So, you probably celebrated yesterday as Mother’s Day. My son drove down from Manhattan to celebrate the weekend with his mom and his surrogate mom (his nanny).  Oh- and he spent some time with his homebound dad, as well.  (We even watched a 12 inning Phillies game together.  Which the Phillies worked diligently to lose!!!!!)  But, that’s not the point of today’s blog.

It’s that today is a very special day for me. It is Yom Yerushalayim ( יום ירושלים‎ ). The celebration of the day that Jerusalem and the Kotel (the Western Wall, aka the Wailing Wall) were completely back under Jewish control after being some 1800 years without, after the second destruction of this vital city.

It is the place where King David established his kingdom.   The Sanhedrin, the highest court of justice inhabited this place.  The Bet Hamikdash- the holy Temple- adorned it’s hill.

 

While the original partition plan developed by the United Nations called for Jerusalem to be an international city, that never happened. Once Israel became independent, the Arab nations attacked the region. And, when the armistice was declared, the original portion of Jerusalem (called Ir ha’Atika, the old city) was under the control of the Kingdom of Jordan (along with what is now termed the West Bank).

 

Once it gained control, Jordan destroyed all the synagogues in the old city- and plundered the tombstones of the ancient Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives to construct the Seven Arches Hotel, a property personally owned by King Hussein (the current king’s dad.)  (Notice the similarity of what was done to what ISIL did in Iraq and Syria. Notice that there was no world-wide condemnation of the King of Jordan?)

But, even after being warned NOT to join in with his Arab brethren, King Hussein also participated in the Six Day War. During which Israel took over Jerusalem (after the first 24 hours) and the rest of the West Bank that had been under his control for decades.

Moshe Dayan, the General leading the Israeli forces declared on what is now known as Yom Yerushalayim (28th day of Iyar) in 1967:

This morning, the Israel Defense Forces liberated Jerusalem. We have united Jerusalem, the divided capital of Israel. We have returned to the holiest of our holy places, never to part from it again. To our Arab neighbors we extend, also at this hour—and with added emphasis at this hour—our hand in peace. And to our Christian and Muslim fellow citizens, we solemnly promise full religious freedom and rights. We did not come to Jerusalem for the sake of other peoples’ holy places, and not to interfere with the adherents of other faiths, but in order to safeguard its entirety, and to live there together with others, in unity.

(By the way, as you saw in the above video,  Israel maintains the churches and mosques in Jerusalem and the West Bank for members of their faiths. No destruction, no desecration.)

Consider this.  These soldiers, amidst a battle for the existence of Israel, stopped and prayed at the Wall.  And, then continued their battles.

Salvador Dali, who was visiting Israel after the war, spending time with a local Israeli artist he knew, was mesmerized by those folks who were finally able to visit (after a 20 year hiatus) what was then still called the Wailing Wall.

One approached the wall via a narrow path, between hovels and piles of garbage, only to be immediately struck with the appearance of the wall. Then, only about 8 courses of brick were visible. (Note: These ancient bricks are some 3 to 4 feet tall, not like the bricks we use to make our homes.) And, almost every visitor comes to pray at the wall and leave a message in the cracks between the bricks. (I’ve done so every time I’ve visited- since right after the 6 day war to my visit three years ago.  G-d willing, I will be there once I fully recuperate from my fatal illness later this year. )

One year after the Six Day War, Israel declared the 28th of Iyar to be a new holiday- but it took some 30 years before it was established as a national holiday.

Im eshkachech Yerushalayim,            If I forget thee, O Jerusalem,
Tishkach yemini.                                       Let my right hand forget her                                                                                                        cunning.
Tid’bak leshoni lechiki.                          Let my tongue cleave to the roof of                                                                                         my mouth

The above words from Psalm 137 comprise the Pledge of Allegiance, cited daily in Israel, since 1948.

By the way, this holiday has nothing to do with the fact that the USA has finally moved its embassy to Jerusalem (converting the Consulate to an Embassy).  

Here is a wonderful version of the Psalmist’s words  from Gedalia Penner, who blesses the National Synagogue (Washington, DC)  from time to time with his presence.