Reading Responce Ch. 14-18

Hello Everybody. :)


Throughout these chapters, Armstrong repeatedly mentioned how building was used as a type of warfare. To build a mosque/church/synagogue in a place was to claim it as the respective builders sacred territory. To build one religious building higher than another was extremely provocative. This was common in the Middle Ages, but it came up again in Chapter 18 (Zion?) when the Israeli government demolished  Arab houses and built new homes for Jewish people to create more of a Jewish presence as quickly as possible.

There was a brief interlude in Chapter 16 where philanthropy became a new type of fighting, each side tried to out-nice each other basically. Poor Jews converting to Christianity because Christians promised that they would be taken care of. I wish we could have stuck with this, even though it was mainly done in the quest for converts/keeping people from converting.

Something else that I found to be interesting was the First municipal council (baladiyya all-quds) consisting of six Muslims, two Christians and, eventually two Jews. They were able to work together cooperatively and creatively. Why can't something like this happen again? 

The chapter about the 6-Day-War and the Israeli takeover actually made me sympathize with the Israeli cause more. I don't know if it was Armstrong's  writing style that was influencing me, or Holocaust guilt (which influenced many Western powers) but I could really feel for them. In no way to I approve of or like what they did (like, at all) but I could understand it more.

On page 406, Armstrong states that "The new Jewish passion for the holiness of Jerusalem could not be gainsaid by mere United Nations directives nor by logically discursive arguments. It was powerful not because it was legal or reasonable but precisely because it was a myth." This statement really had an impact on me. It wasn't nice, and it wasn't very reasonable, but they were so deeply psychologically set on it that it became a necessity. In the past I've had a lot of trouble understanding why the Israelis did this, or how they got away with it, and why they just ignored the United Nations directives, but they felt that it was sacred and that it was right.

I really enjoyed these last few chapters because of their relevance to the modern day. But then again, I guess that the point of the book (at least in a way) was that the hundreds of pages of super condensed history is relevant because the history is so deeply ingrained in people's minds. All of the abuses and slights of years past really matter to people now. Thousands of years of history have led up to the current day position now. And I can't help but think that this is why the situation is such a difficult mess.

Four hundred and thirty pages later, despite having a much better grasp on the history of Jerusalem, I feel like I have barely scratched the surface of the city of Jerusalem. I look forward to learning more.