The Tanakh (Old Testament) laid the foundation for both Christianity and Islam.
In Temple times, the three major festivals in ], ], ] and ] – the '']'', (the "three foot" festivals), were observed by all Jews making a pilgrimage to ], as commanded by the ]. In Jerusalem they would participate in festivities and ritual worship. After the destruction of the temple, the ] service was formulated as a substitute.


<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">
The ] is a verbal counting of each of the 49 days between the ] holidays of ] and ]. This ] derives from the ] commandment to count 49 days beginning from the day on which the Omer, a measure of barley, was offered in the ], up until the day before an offering of wheat was brought to the Temple on ].
File:Western wall jerusalem night.jpg|Jews worship at the ]
File:Orthodox Old Town.jpg|Member of the ] Jewish community walking in front of ]. Many members of the ultra-Orthodox community travel to and live in Jerusalem
</gallery>


==In Christianity==
The ] also played the main role during the ] and ] servies.
{{Main|Jerusalem in Christianity}}
{{see also|List of Christian holy sites in the Holy Land}}
]: Jerusalem is generally considered the cradle of ].<ref>{{cite book|title=Orientalism and Musical Mission: Palestine and the West|first=Rachel |last=Beckles Willson|year= 2013| isbn=9781107036567| page =146|publisher=Cambridge University Press|quote= }}</ref>]]


In ], Jerusalem's place in the life of ] gives it great importance, in addition to its place in the ]. Jerusalem is the place where Jesus was brought as a child, to be "presented" at the ] (] 2:22)<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|2:22}}</ref> and to attend festivals (Luke 2:41).<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|2:41}}</ref> According to the ]s, Jesus preached and healed in Jerusalem, especially in the Temple courts. There is also an account of Jesus' ], chasing various traders out of the sacred precincts (] 11:15).<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|11:15}}</ref> At the end of each of the gospels, there are accounts of Jesus' ] in an "upper room" in Jerusalem, his arrest in ], his trial, his crucifixion at ], his burial nearby and his ] and ]. Jerusalem is generally considered the cradle of Christianity.<ref>{{cite book|title=Orientalism and Musical Mission: Palestine and the West|first=Rachel |last=Beckles Willson|year= 2013| isbn=9781107036567| page =146|publisher=Cambridge University Press}}</ref>
The eight day festival of ] celebrates the rededication of the ] in Jerusalem after its desecration under ].


The earliest Christians were outcast and used the ] fish symbol as a way to know if someone was Christian. This would prevent prosecution or death from the Romans.<ref>"Christian Fish Symbol, The." Religion Facts.</ref>{{full reference needed|date=June 2024}} Christianity became more popular over time, but made a huge expansion when the Roman Emperor Constantine claimed Christianity as his religion and thus the religion of the Roman Empire.<ref>"One-Page Overview of Christian History, A" Religious Facts</ref>{{full reference needed|date=June 2024}} Jerusalem is mostly important to Christianity because it is where Jesus was brought occasionally as a child, preached to the poor in his adult life, crucified at the end of his life, and resurrected by God. The ] is said to have been built over the location where Jesus was crucified and where the tomb was buried.<ref>"Holy Sepulchre." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Academic Edition.</ref> The ] is generally considered the most important church in ].<ref>{{cite book|title=The World of the Crusades: A Daily Life Encyclopedia |first=Andrew |last=Holt|year= 2019| isbn=9781440854620| page =57|publisher=ABC-CLIO|quote=was housed in the most important church in Christendom, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.}}</ref>
The ] commands that once every seven years, Jews from all over the world, men, women and children, are to be assembled in the Temple courtyard in to hear select portions of the Torah read by the king. This is called ].


In Christianity, the Jewish connection with the city is considered as the account of God's relationship with his ]—the original ]—and the essential prelude to the events narrated in the ], including both universal commandments (e.g. the ]) and ] or ] ones.{{Citation needed|date=December 2023}} In medieval times, Christians thought Jerusalem was the center of the world (Latin: {{lang|la|umbilicus mundi}}, Greek: {{transliteration|grc|omphalos}}), and was so represented in the so-called ]s.{{Citation needed|date=December 2023}} Byzantine hymns speak of the Cross being "planted in the center of the earth," and the imagery is tied to the concept of the ] being for the benefit of all mankind. Medieval maps of Europe usually placed the east ("orient")—Jerusalem—at the top, and this arrangement led to the use of the term "to orient" to mean to align a map with actual compass directions.{{Citation needed|date=December 2023}}
Today, with over a quarter million Jews practicing ] living in Jerusalem, the Jewish festivals come to life in the Old and New Cities. The ], as well as synagogues throughout the city, host tens of thousands of fervent worshippers and celebrants.


<gallery widths="200" heights="200">
] fiery destruction 2,000 years ago by ].]]
File:Jerusalem Holy Sepulchre BW 24.JPG|Main entrance to the ]; the church is generally considered the most important church in ].<ref>{{cite book|title=The World of the Crusades: A Daily Life Encyclopedia |first=Andrew |last=Holt|year= 2019| isbn=9781440854620| page =57|publisher=ABC-CLIO|quote=was housed in the most important church in Christendom, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.}}</ref>
The saddest day on the Jewish religious calendar is the ], when Jews traditionally spend the day mourning over the loss of their two Holy Temples and the destruction of Jerusalem. In accordance with Jewish mourning custom, hundreds of people come to the ], site of the former Temples, throughout the night and day of this 24-hour fast to sit on the ground and cry over the destruction.
File:Jerusalem Cenacle BW 5.JPG|The ] on ], claimed to be the location of the ] and ]. ]<ref name="Pixner">Bargil Pixner, ''The Church of the Apostles found on Mount Zion'', ] 16.3 May/June 1990 </ref> claims the original ] is located under the current structure.
</gallery>


==In Islam==<!-- This section is linked from ] -->
Besides the Ninth of Av, two minor, ] to ] fast days also commemorate aspects of the destruction of Jerusalem. On the ], Jews mourn the time when ] laid siege to the ]. On the ], the mourning recalls the day that the army of ] broke through the outer walls of the ].
{{Main|Jerusalem in Islam}}
{{See also|Temple_Mount#Islam|l1=Religious significance of al-Aqsa|Islamization of the Temple Mount|Islamization of Jerusalem|Islamization of East Jerusalem under Jordanian occupation|}}
]
In ], Jerusalem is the ] after ] and ].<ref>''Middle East peace plans'' by Willard A. Beling: "The Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount is the third holiest site in Sunni Islam after Mecca and Medina".</ref><ref name="3rd">Third-holiest city in Islam:
* {{Cite book|last=Esposito|first=John L.|url=https://archive.org/details/whateveryoneneed00espo|title=What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2002|isbn=0-19-515713-3|page=|quote=The Night Journey made Jerusalem the third holiest city in Islam|author-link=John Esposito|url-access=limited}}
* {{Cite book|last=Brown|first=Leon Carl|title=Religion and State: The Muslim Approach to Politics|publisher=Columbia University Press|year=2000|isbn=0-231-12038-9|page=11|chapter=Setting the Stage: Islam and Muslims|quote=The third holiest city of Islam—Jerusalem—is also very much in the center...}}
* {{Cite book|last=Hoppe|first=Leslie J.|title=The Holy City: Jerusalem in the Theology of the Old Testament|publisher=Michael Glazier Books|year=2000|isbn=0-8146-5081-3|page=14|quote=Jerusalem has always enjoyed a prominent place in Islam. Jerusalem is often referred to as the third holiest city in Islam...}}</ref> Muslims believe that ] was transported to Jerusalem during his ].<ref name="17th3">{{Cite book|last=Buchanan|first=Allen|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bntCSupRlO4C&pg=PA192|title=States, Nations, and Borders: The Ethics of Making Boundaries|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2004|isbn=0-521-52575-6|author-link=Allen Buchanan}}</ref> The ] describes how the prophet was taken by the miraculous steed ] from the ] to ] ("the farthest place of prayer") where he prayed, and then to visit ] in a single night in the year 621.<ref>Brooke Olson Vuckovic. '''' (2004). ].</ref><ref name="17th3"/>


