On May 14, 2018, the United States of America officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of the Nation of Israel by opening up its Embassy there. President Donald Trump did what no other U.S. President (since Truman) was willing and bold enough to do. He went beyond the symbolic intention of merely recognizing that the city of Jerusalem was, in theory and Judeo-Christian history, the ancestral capital of the Jews to making it an acceptable reality by America. His action, that was both stimulated and celebrated by his base and those on the conservative right, has exasperated the hostility and volatility of the region. Ironically, the city of Jerusalem, whose name literally means (in the Hebrew language) “possession of peace” has become a bone of contention. Jerusalem is recognized by both Judaism and Christianity as their most holy and sacred city while Islam is its second most revered city (second only to Mecca) which has historically been the one piece of real estate contested for more than any other in history.
As I have watched the unfolding drama that has been going on for decades between the Israelis and Palestinians, I have grappled with mixed emotions about this issue that has been a powder keg waiting to explode. Being a devout student and adherent of Judeo-Christian beliefs, I am compelled to side with the Jews’ right to possess their ancestral capital. However, in my humanity and compassion for the plight of the Palestinians, my heart goes out to these pitiful people who seem to be positioned between a rock and a hard place. In regard to this perplexing issue that pits the ancestral and religious heritage of the Israelis against the humanity and basic needs of the Palestinians, it is very difficult for me to take sides without overriding either my religious conviction or my compassion.
Can it be possible that both sides, the Israelis and the Palestinians, are right or should I say, have a right? It is possible (from a biblical perspective) that just as the natural seed of Abraham through Isaac has the right to lay claim to Jerusalem as their ancestral capital, as well as the right that was given them in conquest during their war in 1967 against the Arabs, so does the Palestinians who descended from Abraham’s son Ishmael through Sarah’s Egyptian handmaid Hagar also have the right to live in peace and prosperity as well as dignity and liberty? Certainly, the God of compassion, who is not a respecter of person, desires these descendants of Abraham who are crammed and contained in an area about the size of Washington D.C. to have adequate space and the means to be free, autonomous, and productive people.
The contention and hostility that exist between the Israeli and Palestinians over Jerusalem and the contiguous land is much more than a bone of contention. It is a perplexity that will continue to incite unrest in that area, the Middle East, and the entire world until the One comes who has the wisdom and authority to settle the dispute. Until the feet of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords touches down on the Mount of Olives (see Zechariah 14:3-4) upon His triumphant return to Jerusalem, it shall continue to be a burden and bone of contention. Regardless of where any of us might stand in our political or theological perspective about the Israeli and Palestinian’s conflict, whether we are on the side of those who are praising or the ones who are protesting, these inspired words are very fitting for our conclusion: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem…” (Psalm 122:6).