Siege Of Jerusalem Research Paper

The Crusades were a series of wars over the holy lands such as Jerusalem between European Christians and the Ottoman Empire between the 11th and 15th centuries. They fought for many reasons such as control over religious sights, access to trade and protection of fellow christians.

The crisis in Jerusalem dragged both Israel and Palestine into a vortex of violence and a religious conflict. Both Israelis and Palestinians had claim the city as a sacred religious site and their political capital. The conflict became quite violent causing the closure of holy sites, a deadly terrorist attack caused the Palestinian's to end all contact with Israel. Despite the peace efforts between the states, societies continued to rupture along ethnic and religious lines. Israel's continued unfolding with religious conflict and persisted in illegal actions causing living conditions for Palestinian civilians to become unlivable. Jews have formed the largest religious group in the city and have been in the majority. However, the Arab and Jewish communities in Palestine were in mortal dispute. Under an agreement approved by the United Nations, Jerusalem was meant to become a separated body but due to Arab forces sieging Jerusalem, and withdrawing of the British mandate, Jerusalem became a huge battleground. Jewish settlers pushed Muslim Arabs out of their homes and established the state of Israel on their land during the middle of the 20th century. Christianity, Judaism, and Islam are extremely tied to the ancient city due to them recognizing Jerusalem as a holy place. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is over which gets what land and how that land is

By the year 1000 B.C.E the Jews had founded Israel as their national state (“Jews”). They actively practiced a very distinctive religion, Judaism. Israel was conquered several times and eventually came under the rule of the Roman Empire (“Jews”). During this time, Jews were legal citizens of the Empire. However, the Jews and Christians diverged quickly; the Jews were marginalized for being different and strange. They rejected the belief that Jesus is the Messiah and other christian laws. Eventually the Jewish revolt in 135 C.E. drove the Jews out of Jerusalem (“Jews”). They then lived throughout the Roman Empire and the materializing medieval states. They lived in their own communities called ghettos because they were not allowed to own land

After their exile, around fifty-thousand Jews returned to Jerusalem which was now called Judaea. The leader of Judea, the Persian King Cyrus, allowed the Jews to return and to build another place of worship (Fisher 251). The second temple was built in 515 BCE and according to the text Living Religions, became “the central symbol to a scattered Jewish nation” (Fisher). The temple became a place where the Torah was formed and where the religion prospered. However, Jewish prosperity was not going to last. After four centuries of Roman rule, that was domineering and dreadful, a group of Jews decided to rebel against their oppressors. This led to Jews being slaughtered by the Romans and to the second Temple being destroyed. All that is left of the Temple are foundation stones which are referred to as the Western Wall. The temple has never been rebuilt and the Western Wall has become a place for prayer and remembrance for Jews all over the world. Jewish people look at the Western Wall as a representation of the hardships and oppression that their religion and people have endured. According to the article, Mystical Secret of the Western Wall:

The Siege of Jerusalem has been incongruously regarded as anything from a “chocolate covered tarantula” (Hanna 109) to “a work of moderation” (Narin Van Court 169). While these opinions greatly differ and are in immediate conflict with each other, there is no doubt from any critic that an important piece to the study of Siege is discussion of its treatment of Jews. Whether the poem is intended as an allegory for the crusades, or at its heart a piece of anti-Semitic literature as many suspect, there is a need to grapple with the portrayal of the Jews.

Neighboring countries to Israel are trying to rip the Jews from their home, even though it is made clear that they have a deep historical connection to the land. In a recent speech from Benjamin Netanyahu, he explains some of the historical connection of the Jewish people to Israel: “I have on display a signet ring that was loaned to me by Israel’s Department of Antiquities...it dates back some 2,800 years ago, two hundred years after King David turned Jerusalem into our capital city. The ring is a seal of a Jewish official, and inscribed on it is his name: Netanyahu...Ladies and Gentlemen, The connection between the Jewish people and the Land of Israel cannot be denied.” Netanyahu is revealing the historic relation of his name to a Jewish official in Israel thousands of years ago. The connection with the Jews and the State of Israel is truly undeniable.