{{blockquote|Glory be to the One Who took His servant ˹Muḥammad˺ by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque whose surroundings We have blessed, so that We may show him some of Our signs. Indeed, He alone is the All-Hearing, All-Seeing.|{{qref|17|1|b=yl}}}}
The words used when Jews console any mourner during the customary ] are:
:"May God comfort you among all the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem"


Although the city of Jerusalem is not mentioned by any of ] in the Qur'an, it is mentioned in later Islamic literature as the place of Muhammad's Night Journey.<ref>Historic Cities of the Islamic World edited by Clifford Edmund Bosworth P: 226</ref> The story of Muhammad's ascension from Al-Aqsa Mosque was understood as relating to the ] (referred to as {{transliteration|ar|Bayt Al-Maqdis}}).<ref>"The Farthest Mosque must refer to the site of the ] in Jerusalem on the hill of ], at or near which stands the ]... it was a sacred place to both Jews and Christians... The chief dates in connection with the ] are: It was finished by ] about 1004 BCE; destroyed by the ] under ] about 586 BCE; rebuilt under ] and ] about 515 BCE; turned into a heathen idol temple by one of ]'s successors, ], 167 BCE; restored by ], 17 BCE to 29; and completely razed to the ground by the Emperor ] in 70. These ups and downs are among the greater signs in religious history." (], ''Commentary on the Koran'', 2168.)</ref> The Al-Aqsa Mosque is specified of being in Jerusalem in numerous ] (prophetic traditions):
===Jerusalem and prayer===
] in ], at the Western Wall Plaza, stands a large ] building used for ] and ].]]
The daily prayers, recited by religious Jews three times a day over the last two thousand years, mention Jerusalem and its functions multiple times. Some examples from the ] and the ] are:
:(Addressing God): "And to Jerusalem, your city, may you return in compassion, and may you rest within it, as you have spoke. May you rebuild it soon in our days as an eternal structure, and may you speedily establish the throne of (King) David within it. Blessed are you God, the builder of Jerusalem...May our eyes behold Your return to Zion in compassion. Blessed are you God, who restores his presence to Zion."


{{blockquote|When the people of Quraish did not believe me (i.e. the story of my Night Journey), I stood up in Al-Hijr and Allah displayed Jerusalem in front of me, and I began describing it to them while I was looking at it.|{{Href|bukhari|3886|b=yl}}}}
Additionally when partaking of a daily meal with bread, the following is part of the required "Grace After Meals" which must be recited:
:"Have mercy Lord our God, on Israel your people, on Jerusalem your city, on Zion the resting place of your glory, on the monarchy of (King David) your anointed, and on the great and holy (Temple) house upon which your name is called...Rebuild Jerusalem, the holy city, soon in our days. Blessed are you God who rebuilds Jerusalem in his mercy, amen."


{{quote|The most holy spot on earth is Syria; the most holy spot in Syria is Palestine; the most holy spot in Palestine is Jerusalem ; the most holy spot in Jerusalem is the Mountain; the most holy spot in Jerusalem is the place of worship , and the most holy spot in the place of worship is the Dome||], {{c.|770}}<ref>As quoted in ]'s ''Fada'il Bayt al-Muqaddas'' (c.1019)</ref><ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121008172729/http://www.christusrex.org/www1/ofm/sbf/dialogue/17AN.pdf |date=2012-10-08 }}</ref><ref></ref>}}
After partaking of a light meal, the thanksgiving blessing states:
:"...Have mercy, Lord, our God, on Israel, your people; on Jerusalem, your city; and on Zion, the resting place of your glory; upon your altar, and upon your temple. Rebuild Jerusalem, the city of holiness, speedily in our days. Bring us up into it and gladden us in its rebuilding and let us eat from its fruit and be satisfied with its goodness and bless you upon it in holiness and purity. For you, God, are good and do good to all and we thank you for the land and for the nourishment..."
]]]
When the Jews were exiled, first by the ] about 2,500 years ago and then by the ] 2,000 years ago, the great ] and scholars of the ] and ] instituted the policy that each ] should replicate the original ]. Moreover, it should be constructed in such a way that all prayers in the ] (prayer book) would be recited while facing Jerusalem, as that was where the ancient temple stood and that location was the only permissible place for the sacrificial offerings.


{{quote|] reports that the Prophet said, "How blessed is al-Sham! The Companions around asked: "Why is that?" The Messenger replied, "I see the angels of Allah spread their wings over al-Sham". ] added, "and the Prophets lived in it. There is not a single inch in al-Quds (Jerusalem) where a Prophet has not prayed or an angel not stood".||] (compiled between 864/5-884){{citation needed|date=June 2018}}}}
Thus synagogues in ] face ], synagogues in ] face ], synagogues in countries to the ] of Israel, such as ] or ], face north, and synagogues in countries to the east of Israel, such as ] or ], face ]. Even when a Jew prays privately, he faces Jerusalem, as mandated by Jewish law compiled by the rabbis in the ]. In Jerusalem itself, he should face the direction of the Western Wall in the Old City, and when he is standing at the Western Wall, he turns slightly to the left to face the location of the Holy of Holies (which is currently covered by the ]. (Compare ], ].)


The spiritual importance of Jerusalem in Islam is further emphasized due to its status as the first ] (direction of prayer). Islamic tradition holds that Muhammad led prayers towards Jerusalem until the 16th or 17th month after ], when ] directed him to instead turn towards the ] in ].<ref name="17th3"/>{{Qref|2|142-151|s=y|b=y}} Another part of Jerusalem's significance and holiness to Muslims derives from its strong association with ], ], ], and ]. They are all regarded as ] and their stories are mentioned in the Qur'an.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=El-Khatib|first=Abdallah|date=2001-05-01|title=Jerusalem in the Qur'a¯n|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/13530190120034549|journal=British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies|volume=28|issue=1|pages=25–53|doi=10.1080/13530190120034549|s2cid=159680405 |issn=1353-0194|quote=The Quran speaks about Hebrew patriarchs and prophets such as Abraham, Isaac, David, Solomon, and Jesus, who lived in the city or passed through it.}}</ref>
===Customs in remembrance of Jerusalem===
]
In some circles, a tiny amount of ash is touched to the forehead of a Jewish groom before he goes to stand beneath the bridal canopy. This symbolically reminds him not to allow his own rejoicing to be "greater" than the ongoing need to recall Jerusalem's destruction. The well-known custom of the groom breaking a glass with the heel of his shoe after the wedding ceremony is also related to the subject of mourning for Jerusalem. The groom recites the sentence from Psalms, "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget ''her cunning''." (Psalms 137:5). The translation given is from the ], the italicized words are not present in the Hebrew. All traditional Jewish commentators, however, agree with this translation; it was common in Biblical Hebrew to not explicitly express any possible negative consequence.


