Jerusalem, Earthly and Heavenly

A number of years ago I visited San Diego, California to deliver a lecture at a local synagogue. On the next day, I prevailed upon my friend and colleague, the rabbi of the synagogue to accompany me across the US-Mexican border to visit Tijuana. Ignoring the advice of the rabbi that the visit was not worth the time I insisted in doing so anyway. The rabbi was right. Tijuana was vastly disappointing. But on the way back, crossing into the United States from Mexico an incident occurred that has remained stamped in my memory ever since.

The burly Mexican American customs officer at the border examined my passport and paused. He then asked me in awe and wonderment: "Do you really live in Jerusalem?"

When I answered affirmatively he looked at me and said: "How blessed you must be to be able to live in Jerusalem."

It was a moment of transcendent revelation to me. Truly, I should feel fortunate and blessed to live in Jerusalem. The customs officer confirmed a truism to me that, like other truisms in life, I sometimes tend not to remember and concentrate on.

I live in a very special place at a very special time. I have an opportunity granted to me that was denied to generations of my more worthy ancestors. I should savor and appreciate this opportunity and not treat it in a cavalier or mundane fashion. The Jewish past has an opportunity to currently live with and through me. There is responsibility carried with this opportunity.

The Talmud asks: "Why are the hot springs baths of Tiberias not located in Jerusalem?" Why are the great and tasty fruits of the Ginossar area not grown in Jerusalem?"

The Talmud responds: "So that no one should ascend to Jerusalem for the sweet fruits or for the hot baths. Rather, one ascends to Jerusalem for the sake of Jerusalem itself."

Jerusalem is holy, mysterious, the soul of Jewish history and longing.

Jerusalem is its own attraction. It does not rely upon natural wonders, outstanding weather or unusual surroundings for its attraction. It is holy, mysterious, the soul of Jewish history and longing. The rabbis taught us that there is a heavenly Jerusalem perched over the earthly Jerusalem. In order to truly appreciate the earthly Jerusalem one must also be able to glimpse the heavenly Jerusalem as well.

To see Jerusalem as a piece of real estate, a place on the map, is not to see it at all, let alone appreciate its role in Judaism and Jewish life and thought. The driving force behind Zionism, even its most secular format, was the hunger of the Jewish people for Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the emotional battery that charged all of the movement of the return to Zion by Jews in the 19th and 20th centuries. The earthly Jerusalem with all of its wonders and problems, greatness and shortcomings, is a product of seeing the heavenly Jerusalem with eyes of tears and hope.

Nehemiah built the walls of Jerusalem at the beginning of the Second Temple period with one hand on the sword and the second one on the building locks. But Midrash records that his eyes were always looking heavenward at the heavenly Jerusalem.

The capital's diplomatic fate is a hot topic of conversation these days. The people who claim to represent our best interests regarding the city apparently only see the earthly Jerusalem. In their practicality they have become wildly impractical. There is no way for a body to survive once its heart has been broken asunder.

There has never been a Jewish power in our history that contemplated willingly ceding Jerusalem or any part of it to others, especially to sworn enemies who denigrate our faith and question our right to exist. It is the complete disregard, whether out of ignorance or ideology, of the heavenly Jerusalem that brings one to compromise the very existence of the earthly Jerusalem, a Jerusalem that we should feel so blessed and appreciative to control.

A friend of mine summed up the matter when he told me this story about his aged father who had just come to Israel on aliya in his eightieth year. The son settled the father in a very comfortable senior citizen residence in the coastal part of the country. But after two months the father insisted on relocating to Jerusalem. He said: "I have not waited for 80 years to finally come to the Land of Israel and not to live in Jerusalem."

We see the traffic jams, the torn-up streets, the problems of living in a metropolis that is still developing. That is the earthly Jerusalem. But the heavenly Jerusalem resonates in our souls and hearts and that is what makes life in the earthly Jerusalem so meaningful and important.

How can it be otherwise?

