Love of the Land: Heritage Sites Must Include Key Biblical Sites

Heritage Sites Must Include Key Biblical Sites

Dr.Aaron Lerner
IMRA
Weekly Commentary
18 February '10

The most powerful Jewish advisor to a foreign superpower returned home to Israel to bury his father in the family crypt. He stood there with his brothers, knowing that they had no choice but to return to the formidable foreign entourage waiting for them across the border.

For while he was second only to the ruler of the foreign empire, he and his brothers had to leave their children and cattle behind in what at the time was a gilded cage as a guarantee that they would not exploit this opportunity to permanently return home to Israel.

And today, we can stand at that very same place and as we let the pathos sink in of that heart wrenching moment we also celebrate how lucky we are that we have been honored to be able to not only visit, but to stay, rather than turn back to face generations of servitude on foreign soil.

That's what strikes me when I visit the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron.

It is right there in Genesis Chapter 50.

When Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu talked about the critical need for Israelis to link to their past in his 3 February speech at the Herzliya Conference, the Cave of the Patriarchs - now covered by the only intact Herodian period building - came immediately to mind.

And this with the added "bonus" that prayer arrangements at the site shared by Jews and Moslems serve as living proof that Jewish controlled holy sites can indeed be open to all. This in sharp contrast to Moslem controlled multi-religion sites where non-Moslem prayer is strictly restricted.

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Love of the Land: Heritage Sites Must Include Key Biblical Sites