Today, the Temple Mount is dominated by three monumental structures from the early ] – the ] (691 CE), the ] (691–692 CE) and the ] (705–715 CE).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Temple Mount/Al Haram Ash Sharif {{!}} Middle East Attractions|url=https://www.lonelyplanet.com/israel-and-the-palestinian-territories/jerusalem/attractions/temple-mount-al-haram-ash-sharif/a/poi-sig/1443318/361047|access-date=2022-01-25|website=Lonely Planet|language=en}}</ref>
Another ancient custom is to leave a patch of interior wall opposite the door to one's home unpainted, as a remembrance of the destruction (''zecher lechurban''), of the Temples and city of Jerusalem.


==In Mandaeism==
===Western Wall in Jerusalem===
]]]
The ], in the heart of the ] of Jerusalem, is generally considered to be the only remains of the ] from the era of the Roman conquests. There are said to be esoteric texts in ] that mention God's promise to keep this one remnant of the outer temple wall standing as a memorial and reminder of the past. Hence the significance of the "Western Wall" (''kotel hama'aravi'') - also called the "Wailing Wall" by non-Jews, attesting to their perception of Jews' propensity to cry whenever they came before it.
]'s birth, inside Church of Saint John the Baptist, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem]]
]


According to ], ] see themselves to be former Judeans based in Jerusalem and she believes ] to be of Judean or Israelite origin.<ref name = BuckleyOrigins>Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2010). Turning the Tables on Jesus: The Mandaean View. In {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ncuQxl5Ate0C&dq=buckley+mandaean+turning+the+table+on+jesus&pg=PA109|title=''Christian Origins''|isbn=9781451416640|last1=Horsley|first1=Richard|date=March 2010|publisher=Fortress Press }}(pp94-111). Minneapolis: Fortress Press</ref> Mandaeans believe their chief prophet, ], was born in Jerusalem. According to the ], the Mandaeans loved the Lord ] until the birth of Jesus and had to flee Jerusalem due to persecution in the 1st century CE.<ref name=HG>{{cite book|last=Drower|first=Ethel Stefana|title=The Haran Gawaita and the Baptism of Hibil-Ziwa|publisher=Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana|year=1953}}</ref>{{rp|3}}
===Rabbis and Jerusalem===
The ] records that the rabbinical leader ] (c. 70 C.E.) urged a peaceful surrender, in order to save Jerusalem from destruction, but was not heeded as the city was under the control of the ].
An early expression of the Jewish desire to "return to Zion" is the journey of ], who died in about ]. Jewish legend relates that as he came near Jerusalem, overpowered by the sight of the Holy City, he sang his most beautiful elegy, the celebrated "Zionide" ''Tzion ha-lo Tish'ali'' and that at that instant he was ridden down and killed by an Arab.


] counts 45 mentions of Jerusalem in the ] and 84 in the ], noting that this is a higher frequency of mentions per page than the 274 mentions in the longer ]. Accounts about Jerusalem mention ], ], Jacob and Benjamin, and visits by the ] ] and ]. McGrath notes that the accounts of the destruction of Jerusalem in the ] portray it as justice for the persecution of Mandaeans, and suggests this to be evidence for a coherent proto-Mandaean community in Jerusalem prior to its destruction. This is similar to the Christian account that viewed the destruction of Jerusalem as vengeance for the persecution of Jesus and his followers. McGrath also adds that no other city in Mandaean literature is given as much attention as Jerusalem.<ref>{{cite journal |last=McGrath |first=James F. |author-link=James F. McGrath |title=Polemic, Redaction, and History in the Mandaean Book of John: The Case of the Lightworld Visitors to Jerusalem |journal=ARAM Periodical |volume=25 |issue=1&2 |year=2013 |pages=375–382 |url=https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/facsch_papers/886}}</ref>
]
He was followed by ], the ''Ramban'', who, in ] emigrated to the land of Israel, and came for a short stay to live in Jerusalem. He wrote that he found barely ten Jews, as it had been desolated by the ], nevertheless, together they built a ] that is the oldest that still stands to this day, known as the "Ramban Synagogue".


==See also==
Both ] (d. ]) known as the ''Vilna Gaon'', and ] (d. ]) known as the ''Ba'al Shem Tov'' instructed and sent small successive waves of their disciples to settle in Jerusalem then under ] ] rule. They created a Jewish religious infrastructure that remains the core of the '']'' Jewish community in Jerusalem to this day.
* ]

* ]
The ] authorities created the new offices of "Chief Rabbi" in ] for both ] and ] with central offices in Jerusalem. Rabbi ] (d. ]) moved to Jerusalem to set up this office, associated with the "Religious Zionist" '']'' group, becoming the first modern Chief Rabbi together with Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yaakov Meir. The official structure housing the Chief Rabbinate was completed in ] and is known as ''Heichal Shlomo''.
* ]

* ]
In contrast, the Chareidi Jews of Jerusalem formed the anti-Zionist ], an umbrella organization for all Chareidi Jews, who were not Zionists and fiercely opposed the activities of the (Religious) Zionist movement. The first Chief Rabbi of the Edah HaChareidis was Rabbi ]. The Edah has both Ashkenazi and Sefardi branches, though the Ashkenazi branch is the more famous one. Several groups formerly aligned with the Edah gradually broke away from it; these include the Chassidic movements ] and ].

Jerusalem is also home to a number of the world's largest '']'' (Talmudical and Rabbinical schools), and has become the undisputed capital of Jewish scholarly, religious and spiritual life for most of world Jewry.

==Jerusalem in the ]==
Jerusalem appears in the ] (Hebrew Bible) 669 times while ] (which usually means Jerusalem, sometimes the Land of Israel) appears 154 times. Jerusalem is not written in the ] but in later parts of the ] (or ]), a text sacred to both ] and ]. In Judaism it is considered the ], the basis for the ] (], ] and ]) studied, practiced and treasured by ]s and ] for three millennia (]). The Talmud elaborates in great depth the Jewish connection with the city. In Christianity, it is considered as the account of God's relationship with His chosen people - the original ] - and the essential prelude to the events narrated in the ], including both universal commandments (eg the ]) and obsolete or Judaism-specific ones.

For example, the book of ], which has been frequently recited and memorized by Jews and Christians for centuries, says: (etc.)

