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Jerusalem — City of God

November 1, 2023 Open Religion No Comments

This is meant to be(come) the city where people of all creeds can be together in Open Religion (see this category). No deeply religious insight, feeling, or motivation needs to be discarded. If you are religious, please try to deepen the feeling ― an endless direction.

If a non-enemy of thy enemy can only be thy enemy, there is only mistake.

Why a European city?

It’s not a principled matter. Jerusalem happens to be central to three prominent religions. While it is currently a cradle of mayhem between the three, precisely that makes the challenge dignified. If you can make it there, you can make it everywhere. Bringing these three religions together in a decent way shows all faiths can be brought together — globally.

Yet the challenge does not lie in bringing them down to commonalities. On the contrary, each should be made more worthy of God’s attention by finding out what appeals to Him — to the core, whatever that means. Any religion is a search for the ultimate. Only in discerning the non-obvious can God be found.

Kingdom of Heaven

The city of Jerusalem can be seen as a symbol for the ‘kingdom of Heaven,’ which is a symbol for the kingdom inside, the ‘deeper self,’ but warmer and more personal.

It is from this kingdom of Heaven that may sprout a Compassionate future of joy and lenience of suffering.

Concretely

Jerusalem is full of holy places, real or unreal, but never simply imagined. It’s where Jesus carried his cross, thrice stumbling and persevering.

It’s where Salomon’s temple held an eternal promise. The temple evaporated while the promise only became stronger — as it should be.

It’s where Mohammed went on a journey to Heaven. Was it with the intention to invite Heaven to come to Earth?

In all three cases, we’re waiting for something. Meanwhile, there’s enough inspiration to fill a lifetime. May both be about the same?

More concretely

One can see Jerusalem integrally as an especially holy place that may invite people to meditate Openly about religion. This would be a meditation close to God. Something more special can hardly be imagined. Of course, that is not where different religions fight each other.

It’s the closest to feeling in Heaven — a feeling of abundant religiosity with ample room for many translations of the one thing that is really happening. There is only one thing. Translations don’t make them different things.

Even more concretely

Within the confines of the concrete city of Jerusalem, we might organize happenings, workshops, and other beings-together to celebrate this abundance — endless abundance, endless in-depth togetherness. If need be, this can be done in defiance of the world. “It’s not possible.“ is nonsense. “This will not happen.” is nonsense.

Let people talk.

Meanwhile, we can do it!

Challenging? At least, we will have been in Heaven.