Lumen Olivarum: July 2019

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Update from Temple Mount: “Twian Shall Meet” and “Twas Not Neat”

A Saudi blogger, Mohammed Saud, visited the Temple Mount last week following an invitation from the Israeli government. Saud was harassed by a group of Palestinians who swore and spit on him telling him to go to the Israeli Knesset to pray. A video captures the event. Apparently, they were angry because of Saud’s support for (and advocacy to live peacefully with) Israel. As a result four Palestinians, which included a 14-year-old boy, were prevented from entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque for 15 days. The harassment of Saud also resulted with more conflict when a group of Saudis attacked Palestinians on the Temple Mount in retaliation. This was unfortunate. Perhaps this was part of the mentality of “an eye for an eye.” The attacks from both sides show the tensions that exist between these Saudis and Palestinians. Conflicts center on various views concerning Jerusalem. According to Dr. Mordechai Kedar, who is an Israeli scholar of Arabic culture, and a staunch defender of Israel,

Jerusalem [Palestinians] is known for its hostile attitude toward every Arab or Muslim who was perceived as a collaborator or peace advocate. They also shot King Abdullah I at the Temple Mount, only because he had an agreement with Chaim Weizmann. The negative attitude toward anyone who is perceived as a traitor on the Islamic issue is known….All the Palestinians, and especially the Islamic Movement, are trying to make Jerusalem the center of interest of the Muslim world. They're trying to turn Jerusalem into the cultural destination of every Muslim in the world. Their goal is to attack the country at its borders and Jerusalem in the center and they express this in various ways. The spokesmen of the Muslim movement, like Sheikh Kamal Khatib in 2014, and even before that, Safwat Hijazi of Egypt said that Jerusalem should be the capital of the Islamic world, not Mecca and not Medina, but Jerusalem, and this very much angers the Saudis.

So when the Saudis and the Palestinians met on the Temple Mount this past week, it revealed to me yet another divide that exists in the Middle East. In this last episode of conflict, the two meet, and it was not neat. Even the response above from Mordechai Kedar demonstrates an Israeli perspective that seems to side with Saudis and not with the Palestinians. I continue to hope and pray that in Jerusalem people might live peaceful and godly lives.

For more information on the tensions between Saudis and Palestinians, see “Why a Group of Saudis Beat up Palestinians on the Temple Mount.”

Temple Mount Visit (Summer 2017)

I was happy to see water fountains (bubblers if you are from Wisconsin) on the Temple Mount Visit (Summer 2017)

Temple Mount Visit (Summer 2017)

Sunday, July 7, 2019

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ אֱלֹהֵינוּ, מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם

Spiral Galaxy NGC 972 (NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope)

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe. You feed the whole world with goodness, kindness, and mercy. Blessed are you, O Lord, for you feed the universe.

Saturday, July 6, 2019

The Birkat Ha-mazon: Testimony of the Human Heart for God’s Mercy

I have been reflecting on the Birkat Ha-mazon, which is the Jewish prayer of blessings said after a meal. According to the Talmud, the blessings are traced back to Moses, Joshua, David, and Solomon (b. Ber 48B).^{^[1]} One of the blessings contains a prayer for God to have mercy upon Israel, Jerusalem, Sion, and the sanctuary.

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe. You feed the whole world with goodness, kindness, and mercy. Blessed are you, O Lord, for you feed the universe.

O Lord our God, we give thanks to you because you have given to us a desirable earth [that we might eat of its fruits and be filled with its goodness]. Blessed are you, O lord our God, because of the earth and because of food.

O Lord our God, have mercy on your people Israel and upon your city Jerusalem and upon Sion the dwelling place of your glory and of your altar and your sanctuary. Blessed are you, Lord, the builder of Jerusalem.^{^[2]}

For this prayer to have continually and gradually spread throughout the world, even since the destruction of the Second Jewish Temple in 70 CE, seems to be an enduring testimony of the human heart’s desire for God’s mercy. From a Christian perspective, even in Paul’s own day he spoke of those gifts and calling that are unique to the Israelite People (Rom 9:1-5; 11:29) and that one day God will again show them mercy (vv. 31-32).

Artwork on Mamilla Mall, Jerusalem, Israel

Grapevine near Hostel, Jaffa, Israel

Western Wall, Jerusalem, Israel

^{^[1]} Jacob Neusner, The Babylonian Talmud: A Translation and Commentary (vol. 1; Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2011), 321:

Said R. Nahman, “Moses ordained for Israel the blessing of the Grace after meals ending, ‘Who feeds all,’ when manna came down for them.

“Joshua ordained for them the benediction [in the Grace after Meals] for the land, when they entered the land.

“David and Solomon ordained for them, ‘Who builds Jerusalem.’

“David ordained the passage, ‘For Israel, your people, and for Jerusalem, your city,’ and Solomon ordained, ‘For the great and holy house.’

^{^[2]} Johnson, Worship in the Early Church: An Anthology of Historical Sources, 1.5.

Monday, July 1, 2019

Jerusalem Pilgram Road to Temple Mount Officially Opens

US and Israeli dignitaries visited the official opening of the Pilgrimage Road in the Old City of David this past Sunday. The event was condemned by some who accused it as part of a “settler project.” Ancient worshipers ascended up the steeped passage from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount where they worshiped at the Second Jewish Temple. Much of the Pilgrimage Road is presently underground in the Palestinian city of Silwan, but in recent years the road has been cleared and reinforced.

When I visited Israel in the summer of 2018, Pilgrimage Road was not officially open. However, I discovered some of the passage ways of the drainage channel underneath that Israeli archeologists have uncovered. Although I attempted to make my way up to the Temple Mount, I had to turn around because the passage was becoming too narrow for comfort.