*"By the rivers of Babylon we sat down and wept when we remembered Zion." (Psalms 137:1)
*"For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us ''required of us'' mirth, ''saying'', Sing us ''one'' of the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the LORD's song in a strange land? '''If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget ''her cunning'' '''. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy. Remember, O LORD, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem; who said, Rase ''it'', rase ''it'', even to the foundation thereof; O daughter of Babylon, that art to be destroyed; happy shall he be, that repayeth thee as thou hast served us." (Psalms 137:3-8) (], with italics for words not in the original Hebrew)
*"O God, the nations have entered into your inheritance, they have defiled the sanctuary of your holiness, they have turned Jerusalem into heaps of rubble...they have shed their blood like water round Jerusalem..." (Psalms 79:1-3);
*"...O Jerusalem, the built up Jerusalem is like a city that is united together...Pray for the peace of Jerusalem..." (Psalms 122:2-6);
*"Jerusalem is surrounded by mountains as God surrounds his people forever" (Psalms 125:3);
*"The builder of Jerusalem is God, the outcast of Israel he will gather in...Praise God O Jerusalem, laud your God O Zion." (Psalms 147:2-12)

==Jerusalem in Christianity==
For ], Jerusalem's place in the life of ] gives it great importance, in addition to its place in the ], the ], as described above.

Jerusalem is the place where Jesus was brought as a child, to be 'presented' at the ] (] 2:22) and to attend festivals (Luke 2:41). According to the ]s, Jesus preached and healed in Jerusalem, especially in the Temple courts. There is also an account of Jesus' 'cleansing' of the Temple, chasing various traders out of the sacred precincts (] 11:15). At the end of each of the Gospels, there are accounts of Jesus' ] in an 'upper room' in Jerusalem, his arrest in ], his trial, his crucifixion at ], his burial nearby and his ] and ].
]]]

Tradition holds that the place of the Last Supper is the ], on the second floor of a building on ] where ] is on the first floor. The place of Jesus' anguished prayer and betrayal, Gethsemane, is probably somewhere near the ] on the ]. Jesus' trial before ] may have taken place at the ], to the north of the Temple area. Popularly, the exterior pavement where the trial was conducted is beneath the Convent of the Sisters of Zion. Other Christians believe that Pilate tried Jesus at Herod's Palace on Mount Zion.

The ], or way of suffering, is the traditional route to Golgotha, the place of crucifixion, and is an important pilgrimage. The route ends at the ] (perhaps the most holy place for Christians). The Holy Sepulchre is traditionally believed to be the location of Golgotha and Jesus' nearby tomb. The original church was built in ] by ]. The ] is a popular pilgrimage site near the ]. It was suggested by ] that this site, rather than the Holy Sepulchre, is the true place of Golgotha.
]
The ] and ] show ], the brother of Jesus, as leader of the early Jerusalem church. He and his successors were the focus for ] until the destruction of the city by Emperor ] in ]. The exclusion of Jews from the new city of Aelia meant that gentile bishops were appointed under the authority of the Metropolitans of ] and, ultimately, the ]. Emperor ] and his mother, Helena, endowed Jerusalem with churches and shrines, making it the foremost centre of Christian pilgrimage. The ] in ] raised the bishop of Jerusalem to the rank of ], fifth in rank behind ], ], ] and ]. However, Byzantine politics meant that Jerusalem simply passed from the Syrian jurisdiction of Antioch to the Greek authorities in Constantinople. For centuries, Greek clergy dominated the Jerusalem church.

In ], Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem, handed over the keys of the city to ]'s Muslim forces. The Muslim authorities in Jerusalem were not kind to their Christian subjects, forcing them to live a life of "discrimination, servitude and humiliation."<ref>Prawer, Joshua. "The Settlement of the Latins in Jerusalem," ''Speculum'' 27.4 (1952): 491.</ref> The mistreatment of Christians would only worsen as the armies of the ] approached Jerusalem. Fearing that the Eastern Christians had been conspiring with approaching crusaders, the Muslim authorities of Jerusalem massacred much of the cities Christian population, seeing the fortunate escape the city in terror.<ref>Ibid, 492.</ref>

On ] ], the army of the ] captured Jerusalem. Although ] inhabitants of Jerusalem were not slaughtered like their Islamic and Jewish counterparts they were, however, exiled from the city, as their new Latin rulers believed they were conspiring with the Muslims.<ref>Ibid, 493.</ref> Jerusalem became the capital of a ']' with a Latin church and a ], all under the authority of the ]. The city's first Latin ruler was ], who was elected in 1099.<ref>Riley-Smith, Jonathan. "The Motives of the Earliest Crusaders and the Settlment of Latin Palestine." ''The English Historical Review'' 98.398 (1983): 724.</ref> Throughout his short reign Godfrey struggled to increase the population of Jerusalem until his death in 1100. In 1100 Godfrey was succeeded by his brother ] who, unlike Godfrey, took the title of King of Jerusalem. With Jerusalem's population dwindling Baldwin I, as early as 1115, offered the Christians of ] a section of Jerusalem. These Christians were often the target of Muslim aggression and therefore promptly accepted Baldwin's proposal. <ref>Prawer, Joshua. "The Settlement of the Latins in Jerusalem," ''Speculum'' 27.4 (1952): 496.</ref> In ], when ] captured the city, the Holy Sepulchre and many other churches were returned to the care of Eastern Christians.

From the ] to the ], various Catholic European nations petitioned the ] for Catholic control of the 'holy places'. The ]s are the traditional Catholic custodians of the holy places. Control swung back and forth between the western and eastern churches throughout this period. Sultan ] (]-]), perhaps out of despair, published a ] that laid out in detail the exact rights and responsibility of each community at the Holy Sepulchre. This document became known as the ''Status Quo'', and is still the basis for the complex protocol of the shrine. The ''Status Quo'' was upheld by the British Mandate and ]. After the ] Arab-Israeli War, and the passing of the Old City into Israeli hands, the ] passed a law protecting the holy places. Five Christian communities currently have rights in the Holy Sepulchre: the Greek Patriarchate, Latins (Western Rite Roman Catholics), ], ] and ].

The ']' is the focus of a vision at the end of the ]. It is the perfect city where God lives among his people.

==Jerusalem in Islam==
The city of Jerusalem is considered sacred in th eyes of Islam<ref>Ali (1991), p. 58</ref>. The ] mosque in Jerusalem is considered the third holiest sites in Islam, after mosques of Mecca and Medina. Regarding the mosque, the Quran states,

: سبحان الذي أسرى بعبده ليلاً من المسجد الحرام إلى المسجد الأقصى الذي باركنا حوله
:"Glory be to Him Who made His servant (Muhammad) to go on a night from the Sacred Mosque to the remote mosque of which We have blessed the precincts, so that We may show to him some of Our signs; surely He is the Hearing, the Seeing." (17:1)

According to the vast majority of Islamic scholars, the "Sacred Mosque" referred to is the al-Aqsa mosque of Jerusalem<ref>Ali (1991), p.772</ref>. The reasons that Muslims present for the holiness of the city are:
*Jerusalem was the first ] for the early Muslim community, before ].
* ] is believed to have been taken by the flying steed ] to visit Jerusalem, where he prayed, and then to visit ], in a single night in the year ].
*Jerusalem is a site to which the encouraged pilgrimage in Islam.<ref></ref>
* It is strongly associated with people regarded as ] - in particular, ], ], and ].

