Jerusalem Day: A Spiritual Lesson

According to the Jewish calendar, today - June 1 - marks the 44th anniversary of the unifying of the city of Jerusalem during the 1967 Six Day War. In an interview with the "Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report" Rabbi and former MK (member of the Knesset) Chanan Porat described the events of that day in June 1967. He told how his unit had been headed toward El-Arish on the Egyptian border when news came that the Jordanians had begun to bomb the city of Jerusalem. Their unit was then quickly dispatched toward Jerusalem. He said, "It was no longer a war to defend our existence but a war over Jerusalem, a war of redemption."

After reaching the Temple Mount, Rabbi Porat related, "Truthfully, on the one hand we had the great privilege of getting to the Temple Mount, but on the other hand we were not yet ready to understand the significance of regaining the Temple Mount. ... We were simply not prepared for the spiritual level of the Temple Mount, for the possibilities that had opened up, we did not yet recognize that we need to stand on the Temple Mount and take steps to rebuilding the Temple."

As you might remember, Israeli General Moshe Dayan agreed to return the Temple Mount to the Moslem Waqf to control. That may have been one of the worst decisions ever made in the brief 63 year history of the State of Israel.

Perhaps Rabbi Porat's statement helps us to understand why General Dayan did what he did. Perhaps Prime Minister Abba Eban and his staff had never considered what would happen if the Temple Mount should become theirs. I am not sure they felt that Jordan would enter the war, and if Jordan did not enter the war, there was no possibilities that Jerusalem would be unified. But Jordan did enter the war. The city of Jerusalem was unified. The Temple Mount became a possession of the nation of Israel, however briefly.

I believe there is a spiritual lesson here. Always be prepared! Always be ready! Let me draw a parallel from one of my favorite Old Testament leaders. His name was Nehemiah. While serving the Persian King Artaxerxes, Nehemiah heard the distressing news that the walls of Jerusalem had not been rebuilt even though the people had returned nearly a century before. So what did this great man do? He prayed and he planned. He prayed that God would open doors to share his concern with the king. And he planned for what he would say when that opportunity came.

Too often we simply pray and hope and dream that God would do something. Then, when that door is opened we do not know what to do or how to respond. We are like Rabbi Porat and his men - we are spiritually unprepared. I wonder what the Middle East would be like today if, in 1967, the leaders of Israel had been prepared for the taking of the Temple Mount. Pray - yes!
But don't forget to plan!