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Published: December 8, 2007
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Visitor Comments: 27

(26) Zipporah, August 3, 2011 7:39 PM

Jerusalem called to me in my youth, a deep heart and soul felt desire to "come" . In 1976 at the age of 20, I made my trek to Israel and there lived and walked the soil from the Bible of old. When I left in 1977, Jerusalem was, and still is, imbed in the depths of my soul for life. I am not of Jewish origins that I know of, but I often wonder???

(25) Peretz, May 23, 2011 7:39 PM

Why am I in America when my heart is in Yerushayim?

Bobbi, November 15, 2011 4:39 PM

From Canada, I wonder the very same thing...

(24) shlomo, December 13, 2010 2:02 PM

If I forget thee

how can we even think of ceding this part of land that was lent to our eternally in fact we read in the psalms that if we don't hold Jerusalem in our chief joys our right hand will forget its skill. How any leader can think of doing this is simply mind numbing! Please Hashem cause our enemies once yet to save us from our folly!

(23) Hersh, January 27, 2008 2:00 PM

What about Yirmiyahu and Rabbi Yochanan?

Rabbi Wein writes, "There has never been a Jewish power in our history that contemplated willingly ceding Jerusalem or any part of it to others, especially to sworn enemies who denigrate our faith and question our right to exist." Yirmiyahu the prophet said we should capitulate to Nebuchadnezzar (Yirmiyahu 27:12). And Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai said we should surrender to the Romans (Gittin 56a). Does Rabbi Wein feel that these two men were unimportant because they were not in power?

(22) Christine, January 18, 2008 8:25 AM

I went to Yerusalem in 2007,and my soul still there,I love Yerusalem very much and I prayed for peace in Yerusalem.I want to go there again and again.I want to have Israeli friends......

(21) shannon, January 8, 2008 12:55 PM

i would agree

i would love to live in Israel during this time...it is a holy place and i have many great friends in the area...how wonderful.

(20) Gary Katz, December 14, 2007 11:19 PM

Arabs can't sell to Jews, even if they want to.

The problem with Andy's suggestion of Jews buying out Arabs is that any Arab who sells his land to a Jew is likely to be soon murdered by other Arabs.

(19) Joshua, December 14, 2007 4:17 AM

Response to Bob Stern

Bob, I entirely share your views and the Rabbi's regarding not wanting to cede Jerusalem to "sworn enemies", but to conclude that every Arab is our enemy and somehow has to be paid to leave is no solution at all. (How much will you pay, and from where will you get the money? Not practical is it really?
Essentially the Holy Temple stood, where another site stands that is holy to another faith -Islam. Pilgrims visit other parts of the Old City to celebrate Christianity. Religious freedom is one of our most greatest desires: for all religions. It's not about world opinion only (though it plays a big part) but also about how each of us relates to this special place- Jerusalem. Make it hell for others and they will make it hell for us. You have a responsibility not to propogate hatred. One will have no peace. This is the point our enemies must in time learn, whether in 1, 100 or in 1000 years, as they have no peace either. What will they do when the oil runs out? Wisdom and trust in G-d will give us the strength to continue. And yes , when the time is right, we must and so must the Arabs ( who are not our sworn enemies) find a way to compromise. Certainly not at the moment, but we can cut out the rubbish statements about transfer please.

(18) SarahRachel, December 12, 2007 7:01 AM

The Temple Mount Was Given Up

Yes, there HAS been a Jewish power in our history that gave up a part of Jerusalem, and that is the giving back the Temple Mount to the Arabs after Israel was re-established. Oh sure, Israel said it retained the final say over it, but it really did not as the Arabs have totally controlled it. They should not have even been given one iota of any control over it at all. Without the COMPLETE TOTAL control over the Temple Mount in Jewish hands, Israel cannot stand. It is the heart, the soul, the direct line to Hashem without which the land and people become corrupted because they are not receiving their spiritual sustenance as they should be. Get the Arabs out, and resume TOTAL control over the Temple Mount by Torah-true Jews, and see what a difference this will make in the rectification of Israel.