The ] (a branch of the ]) states that the al-Aqsa "holds a prominent place in the hearts and minds of all Muslims" <ref></ref> however, it is the location of the ], considered by many Muslims to be the ]. Also in particular:



Many Muslims celebrate the anniversary of this event, the ] and ], on ] ] with ], gatherings and feasting, although ]s (including ]s) take the position that no regular festivals are permissible except the two ]s.

According to sound ] (sayings of Muhammad) transmitted by ] and others (and thus generally accepted by ]s, but not necessarily ]) Jerusalem was the site of the second mosque built on earth, forty years after Mecca (), and is one of only three cities to which pilgrimage is permissible, along with ] and ] (, , , .) Its conquest is described as one of the signs of the approach of the Hour (that is, the ]). Some ]<!--, whose authenticity is not considered as certain,WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?/!--> also specify Jerusalem (Bayt al-Maqdis) as the place where all mankind will be gathered on the ].

The earliest dated stone inscriptions containing verses from the Qur'an appear to be ]'s in the ] in Jerusalem, from 72 ] (] CE).

After the conquest of Jerusalem by the armies of the second ], ], parts of the city soon took on a Muslim character. According to Muslim historians, the city insisted on surrendering to the ] directly rather than to any general, and he signed a pact with its Christian inhabitants, the ]. He was horrified to find the ] - known to Muslims as ], the Noble Sanctuary - being used as a rubbish dump, and ordered that it be cleaned up and prayed there. However, when the Bishop invited him to pray in the ], he refused, lest he create a precedent for its use as a mosque. He visited the church, but when his companions were overcome by emotion and wished to pray he instead ordered them to recite the ''fatiha'', the opening chapter of the Qur'an. According to some Muslim historians, he also built a crude mosque on the Temple Mount, which was later replaced by Abd al-Malik. The ] chronicler ] (]-]) gives a somewhat different picture of this event, claiming that Umar "began to restore the Temple at Jerusalem" with encouragement from local Jews.

In ] the ] ] built the ] on the Haram al-Sharif; in ] the cupola over the ] was erected, the same being restored in ]-] by ]. In ] ] restored the Dome of the Rock and built the octagonal wall. During the ] rule of the ] in the middle of the 10th century CE, Jerusalem was the destination for the ]. In ] the Dome was partly destroyed by ]s; but it was repaired in ].

===Controversial claim===
In the context of proposals to radically reinterpret early Islamic history, certain ]s, such as ], have proposed that Muhammad's night journey to Jerusalem - the ], one of the principal foundations of Jerusalem's sanctity in Islam - was a later invention intended to account for an otherwise obscure verse. Others, such as ], have proposed that Jerusalem was in fact the original Islamic holy city, and that the sanctity of Mecca and Medina was a later innovation. Neither of these controversial theories enjoys wide acceptance, least of all among Muslims.

Some authorities have questioned the role of Jerusalem in Islam. An example of this is ] columnist ], who states that, due to the lack of mention of Jerusalem in the ] and the possible late adoption of the concept of Jerusalem as the 'third holiest shrine', the Muslim claim to Jerusalem is without merit.

The significance of Jerusalem in Islam has been questioned and debated for centuries by Muslims and non-Muslims alike. The Iraqi historian Abdul Aziz Duri and many others find "political reasons" behind it. It is pointed out and argued that :
* Jerusalem is never mentioned in the Qur'an, let alone the story of Muhammad's ascension to heaven from there{{fact}}
* There is no account of Muhammad re-visiting Jerusalem after his first trip{{fact}}
* The first extant inscriptions of Qur'an 17:1 in Jerusalem date only since the 11th century
* The title of Jerusalem being the third holiest was not commonly used until the early 20th century{{fact}}
* ], a close relative of the Prophet Muhammad, is quoted denigrating the notion that the prophet ever set foot on the Rock in Jerusalem; "these damned Syrians (]) pretend that God put His foot on the Rock in Jerusalem, though one person ever put his foot on the rock, namely Abraham."{{fact}}
* Muhammad's initial choosing of Jerusalem for the direction of prayer was most likely a tactic to win Jewish converts. "He chose the Holy House in Jerusalem in order that the ] would be conciliated," notes ], an early Muslim commentator on the Qur'an, "and the Jews were glad." Modern historians, such as ], a leading biographer of Muhammad, interprets the prophet's "far-reaching concessions to Jewish feeling" in the light of two motives, one of which was "the desire for a reconciliation with the Jews."{{fact}}
* The quotation from the Qur'an: "Glory to He who took His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the furthest mosque. (''Subhana allathina asra bi-‘abdihi laylatan min al-masjidi al-harami ila al-masjidi al-aqsa.'')" is particularly controversial{{fact}}:
** The "furthest mosque" was apparently identified with places inside Arabia: either Medina or a town called Ji‘rana, about ten miles from Mecca, which the Prophet visited in 630
** Elsewhere in the Qur'an (30:1), Palestine is called "the closest land" (''adna al-ard'')
** Palestine had not yet been conquered by the Muslims and did not contain any mosques
** The earliest Muslim accounts of Jerusalem, such as the description of Caliph ]'s reported visit to the city just after the Muslims conquest in 638, still did not identify the Temple Mount with the "furthest mosque" described in the Qur'an
** The Qur'anic inscriptions that make up a 240-meter mosaic frieze inside the Dome of the Rock do not include Qur'an 17:1 and the story of the Night Journey, suggesting that even as late as 692 the idea of Jerusalem as the lift-off for the Night Journey had not yet been established
** The Muslim Umayyads built a second mosque in Jerusalem during their occupation calling it Furthest Mosque (''al-masjid al-aqsa'', Al-Aqsa Mosque) in 715, nearly a century after the Qur'an was received. Palestinian historian A. L. Tibawi writes it "gave reality to the figurative name used in the Koran."
** Muhammad Abu Zayd wrote a book in Egypt in 1930 that had been considered by some to be too unorthodox that it was withdrawn from circulation. In it, among many other points, he dismissed the notion of the Prophet's heavenly journey via Jerusalem, claiming that the Qur'anic rendition actually refers to his Hijra from Mecca to Medina; "the more remote mosque" (al-masjid al-aqsa) thus had nothing to do with Jerusalem, but was in fact the mosque in Medina.
* Jerusalem has gone through different periods in history of religious neglect by Muslims{{fact}}
* The city was described in the tenth-century "a provincial town attached to Ramla," an insignificant town serving as the administrative capital city of the Syrian province of Palestine under the ] Arab Muslim empire.{{fact}}
* Muslims had been competing with the Christians in various wars, conquests, and crusades, which could have prompted Muslim leaders to make Jerusalem more central to Islam. Some leaders tried to essentially connect the territories by (unsuccessfully) attempting to move the pilgrimage ('']'') from Mecca to Jerusalem{{fact}}.
** Only as the Christian Crusader effort to retake Jerusalem arose in about 1150, did Muslim political leaders seek a "propaganda campaign" to rouse '']'' sentiments through heightening Islamic emotions about Jerusalem to justify their war. Volumes of "virtues of Jerusalem" ('']''s, books, poetry), which never appeared earlier than the Crusade, began to be distributed, some containing newly-written legends of Muhammad's words.
** ], the Muslim ruler of Egypt and Palestine, traded Jerusalem and its holy sites to the European Christians for leaving Egypt and a peace treaty
* In negotiations with ] in 1915-16 over the terms of the ] against the Ottomans, the British government decided not to include Jerusalem in territories to be assigned to the Arabs because, as the chief British negotiator, Henry McMahon, put it, "there was no place … of sufficient importance … further south" of ] "to which the Arabs attached vital importance."{{fact}}
* Israeli scholar Itzhak Hasson expands on Abdul Aziz Duri's findings: "The construction of the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa mosque, the rituals instituted by the Umayyads on the Temple Mount and the dissemination of Islamic-oriented Traditions regarding the sanctity of the site, all point to the political motives which underlay the glorification of Jerusalem among the Muslims."{{fact}}
* Jerusalem has never been requested by Muslims to be the capital city of any political entity until recent decades{{fact}}