Whereas the Temple Mount is the site of the Jewish Temple destroyed first by Babylon in 587 BCE and a second time by Rome in 69 CE; and whereas the Jewish People have never abandoned hope of returning to the site of their ruined Temple.

The Jewish community became oppressed by Roman rule after the Romans occupied Israel and they had taken over the appointment of the High Priest, as well as collecting and delivering an annual tax to the empire (Telushkin, 1991). In 67 A.D., the Jewish people revolted over the Roman overlords and were sieged for three years. In 70 A.D., the Romans entered Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple, while killing tens of thousands of Jews and burning the Holy City. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke make many references to the destruction of the Temple and the sufferings of the Jews and Christians, which will have some consequences for understanding Jesus' return. The destruction of Jerusalem was important to the Jewish and Christian communities,

were chosen by God to set up a state of Israel where they could not be

Jewish people have always been wanderers. They are everywhere, and often only temporarily. Jews lived for so long with no home anywhere and a sense of having to eventually move on to a new place. The only place that is the authentic home to the Jews is the holy city of Jerusalem, “God’s previous address,” Yehudah Amichai called it . The Jewish people at the start of the Torah are not in their Promise Land. They were persecuted as slaves in Egypt, traveling through

All of Jerusalem had been destroyed and rebuilt many times because they would always fall from their beliefs and give in to the temptations of the world around them. Even in the end when Jeremiah proclaimed they would fall to the wrath of God because of their ways they still ignored the consequences. God still loved his people and showed mercy to those who He loved. Although we may not understand how God could be so forgiving during that time, because so many of us would have pushed them away and forgot them. Jerusalem had been forgotten by neighbors because of the destruction of their own doings, and in the end have been

“A’ole TMT, aloha aina.” Today, Hawaiians are facing a huge impact on their culture and beliefs. Astronomers and scientist want to destroy Mauna Kea ( hawaiian sacred temple) so they can be ne’ele (nosey) and explore our solar system. Mauna Kea is located on our youngest island; Hawaii. Mauna Kea is a descendant of the sky father (Wakea) and the mother earth (Papa Hanau Moku.) As our sacred temple is in the process of being destroyed our the people hawaii chant “E iho ana o luna. E pi`i ana o lalo. E huli ana na moku. E ku ana ka paia”. In english this chant says, “we will stand together high and low and fight for our island until we are all united as one nation.” Many native hawaiians are getting arrested for standing up for what they believe in. Some police officers cry on the scene because as much as they want to be with their people chanting and protecting the aina up at Mauna Kea, they have to be the ones arrest their own people. According to national geographic, Mauna Kea is the tallest mountain in the world. This dormant volcano stands at 32,696 ft- causing it to be the highest point in the United States and a potential site for the thirty meter telescope. ( para 2) Although the thirty meter telescope has been in the process for

The destruction of the First Temple of Jerusalem by the Babylonians (586 BC) and the subsequent

Before, King David gathered a surplus of wealth when in power to bring the Jewish culture into the Golden Age. “With Solomon...the surplus accumulated...rapidly dissipated in ambitious building.” (Asali p.53) through large fortifications and military armaments. At his old age, he placed a heavy tax burden on his people, and in turn they became largely bitter towards him. After his death, massive conflicts came before the people to eventually split Israel and Judah into separate kingdoms. In 800 B.C.E., “two centuries later, the Assyrians conquered the north, and many of the Jews of Israel were deported” (Ardito, Gambaro and Torrefranca p.42). Later, in 600 B.C.E., the kingdom of Judah was overthrown by the Babylons. In turn, this lead to their captivity as slaves; entering a new era of a nomadic culture spread across the western world. On the other hand, it was this captivity which strengthened their religious identity, and evidently propagated the largest monolithic deity known throughout the 21st century: Jesus Christ.

After King Saul died, David was appointed king. The temple built by King Solomon who also held the Ark of the Covenant. This was where sacrifices were made to God. After the first temple was built the Jewish people were sent to Babylon and after their return 50 years later, a second temple was built. This second temple was where the Torah was established. After a war with the Romans in 132-135 CE the Jewish temple was destroyed and Jewish people were forbidden to practice their faith (Fisher, 2005). Judea was renamed Palestine and the Jewish people no longer had a home.