Daily Times

The Quran states that “And We said after Pharaoh to the Children of Israel, ‘Dwell in the land, and when there comes the promise of the Hereafter, We will bring you forth in [one] gathering.’ (Surah Al-Isra, 104)”. According to this verse, it is obvious that one day Jews were destined to be gathered in one place and in one gathering.

Jews believe that their messiah will arrive in Jerusalem (where they are gathered) and at the place of Temple Mount; after his arrival, the most prestigious time of Jews shall begin. Muslims believe that when Prophet Esa shall return, he will denounce both the Jewish belief system and also the Christian belief system. Christians on the contrary believe that Christ shall return to Jerusalem and will certify the Christian belief system and faith. Jerusalem is important for that one event for the three Abrahamic religions; Islam, Judaism and Christianity.

For all these three religions, Temple Mount is believed to be the place where the messiah shall emerge. This is why Temple Mount is one of the most revered places for Judaism, Christianity and Islam; it is the third most sacred site for Muslims. However for being sacred for multiple faiths, the Temple Mount is also a site that is the cause of friction between Muslims and followers of Judaism and Christianity. In 1996, the committee of Yesha Rabbis decreed that Jews should enter the Temple Mount although it has long been declared a the prayer site only for Muslims. Jews were banned from entering the site by rabbis themselves. To counter this ban by the rabbis, in 1996 the committee imposed a restriction on entering only certain parts of Temple Mount.

In the year 2000, Ariel Sharon visited the Temple Mount, which instigated the second intifada also known as Al-Aqsa intifada that lasted until 2005. After a gap of three years, when the Temple Mount was reopened in 2003, Yesharabbis were encouraged to immediately resume entering the Temple Mount where they would perform solitary prayers. Besides the objections of Muslims with regard to Jew’s entering the Temple Mount, Mercaz Harav yeshiva, the Chief Rabbinate, and the majority of Haredi rabbis object to allowing Jews to enter the Temple Mount.

This is because, according to Halakha, all Jews are considered impure because of their contact with the dead. Jews believe that during the temple period (536 BCE to 70 CE) Jews had the provision of “sin water” which is the ash of the red heifer mixed with water, which they use to cleanse themselves. However according to their belief, after the destruction of the Second Temple, red heifers were not available any more. Moreover after the destruction of the Second Temple, even the precise dimensions of the Temple were lost including that of Kodesh Kodashim which is the most sacred site because it identifies the dwelling place of the Shechina — the Divine Presence (in Muslim belief system, it is the possible location of the Ark of the Covenant).

For all these three religions, Temple Mount is believed to be the place where the messiah shall emerge. This is why Temple Mount is one of the most revered places for Judaism, Christianity and Islam; it is the third most sacred site for Muslims. However for being sacred for multiple faiths, the Temple Mount is also a site that is the cause of friction between Muslims and followers of Judaism and Christianity

In the time of the Temple, no one was allowed to enter this sacred location of Shechina. However after the destruction of the Second Temple, neither the location of Shechina is specifically known, nor are red heifers the available, therefore the Jews were altogether banned from entering the Temple Mount by their rabbis so as not to accidentally cross into the location of Kodesh Kodashim. Those that violate this decree incur the theoretical penalty of Karet (which is divinely imposed death). This self-imposed ban served the Muslims. However since 1996 and later after 2003, the Yesha Council’s decree is challenging this self-imposed ban and Jewish students flood Temple Mount on a daily basis.

For a very long time, the Jews have harbored a wish to build a third temple at the site of Temple Mount. For Jews this third temple would be the welcoming place of the Jewish Messiah. However this very site (Temple Mount) is also home to the two major Muslim sites, the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque.

For Muslims, the Temple Mount is a holy place primarily because before the conquest of Jerusalem, in 621 BCE Prophet Muhammad PBUH arrived at this place on Buraq to take a brief tour of heaven with the angel Gabriel. After the conquest of Jerusalem, the Temple Mount became known as al-Haram al-Sharif to the Muslims. In 690BCE, the Dome of the Rock was built and in 715 BCE, the Al-Aqsa mosque was built at this location. Ever since the thirteenth century, Jews had never entered Temple Mount due to the rabbinical prohibition and also because Muslims didn’t allowed the Jews to enter it.

After the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, the temple was left under Jordanian control and Jews still weren’t allowed to enter even the old city of Jerusalem. However after 1967 when the Israel Defense Force (IDF) took control of the site, Temple Mount came under the direct control of Jews. However even then, Muslim Waqf was maintaining the site probably because the Jews were not allowed to enter the site by their religious scholars. However the Jews had been praying at the Western wall all along. Since the occupation of Temple Mount by Jewish defense forces in the Six-day war, the Jews are pressing for a change in the rule for visiting the Temple Mount.

After the 1967 war, Jews captured the Eastern part of Jerusalem and most part of the West Bank; this included the holy sites. On December 5, 1949, the first Jewish Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion proclaimed Jerusalem as Israel’s eternal capital and hinted at moving the capital from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem one day. However Palestinians and Muslims across the globe consider East Jerusalem and the holy sites as belonging to Muslims only.

The Trump administration recently threw its weight behind Israel’s bid to declare Jerusalem as its capital by announcing moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem thus accepting Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Whereas this move has many political connotations, however the reality is that Jews want to build the third temple over the site of Temple Mount which is located in the East Jerusalem area. In an effort to locate the Ark of Covenant, the Jews had already dug much of the foundations of Temple Mount thus risking the whole structure of the two holy sites — Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque. This declaration of Jerusalem is an event of immense importance for Jews.

It is interesting to note that about a third of the Jerusalem city’s residents are Arab Muslims. This move to declare Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is a major act of provocation. This will not only mean resistance from outside but also from inside Jerusalem. The Middle East which is already in chaos will have new issues after this announcement. This move will also intensify the violation of Palestinian rights, killing of more Palestinian families and making more Palestinians homeless. This might also encourage Israel to annex all of the West Bank one day.

Finally this move will forever bury the possibility of a two-state solution to the Palestine conflict. Countries such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey will have to step-up and put pressure on the USA diplomatically so as to discourage actually moving the American embassy to Jerusalem. Trump must withdraw from this move and should play a role in preventing further destabilisation of the Middle East.

The author an Assistant Professor. He tweets @Prof_MKShaikh

Published in Daily Times, December 12^th 2017.