Jerusalem, Her Passion, Her Hope

"Jerusalem, Jerusalem
Lift up your gates and sing!
Hosanna in the highest,
Hosanna to your king..."

Jerusalem's hope is not the hope of Athens or Rome, New York or London, Singapore or Beijing.  Jerusalem's hope is not stored in parliaments or banks, military headquarters or academies of science.  Jerusalem's hope is stored in the hearts of Jewish girls and boys from long ago and from this day and tomorrow.  And she fears, she shakes and trembles, to lift up her gates, lest she let those girls and boys down.  Yet their hope builds in her and burns in her and stirs her passions like the fire of stars swirling within her.  And her gates move and her thoughts hear melodies like thunder far away.  Seven thunders send their echos near her and she reaches out with her soul to hear their sound, if it might be that she hears any song that is a song of her beloved that she might sing to him.  She hears the echos but cannot quite hear the notes.  She strains toward the east and toward the north, toward the west and toward the south.  Almost she hears.  Almost her lips move.  Almost her gates begin to rise.

[The above is a part of an email written to a friend on John 14:6.  Read the whole exchange, if you would like, on this WordPress site:  Israel's Good News:  A Dialogue]