==Jerusalem in Mandaeism==
In ] (an ancient ]-like non-] religion, once significant in numbers but now a small group found primarily in parts of southern ] and ]) Jerusalem is considered a city of wickedness, dedicated to the god of ], whom they call Adunay ('']'') or Yurba (possibly '']'') and consider to be an evil spirit. According to Sidra d-Yahia 54, Jerusalem is "the stronghold that Adunay built ... brought to it falsehood in plenty, and it meant persecution against my ''tarmidia'' (Manda d-Hiia's disciples)." In the ] (15.11), it is said to have come into being as a result of the incestuous union of the seven ]s with their evil mother ], who "left ], ], and ] in it. They said: 'Whoever lives in the city of Jerusalem will not mention the name of God.'" (Elsewhere, however, it more prosaically says the city was built by ].) However, ] (John the Baptist), an important figure in the religion, is said to have been born there.

Later on, in the days of ], it states that the good spirit Anush Utra went there, healed the sick and worked miracles, and made converts, confronting ] (whom they consider a false prophet) and refuting his arguments; but its inhabitants opposed him and persecuted the converts, 365 of whom were killed (GR 15.11) or forced out (GR 2.1.) Miriai, a ] or ] princess, was converted, and fled to the shores of the ]. This angered Anush Utra, who received permission from God to destroy Jerusalem and the temple, smash the "seven columns," and slay the Jews who lived there, after bringing out the remaining "believers." Elsewhere, the Ginza Rba (18) prophesises that Jerusalem "must flourish for a thousand years, remain a thousand years destroyed, and then the entire Tibil (material world) will be destroyed."

In the Abahatan Qadmaiia prayer, repeated during ] of the dead, the Mandaeans invoke blessings upon the 365 who they believe were killed or forced out of Jerusalem:

:''"Those 365 priests who came forth from the city of Jerusalem, the city of this ''masiqta'' and ''dukhrana'', a forgiveness of sins may there be for them."''


==Notes== ==Notes==
{{Reflist}}
<references/>

]
]


==References== ==References==
*Ioana Zamfir (2021), "," in ''Review of Ecumenical Studies''.
*{{cite book|first=]|last=Ali|title=The Holy Quran| publisher=King Fahd Holy Qur-an Printing Complex|location= Medina|year=1991 }}
*{{Cite book|first=Abdullah Yusuf|author-link=Abdullah Yusuf Ali|last=Ali|title=The Holy Quran| publisher=King Fahd Holy Qur-an Printing Complex|location= Medina|year=1991 }}


{{Islamic Leadership in Jerusalem}}
==External links==
{{DEFAULTSORT:Religious Significance Of Jerusalem}}
'']''. ]
]

Latest revision as of 14:44, 23 October 2024

Religious ties to a specific geography
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Jerusalem
City of David 1000 BCE
Second Temple Period 538 BCE–70 CE
Aelia Capitolina 130–325 CE
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    The city of Jerusalem is sacred to many religious traditions, including the Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam which consider it a holy city. Some of the most sacred places for each of these religions are found in Jerusalem, most prominently, the Temple Mount/Haram Al-Sharif.

    In Judaism

    Main article: Jerusalem in Judaism See also: Judaization of Jerusalem

    Jerusalem has been the holiest city in Judaism and the spiritual land of the Jewish people since the 10th century BC. During classical antiquity, Jerusalem was considered the center of the world, where God resided.

    The city of Jerusalem is given special status in Jewish religious law. In particular, Jews outside Jerusalem pray facing its direction, and the maaser sheni, revai and First Fruits must be eaten in Jerusalem. Any expansion of the city for these purposes must be approved by the Sanhedrin. When the Temple in Jerusalem was standing, Jerusalem also observed special laws regarding the Four Species on Sukkot, and the Shofar on Rosh Hashanah.

    And God said: "Take now thy son, thine only son, whom thou lovest, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah ; and offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of."

    — Genesis 22:2

    Jerusalem has long been embedded into Jewish religious consciousness. Jews have studied and personalized the struggle by King David to capture Jerusalem and his desire to build the Jewish temple there, as described in the Book of Samuel and the Book of Psalms. Many of King David's yearnings about Jerusalem have been adapted into popular prayers and songs.

    Jerusalem appears in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) 669 times and Zion (which usually means Jerusalem, sometimes the Land of Israel) appears 154 times. The first section, the Torah, only mentions Moriah, the mountain range believed to be the location of the binding of Isaac and the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, and in later parts of the Tanakh the city is written explicitly. The Tanakh (or Old Testament), is a text sacred to both Judaism and Christianity. In Judaism it is considered the Written Law, the basis for the Oral Law (Mishnah, Talmud and Shulkhan Arukh) studied, practiced and treasured by Jews and Judaism for three millennia. The Talmud elaborates in great depth the Jewish connection with the city.

    According to the Hebrew Bible, the First Temple, at the site known as the Temple Mount today, was built by King Solomon and finished in 930 BC, and Mount Moriah is where Abraham almost sacrificed his son and talked to God. When the Babylonians captured the city in 587/6 BC, they destroyed the temple and sent the Jews into exile; as all worshiping was practiced in the temple and only the temple, from the time of Babylonian capture, Judaism was codified. The Tanakh (Old Testament) laid the foundation for both Christianity and Islam.

    • Jews worship at the Western Wall Jews worship at the Western Wall
    • Member of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community walking in front of Silwan. Many members of the ultra-Orthodox community travel to and live in Jerusalem Member of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community walking in front of Silwan. Many members of the ultra-Orthodox community travel to and live in Jerusalem

    In Christianity

    Main article: Jerusalem in Christianity See also: List of Christian holy sites in the Holy Land
    Church of the Holy Sepulchre: Jerusalem is generally considered the cradle of Christianity.

