Jerusalem Day

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JERUSALEM DAY

Jerusalem Day is celebrated on the 28th of the Hebrew month of Iyar (Friday, May 14th, 1999). This is the day according to the Hebrew calendar that the Old City of Jerusalem was liberated during the 1967 Six-Day War. But more than anything else, Jerusalem Day signifies the 3,000 years that Jerusalem has served as the Jewish capital.

It is sometimes difficult to explain to an outsider the uniqueness of Jerusalem to the average Israeli. There can be no Israel without Jerusalem. It is the heart of the nation and it is the heart of the Jewish religion.

For example, nearly every Israeli is familiar with the streets and sights of Jerusalem in a way and to a depth of familiarity not found with other cities. It is almost like a second home to a Jew from Tel-Aviv, Haifa or Raanana. The mountain air is invigorating, especially in the evening or at night. And every footstep you take, it is with the knowledge and the all-powerful feeling that others have walked this way before you -- perhaps even King David himself.

King David made Jerusalem the capital of the Jews 3,000 years ago. This is a thousand years (a millennium) before Christianity even existed. The Arabic language did not exist and there were no Arabs. (Scholars in linguistics will attest to the fact that the Arabic language came into being only around the 6th century BCE).

The ancient character of Jerusalem can best be illustrated by the following story. I recall reading a newspaper article some years ago about an old water pipe in Jerusalem that had been dripping water. A new road had been constructed and the pipe had evidently been cut in two by the construction. No one knows how long water dripped from the pipe, but eventually someone decided to do something about it and try to find a way to turn off the water. Closer examination revealed an amazing fact: the pipe was over 2,000 years old - and yet it did not look that much different in appearance from a typical old municipal water pipe. This, then, is part of the age-old essence of Jerusalem.

THE JEWISH CAPITAL
Some 3,000 years ago Jerusalem was outside the areas controlled by the 12 tribes. King David hoped that by capturing Jerusalem from the Jebusites, he would create a national Jewish capital and would avoid inter-tribal jealousies.

(NOTE: Does anyone recall the story of how Washington D.C. became the capital of the United States? Washington D.C. is located outside the areas belonging to the original 13 colonies. The colonial fathers hoped to create a national American capital and to avoid inter-colonial jealousies. Did the founding fathers of the United States learn from King David's example?)

A WORD ABOUT THE JEBUSITES: The Jebusites who controlled and inhabited Jerusalem before King David conquered the city, were definitely not Arabs. These people of the Late Bronze Age were not Palestinians either, who would come into existence many centuries later. The Jebusites were not Philistines. Moreover, the Bible specifically mentions that Jerusalem was a Jebusite and not an Amorite city up until the time of David. So that rules out the Amorites. Historians do not know much about the pagan Jebusites -- only what they are not.

The Jebusites ruled Jerusalem as a city-state. However, King David was the first to transform Jerusalem into a national capital. In fact, throughout thousands of years of history, Jerusalem served only the Jews as BOTH a national and religious capital.

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