(17) Anonymous, December 11, 2007 10:00 AM

To Andy: you call this willingly?

No Jew would ever willingly give up Jerusalem. After more than half a dozen wars and thousands of victims HY"D, and under the tremendous pressure of Uncle Sam and world opinion, you can hardly call it willingly.
As for Israel being a power: if you believe the UN resolution and US support are what made Israel a power, they are the ones demanding the ceding of Jerusalem. If you believe it was military might, unfortunately, with suicide bombers around, it's an endless battle (there's nothing with which to scare people who are willing to die anyway). If you believe it's Hashem's doing, let's see what the Torah sages teach us.
In the times of the Maccabees, Judaism was outlawed, and that prompted the revolt of the Torah leaders against the Syrian-Greeks. Under the Roman siege, however, Judaism was not in danger, therefore the sages surrendered. In 1948, during the Arab siege, the Arabs were killing Jews, not trying to convert them to Islam.
So the key word, my friend, is not "willingly", it's "physical danger" versus "spiritual danger".
"Remember the days of old, understand the years of the generations. Ask your father and he will tell you, your grandfather and he will speak to you."

(16) Andy, December 10, 2007 8:59 AM

bobb stern not in reality here//rabbi Wein right .key is willingly

There has never been a Jewish power in "our history that contemplated willingly ceding Jerusalem or any part of it to others,".When Jews compromised on Jerusalem in the past it was when they were victims not a power.
As for Bob's suggestion to buy the Arabs out and ship them elsewhere.It seems to me that there is even less chance of that happening then buying out the Jews and shipping them elsewhere.It is most unlikely, but I wonder what would happen if the USA offered American citizenship to any Jew or Arab resident of Jerusalem who was willing to move.

(15) Anonymous, December 9, 2007 10:59 PM

why we must not give up any part of Yerushalayim

If we end up giving up even one inch of Yerushalayim- which by its first letters means our yirusha- our inherutance- we will be expected to give up more and more until the world will expect that we give up even the Jewish neighborhoods. Any giving up of land- anywhere in Yisrael- is a sign of weakness. Have you not read history over the centuries to understand that the Arabs only respect us when we have the upper hand and show our strength? It is leftists like you who will compromise our safety and our entire homeland for a piece of paper and promises of peace which are actually empty words.

(14) Anonymous, December 9, 2007 10:08 PM

P.S. to my comment "Oh yes..."

And... we survived! And Jerusalem survived as well. Come what may, it will survive until the coming of Moshiach.

(13) sheeba josef, December 9, 2007 8:49 PM

Excellent you make us feel what jerusalem is

(12) Anonymous, December 9, 2007 7:17 PM

Oh yes, two instances, not one

One was at the end of the second Temple era, when the Sages wanted to surrender to the Romans but were violently prevented by the biryonim ("zealots"), until Yohanan ben Zakai left Jerusalem by a ruse playing dead.
The other time was in 1948, during the Arab siege of Jerusalem, when the rabbis of the Old City wanted to surrender but were shot at by the militants. Rabbis Velvel Minzberg and Chacham Chazan finally slipped out with a white flag and thereby saved what was left of the yishuv's inhabitants.

(11) Joe Whitehead, December 9, 2007 5:51 PM

There is no greater reality than G-d

Philip, the question is: How long can 3 million hostile Palestinians deny the reality and Ideolgy of the G-d of Israel?
Do we chose UN Resolution 242 over Ezekiel 37:21-28? Who is really in charge, G-d or the evil United Nations?
You decide!

(10) Anonymous, December 9, 2007 3:19 PM

Jerusalem must never be divided. The Muslims have 2 other holy cities - Jerusalem is only third in importance. A Jerusalem divided is a Jerusalem that will not survive.

(9) Sara, December 9, 2007 2:35 PM

One piece is never enough

There are many ideologies. It seems doubtful that surrendering "some of Jerusalem" will ever turn hostility into love and acceptance.