    In Christianity, Jerusalem's place in the life of Jesus gives it great importance, in addition to its place in the Old Testament. Jerusalem is the place where Jesus was brought as a child, to be "presented" at the Temple (Luke 2:22) and to attend festivals (Luke 2:41). According to the gospels, Jesus preached and healed in Jerusalem, especially in the Temple courts. There is also an account of Jesus' "cleansing" of the Temple, chasing various traders out of the sacred precincts (Mark 11:15). At the end of each of the gospels, there are accounts of Jesus' Last Supper in an "upper room" in Jerusalem, his arrest in Gethsemane, his trial, his crucifixion at Golgotha, his burial nearby and his resurrection and ascension. Jerusalem is generally considered the cradle of Christianity.

    The earliest Christians were outcast and used the Ichthys fish symbol as a way to know if someone was Christian. This would prevent prosecution or death from the Romans. Christianity became more popular over time, but made a huge expansion when the Roman Emperor Constantine claimed Christianity as his religion and thus the religion of the Roman Empire. Jerusalem is mostly important to Christianity because it is where Jesus was brought occasionally as a child, preached to the poor in his adult life, crucified at the end of his life, and resurrected by God. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is said to have been built over the location where Jesus was crucified and where the tomb was buried. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is generally considered the most important church in Christendom.

    In Christianity, the Jewish connection with the city is considered as the account of God's relationship with his chosen people—the original covenant—and the essential prelude to the events narrated in the New Testament, including both universal commandments (e.g. the Ten Commandments) and obsolete or Judaism-specific ones. In medieval times, Christians thought Jerusalem was the center of the world (Latin: umbilicus mundi, Greek: omphalos), and was so represented in the so-called T and O maps. Byzantine hymns speak of the Cross being "planted in the center of the earth," and the imagery is tied to the concept of the Death and resurrection of Jesus being for the benefit of all mankind. Medieval maps of Europe usually placed the east ("orient")—Jerusalem—at the top, and this arrangement led to the use of the term "to orient" to mean to align a map with actual compass directions.

    In Islam

    Main article: Jerusalem in Islam See also: Religious significance of al-Aqsa, Islamization of the Temple Mount, Islamization of Jerusalem, and Islamization of East Jerusalem under Jordanian occupation
    Al-Aqsa Mosque

    In Sunni Islam, Jerusalem is the third-holiest city after Mecca and Medina. Muslims believe that Muhammad was transported to Jerusalem during his Night Journey. The Qur'an describes how the prophet was taken by the miraculous steed Buraq from the Great Mosque of Mecca to Al-Aqsa ("the farthest place of prayer") where he prayed, and then to visit heaven in a single night in the year 621.

    Glory be to the One Who took His servant ˹Muḥammad˺ by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque whose surroundings We have blessed, so that We may show him some of Our signs. Indeed, He alone is the All-Hearing, All-Seeing.

    — Quran 17:1

    Although the city of Jerusalem is not mentioned by any of its names in the Qur'an, it is mentioned in later Islamic literature as the place of Muhammad's Night Journey. The story of Muhammad's ascension from Al-Aqsa Mosque was understood as relating to the Temple in Jerusalem (referred to as Bayt Al-Maqdis). The Al-Aqsa Mosque is specified of being in Jerusalem in numerous hadith (prophetic traditions):

    When the people of Quraish did not believe me (i.e. the story of my Night Journey), I stood up in Al-Hijr and Allah displayed Jerusalem in front of me, and I began describing it to them while I was looking at it.

    — Sahih al-Bukhari 3886

    The most holy spot on earth is Syria; the most holy spot in Syria is Palestine; the most holy spot in Palestine is Jerusalem ; the most holy spot in Jerusalem is the Mountain; the most holy spot in Jerusalem is the place of worship , and the most holy spot in the place of worship is the Dome

    — Thawr ibn Yazid, c. 770

    Zayd ibn Thabit reports that the Prophet said, "How blessed is al-Sham! The Companions around asked: "Why is that?" The Messenger replied, "I see the angels of Allah spread their wings over al-Sham". lbn Abbas added, "and the Prophets lived in it. There is not a single inch in al-Quds (Jerusalem) where a Prophet has not prayed or an angel not stood".

    — Tirmidhi hadith (compiled between 864/5-884)

    The spiritual importance of Jerusalem in Islam is further emphasized due to its status as the first Qibla (direction of prayer). Islamic tradition holds that Muhammad led prayers towards Jerusalem until the 16th or 17th month after his migration from Mecca to Medina, when Allah directed him to instead turn towards the Kaaba in Mecca. Another part of Jerusalem's significance and holiness to Muslims derives from its strong association with Abraham, David, Solomon, and Jesus. They are all regarded as Prophets of Islam and their stories are mentioned in the Qur'an.

    Today, the Temple Mount is dominated by three monumental structures from the early Umayyad period – the Dome of the Rock (691 CE), the Dome of the Chain (691–692 CE) and the al-Aqsa Mosque (705–715 CE).

    In Mandaeism

    Church of Saint John the Baptist, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem
    Traditional spot of John the Baptist's birth, inside Church of Saint John the Baptist, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem

    According to Jorunn J. Buckley, Mandaeans see themselves to be former Judeans based in Jerusalem and she believes Mandaeism to be of Judean or Israelite origin. Mandaeans believe their chief prophet, John the Baptist, was born in Jerusalem. According to the Haran Gawaita, the Mandaeans loved the Lord Adonai until the birth of Jesus and had to flee Jerusalem due to persecution in the 1st century CE.

    James F. McGrath counts 45 mentions of Jerusalem in the Ginza Rabba and 84 in the Mandaean Book of John, noting that this is a higher frequency of mentions per page than the 274 mentions in the longer Babylonian Talmud. Accounts about Jerusalem mention John the Baptist, Miriai, Jacob and Benjamin, and visits by the uthras Anush Uthra and Hibil Ziwa. McGrath notes that the accounts of the destruction of Jerusalem in the Right Ginza portray it as justice for the persecution of Mandaeans, and suggests this to be evidence for a coherent proto-Mandaean community in Jerusalem prior to its destruction. This is similar to the Christian account that viewed the destruction of Jerusalem as vengeance for the persecution of Jesus and his followers. McGrath also adds that no other city in Mandaean literature is given as much attention as Jerusalem.

