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June 2, 2000/28 Iyar 5760, Vol. 52, No.39
Jerusalem: city of beauty, city of divine presenceTorah Study
RABBI SHLOMO RISKIN
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| Ten measures of beauty descended to the world; nine were apportioned by Jerusalem, and one to the rest of the world." (Babylonian Talmud, Kiddushin 49b) |
Anyone who has visited Jerusalem at the moment when the setting sun casts its golden rays over the sand-colored stone facings, illuminating with regal splendor the majestic mountains and history-changed walls surrounding the Old City, and accenting the vibrant green vineyards and the majestic silver-green olive trees which highlight the Jerusalem landscape, could easily internalize the message of this famous quotation.
But if our visit to this city is part of a whirlwind tour, with visits to opera houses, gaslit cobblestone streets and towering skyscrapers, we might require a more specific definition. To exactly what kind of beauty does the Talmud refer?
Perhaps the best way to approach the meaning of Jerusalem and its beauty is to turn to the closing chapter of the Book of Samuel where the city's emergence as a unique location first appears on the historic map. There we are given the account of a census that King David takes of the nation. Taking the census was apparently a no-no, as it led to a devastating plague, killing 70,000 people. The chapter concludes with David's purchasing for 50 silver shekels the threshing floor owned by Aravnah the Jebusite, the initial purchase-site of Jerusalem.
The closing verse reads, "And David built there an altar to the Lord and sacrificed burnt offerings and offerings of well-being. The Lord responded to the plea for the land, and the plague against Israel was checked" (2 Samuel 24:25).
But why is a census considered such a grievous sin, especially in the light of our Torah reading this Sabbath, wherein the Almighty commands: "You and Aaron shall record them by their group..." (Numbers1:1-3) How is it also possible that the census should also turn out be a minefield of sin and tragedy?
The contradiction between the positive approach to the wilderness census and the negative realities of King David's census is what Nachmanides attempts to reconcile when he asks why God was angry with David. "It seems to me that the Almighty was angry at him because he (David) counted them unnecessarily, since they weren't going out to war at the time; he counted them in order to gladden his own heart that he was the king over a mighty and numerous nation" (Nachmanides Numbers 1:3).
Hence Nachmanides' explanation: In the portion of Bamidbar, the counting is legitimate. To go into war, you have to know the size of the army, divisions, battalions and platoons. However, counting for the sake of counting may cause tragic consequences, namely the plague described in 2 Kings.
But what was there in the purchase of the Jebusite threshing floor, the acquisition of Jerusalem and the erection of a sacrificial altar in that predestined to-be-holy city, to have brought about the cessation of the plague?
To understand the vision of Jerusalem and the prayer and hope it engendered in the tribes of Israel, we must consider the genesis of Washington, D.C., as the capital of the United States. The site on the Potomac was chosen because it was not part of the original states of the Union, thereby avoiding the rivalry and potential bitterness that gave rise to the Civil War.
Likewise, King David understood the unique role of Jerusalem, surrounded by mountains, situated between the tribes of Judah and Benjamin but belonging to none of them. Jerusalem therefore is named the City of Peace, the City of Wholeness. Our tradition teaches us that the divine presence especially rests in Jerusalem, the Almighty who is the parent of each of the tribes and indeed of every nation of the world.
Jerusalem truly teaches the Jewish tradition that "peace is beauty, and beauty is peace."
On every Jerusalem Day, may we merit seeing Jerusalem as the undivided capital of a united Israel, the beacon for world peace, the truest expression of the ultimate unity which is to be found in every path to the divine. May we be privileged to see Jerusalem in the fullness of its beauty.
Rabbi Shlomo Riskin is the spiritual leader of Efrat, Israel.