Reading Response for Wed. Sept. 14

In Armstrong’s chapters 5-7 from the book Jerusalem: One City, Three Faiths, there is a plethora of new information that both helps to understand the history and complicate it even more. Starting from the exile in Babylon, Armstrong describes the solidification of Jerusalem as the Jewish homeland and continues to describe the changing city as more and more ethnic groups and invaders come and go, and finishes with the destruction of the Temple and the diaspora of the Jewish people. 

In Chapter 6, as Armstrong recalls the Greek influence of Alexander the Great in Jerusalem, I was very interested to understand the influence that that time period had on the Jewish society. At the same time as some Jews embraced the new changes, some recoiled in the cultural differences and clung even more tightly to their Jewish law. For those that admired the Greeks, they took part in the idea of “Gymnasia” or physical fitness. Armstrong describes that all layers of Jewish society, be them priests or merchants, would take part in the male physical sports. In addition, the Jewish people adopted the Greek system of education and even gave their children Greek names. However, no matter how much some of the Jews respected the Greeks, their temple was still the most important for them, especially in the description of the Hasmoneans. Armstrong points out that their city was like a Greek city, but their temple was still the focus point of their lives. No matter how many times an invader or ruler came in and ruined their temple, they always rebuilt it and continued to hold on to their practices. 

Aside from the Hellenistic period in Jerusalem, I also found Armstrong’s description of Jerusalem with Herod as the ruler particularly interesting. Unlike some of the previous rulers or some of the Jewish people, Herod was ready to support all different faiths. Perhaps he only did it for political reasons, but nevertheless Armstrong claims he was “respected in the pagan world” (128). During his reign, there were over 120,000 residents in Jerusalem. Despite the fact he allowed for many different temples and religions, the Jewish religion continued to transform. In Armstrong’s report of the temples during this time, being in the temple was likened to being transformed into another being (132). The things that they considered “impure” could not be close to the temple: death, childbirth, and sex. I had known before about the impurity of sex, but I was not aware that childbirth had been considered sinful at some point. I feel very terrible for those women who had be looked down upon and judged for something as natural as giving human life. 

Armstrong gives great detail in these chapters and helps to further understand the implications of history and why they are relevant today. I was shocked by some of the information that she told, especially the section about Jesus; it was told in a way that I had never been explained to before. It is amazing that Armstrong can take herself out of the book and purely tell the historical evidence that is available.