(8) Hubert Schaab, December 9, 2007 1:18 PM

For the sake of life, don't give it to them

Rabbi Wein is right. The enemies of Israel deny the Jews any right to Jerusalem or the land of Israel. They even deny them their history there. Sharing the City is giving in to a lie.

(7) Constancy, December 9, 2007 1:14 PM

I'll never see Jerusalem in this life, but I hope when I leave this life I'll be allowed a quick stop on the way.
Phillip, Palelstinians have done nothing with the lands already ceded to them; I greatly fear that their idea is to stop at nothing until the entire region is theirs and all opposition dead or gone. Of course, by then whole area will lie in waste.

(6) JBKGallant, December 9, 2007 12:29 PM

O Jerusalem!

If this country ain't worth fighting for,it ain't worth living in.
Our Hope is not yet lost.
Will He find faith when He comes?

(5) Beverly Vive, December 9, 2007 12:18 PM

a word to Philip

I'll pray for haShem's assistance with your unbelief. May the God of Israel, Isaac and Jacob forgive you. Believe, and miracles happen.

(4) Bob Stern, December 9, 2007 11:49 AM

The Rabbi is right and Philip is wrong.

Philip, I mean no disrespect, but we have different definitions of ideology.
In my university days I majored in Internationl Relations and minored in Political Science. I was taught that an ideology is a closed system of knowledge permitting of no deviations. I don't think this politcal scientist's definition applies to the Rabbi. If it did, that would mean he expected the Jewish Nation to die without Jerusalem. IMHO he is saying that the Jewish people (American Jews too, regardless of what Ehud Olmert has to say.) would be heartbroken without it's spiritual heart. A senitiment with which I heartily agree.
As for the Arabs, buy them out and ship them off to Jordan or some other Arab country. I know the world including my own USA will condemn Israel for such an action. I say to the devil with world opinion. They hate Israel and by extension the whole Jewish people no matter what we do.

(3) Marsha, December 9, 2007 10:40 AM

Passport

Reality, Phil, is the Palestinians don't want peace, no matter what we give them. And I'd like to know how the Mexican border guard knew the author lived in Jerusalem, because neither an American nor Israeli passport lists city of residence...

(2) ruth housman, December 9, 2007 10:15 AM

O Jerusalem!

Yes, there is an earthly and a heavenly Jerusalem, that which we acknowledge is the dream, Jerusalem of gold. And yet, for me, wherever I go these days, I feel the echo of this place. I think that what is in our hearts, for whatever we love, we can find wherever we go. There is a one ness to life. Here where I am, I can find desert, and stream, and that shining. I have been to Jerusalem, in Israel and yes, I have felt the magic of walking the streets, the history, the beauty, the agony, the ecstasy and the dream. For me, Jerusalem belongs to us all, meaning the Family of Man. To recognize this, maybe, is what's symbolic of Jerusalem which is that striving for brotherhood, for sisterhood, and the notion that perhaps, even if we cannot prove it, we have been in each other's tents.

(1) philip, December 9, 2007 9:58 AM

For the sake of life

Pikuach Nefesh may require a surrender of some of Jerusalem. How long can Israel guard 3 million hostile Palestinians. Ideology (yours) should not trump reality

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About the Author

Rabbi Berel Wein

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Rabbi Berel Wein is the founder and director of the Destiny Foundation. For over 20 years, he has been identified with the popularization of Jewish history through lectures, more than 1000 audiotapes, books, seminars, educational tours and, most recently documentary films.

Rabbi Wein has authored five Jewish history books ― including Faith and Fate, the story of the Jews in the Twentieth Century ― all of which have received popular and critical acclaim. His newest book is The Oral Law of Sinai, an illustrated history of the Mishnah logic, legend & truth.

Rabbi Wein, a member of the Illinois Bar Association, is the recipient of the Educator of the Year Award from the Covenant Foundation. Most recently, Rabbi Wein received the Torah Prize Award from Machon Harav Frank in Jerusalem for his achievements in teaching Torah and spreading Judaism around the world. Rabbi Wein lives and teaches in Jerusalem. Visit his site at http://www.rabbiwein.com