    See also

    Notes

    1. Zamfir, Ioana (2021-08-01). "Jerusalem in Motion. Images of Jerusalem in the Bible and Beyond". Review of Ecumenical Studies Sibiu. 13 (2): 160–174. doi:10.2478/ress-2021-0019.
    2. "Al Aqsa Mosque, The." GoJerusalem.com
    3. Since the 10th century BC:
      • "Israel was first forged into a unified nation from Jerusalem some three thousand years ago, when King David probably seized the crown and united the twelve tribes from this city... For a thousand years Jerusalem was the seat of Jewish sovereignty, the household site of kings, the location of its legislative councils and courts. In exile, the Jewish nation came to be identified with the city that had been the site of its ancient capital. Jews, wherever they were, prayed for its restoration." Roger Friedland, Richard D. Hecht. To Rule Jerusalem, University of California Press, 2000, p. 8. ISBN 0-520-22092-7
      • "The Jewish bond to Jerusalem was never broken. For three millennia, Jerusalem has been the center of the Jewish faith, retaining its symbolic value throughout the generations." Jerusalem- the Holy City, Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, February 23, 2003. Accessed March 24, 2007.
      • "The centrality of Jerusalem to Judaism is so strong that even secular Jews express their devotion and attachment to the city and cannot conceive of a modern State of Israel without it... For Jews Jerusalem is sacred simply because it exists... Though Jerusalem's sacred character goes back three millennia". Leslie J. Hoppe. The Holy City:Jerusalem in the theology of the Old Testament, Liturgical Press, 2000, p. 6. ISBN 0-8146-5081-3
      • "Ever since King David made Jerusalem the capital of Israel 3,000 years ago, the city has played a central role in Jewish existence." Mitchell Geoffrey Bard, The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Middle East Conflict, Alpha Books, 2002, p. 330. ISBN 0-02-864410-7
      • "For Jews the city has been the pre-eminent focus of their spiritual, cultural, and national life throughout three millennia." Yossi Feintuch, U.S. Policy on Jerusalem, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1987, p. 1. ISBN 0-313-25700-0
      • "Jerusalem became the center of the Jewish people some 3,000 years ago" Moshe Ma'oz, Sari Nusseibeh, Jerusalem: Points of Friction - And Beyond, Brill Academic Publishers, 2000, p. 1. ISBN 90-411-8843-6
      • "The Jewish people are inextricably bound to the city of Jerusalem. No other city has played such a dominant role in the history, politics, culture, religion, national life and consciousness of a people as has Jerusalem in the life of Jewry and Judaism. Since King David established the city as the capital of the Jewish state c. 1000 BCE, it has served as the symbol and most profound expression of the Jewish people's identity as a nation." Basic Facts you should know: Jerusalem Archived 2013-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Anti-Defamation League, 2007. Accessed March 28, 2007.
    4. Korb, Scott. Life in Year One. New York: Riverhead books, 2010. print, 155. ISBN 978-1-59448-899-3.
    5. Genesis 22:2
    6. List of Jewish prayers and blessings
    7. Lacey, Ian. "Judaism as a Religious Tradition – Israel & Judaism Studies" Israel and Judaism Studies.
    8. "Temple Mount, The," GoJerusalem.com.
    9. Lacey, Ian. "Judaism as a Religious Tradition – Israel & Judaism Studies" Israel and Judaism Studies.
    10. Beckles Willson, Rachel (2013). Orientalism and Musical Mission: Palestine and the West. Cambridge University Press. p. 146. ISBN 9781107036567.
    11. Luke 2:22
    12. Luke 2:41
    13. Mark 11:15
    14. Beckles Willson, Rachel (2013). Orientalism and Musical Mission: Palestine and the West. Cambridge University Press. p. 146. ISBN 9781107036567.
    15. "Christian Fish Symbol, The." Religion Facts.
    16. "One-Page Overview of Christian History, A" Religious Facts
    17. "Holy Sepulchre." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Academic Edition.
    18. Holt, Andrew (2019). The World of the Crusades: A Daily Life Encyclopedia . ABC-CLIO. p. 57. ISBN 9781440854620. was housed in the most important church in Christendom, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
    19. Holt, Andrew (2019). The World of the Crusades: A Daily Life Encyclopedia . ABC-CLIO. p. 57. ISBN 9781440854620. was housed in the most important church in Christendom, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
    20. Bargil Pixner, The Church of the Apostles found on Mount Zion, Biblical Archaeology Review 16.3 May/June 1990
    21. Middle East peace plans by Willard A. Beling: "The Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount is the third holiest site in Sunni Islam after Mecca and Medina".
    22. Third-holiest city in Islam:
      • Esposito, John L. (2002). What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam. Oxford University Press. p. 157. ISBN 0-19-515713-3. The Night Journey made Jerusalem the third holiest city in Islam
      • Brown, Leon Carl (2000). "Setting the Stage: Islam and Muslims". Religion and State: The Muslim Approach to Politics. Columbia University Press. p. 11. ISBN 0-231-12038-9. The third holiest city of Islam—Jerusalem—is also very much in the center...
      • Hoppe, Leslie J. (2000). The Holy City: Jerusalem in the Theology of the Old Testament. Michael Glazier Books. p. 14. ISBN 0-8146-5081-3. Jerusalem has always enjoyed a prominent place in Islam. Jerusalem is often referred to as the third holiest city in Islam...
    23. ^ Buchanan, Allen (2004). States, Nations, and Borders: The Ethics of Making Boundaries. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-52575-6.
    24. Brooke Olson Vuckovic. Heavenly journeys, earthly concerns (2004). Routledge.
    25. Historic Cities of the Islamic World edited by Clifford Edmund Bosworth P: 226
    26. "The Farthest Mosque must refer to the site of the Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem on the hill of Moriah, at or near which stands the Dome of the Rock... it was a sacred place to both Jews and Christians... The chief dates in connection with the Temple in Jerusalem are: It was finished by Solomon about 1004 BCE; destroyed by the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar about 586 BCE; rebuilt under Ezra and Nehemiah about 515 BCE; turned into a heathen idol temple by one of Alexander the Great's successors, Antiochus Epiphanes, 167 BCE; restored by Herod, 17 BCE to 29; and completely razed to the ground by the Emperor Titus in 70. These ups and downs are among the greater signs in religious history." (Yusuf Ali, Commentary on the Koran, 2168.)
    27. As quoted in Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Wasiti's Fada'il Bayt al-Muqaddas (c.1019)
    28. Jerusalem for the Three Monotheistic Religions. A Theological Synthesis, Alviero Niccacci Archived 2012-10-08 at the Wayback Machine
    29. The Ḥaram of Jerusalem, 324-1099: temple, Friday Mosque, area of spiritual power, by Andreas Kaplony, 2002
    30. El-Khatib, Abdallah (2001-05-01). "Jerusalem in the Qur'a¯n". British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies. 28 (1): 25–53. doi:10.1080/13530190120034549. ISSN 1353-0194. S2CID 159680405. The Quran speaks about Hebrew patriarchs and prophets such as Abraham, Isaac, David, Solomon, and Jesus, who lived in the city or passed through it.
    31. "Temple Mount/Al Haram Ash Sharif | Middle East Attractions". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 2022-01-25.
    32. Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2010). Turning the Tables on Jesus: The Mandaean View. In Horsley, Richard (March 2010). Christian Origins. Fortress Press. ISBN 9781451416640.(pp94-111). Minneapolis: Fortress Press
    33. Drower, Ethel Stefana (1953). The Haran Gawaita and the Baptism of Hibil-Ziwa. Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana.
    34. McGrath, James F. (2013). "Polemic, Redaction, and History in the Mandaean Book of John: The Case of the Lightworld Visitors to Jerusalem". ARAM Periodical. 25 (1&2): 375–382.

    References

    Islamic leadership in Jerusalem
    Hanafi Muftis
    Grand Muftis
    From 1914–1918, the Ottoman Empire claimed As'ad Shukeiri as Qadi.
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