Oh, Jerusalem! (3)

As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, (Mark 11:1)

The public life of Jesus is composing of the journey starts from Galilee to Jerusalem via Samaria. Galilee is a departing point and Jerusalem ending point. Jesus’ declaration of the kingdom of God greatly highlighted in Galilee but was denounced in Jerusalem. Why does such thing happen?

Such matter is difficult to explain base on a certain fact. The gospels that describe Jesus’ public life don’t have any interest in such social matter. We only can understand such matter indirectly through reading the lines of the Bible.

One of the reasons was that the leaders of Jews didn’t consider Jesus’ ministry in Galilee as a risky thing for their hegemony for it hadn’t actualized and he didn’t make any big power group. In Galilee Jesus might be received as a mere wondering preacher or a general Rabbi. He lived as a friend of sinners and tax collectors. He healed the diseases and drove out evil spirits. And he removed sin consciousness from people.

However, such Jesus’ movement of the kingdom of God gradually got power. Though the description of the gospel that the numbers of 5000 who got experienced the event of five loaves and two fishes is a little overstated the fact Jesus might have huge followers is clear. Such followers made Jewish leader uncomfortable. Especially there were many civil revolts in Galilee in those days.

It is right to say that a decisive cause of betrayal in Jerusalem, executing on the cross was the expression of the desire of Jew’s leader in Jerusalem to keep their present peaceful life or maintenance of the status quo. In such place a paradigm shift cannot be allowed. Is present Korean church not similar to such Jerusalem?

Oh, Jerusalem! (2)

As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, (Mark 11:1)

If Jesus didn’t come to Jerusalem and worked in Galilee and Samaria vicinity only what would be happened to his destiny? There is no ‘if’ in history. History is not a fixed reality but the series of shifts and changes of event so we cannot measure history in such way. The fact Jesus came to Jerusalem only became an obvious history. From there, his crucifixion occurred, followed by his resurrection and ignited early Christian movement.

Jerusalem is, as I mentioned yesterday, the holy place of many religions. It is the holy land. Holy means a manifesting of life. There is no other holy thing except life. The reason we are calling God holy for we believe that he created life, maintaining it and finally will complete it. However, Jerusalem, the holy place was rather the land of death for Jesus. How many prophets were murdered in Jerusalem too!

From the end of last year till now Israel holding Jerusalem as a holy place raised a war. They bombed Gaza area of Palestine ruling by Hamas and already resulted the casualty of ten thousands and 5,000 injuries. Why Israel, calling herself as the holy nation and chosen people of God, does such anti-life activity? Is it an extended line of the tradition of executing Jesus on the cross?

The answer is easy. The people and system think self holy cannot allow any challenge against them. They beautify their war as a holy war. A dictator cannot allow others who stand against his absolute rule. He wraps a cruel purge as a realization of justice. When will be the time Jerusalem a holy city can restore a real peace and realize in it? It is the time to recall the scene of Jesus weeping by seeing Jerusalem.

Oh, Jerusalem! (1)

As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, (Mark 11:1)

Jesus and his disciples approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany. Bethphage and Bethany are the neighboring villages of Jesus. How was Jesus’ feeling? Other people entirely unnoticed what would be happened in Jerusalem but Jesus himself had a feeling that his destiny would be decided here in Jerusalem. The shadow of darkness and death might be ripened that had been approaching him in his journey.

Jerusalem is a peculiar city. Historically Jerusalem became a capital city by David. Before David’s kingdom it was ruled by Jebusites, the native tribe of Canaan. It was the same even under King Saul’s reign, the first king of Israel. David conquered Jerusalem and established a physical foundation of his kingdom. Solomon, son of David built the Jerusalem Temple. Jerusalem with a palace and a temple was nothing lacked as the city of Israel.

Though there were the holy places such as Shechem, Silo and Samaria in Northern Israel, it couldn’t compare to Jerusalem in Southern Judea. Jeroboam who founded Northern Israel erected the golden carves in Shechem and Silo in order to stop people’s coming and going to Jerusalem, the capital city of Southern Judea. However, the step Jeroboam had taken wasn’t able to exceed the authority of Jerusalem.

David might not able to drive out the entire natives though he ruled them by army power. He might be applied an adaptation policy later. Despite this policy he couldn’t demolish their entire culture. Though Jerusalem was the holy place of Judaism still it wasn’t fully escaped from the influence of gentile religion. The history of Jerusalem got more confused after A.D. and finally Jerusalem became the holy places of all the major religion of the world. Judaism, Islam and Christianity are insisting that Jerusalem is the holy place of their own religion.