SENATE RESOLUTION No. 78

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

218th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED MAY 14, 2018

 


 

Sponsored by:

Senator  ANTHONY R. BUCCO

District 25 (Morris and Somerset)

Senator  LINDA R. GREENSTEIN

District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Affirming historical connection of Jewish people to Jerusalem; condemns efforts by United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization to deny Jews' historical, religious, and cultural ties to Jerusalem.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  


A Senate Resolution affirming the historical connection of the Jewish people to the ancient and sacred city of Jerusalem and condemning efforts by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization to deny the Jewish people's millennia-old historical, religious, and cultural ties to Jerusalem.

 

Whereas, For over 3,000 years, Jerusalem has played a central role in the history and identity of the Jewish people; and

Whereas, Jerusalem is the location of the holiest site for the Jewish people, the Temple Mount and the Western Wall, the location of the Jewish Temples built and destroyed in biblical times and revered because, Jews believe, that some aspect of the Devine presence exists at the sight; and

Whereas, Jerusalem has also been a Christian pilgrimage site for over 2,000 years and holds considerable religious significance for Christians; and

Whereas, Jerusalem is also home to the third holiest site in Islam and holds considerable religious significance for Muslims; and

Whereas, Jerusalem, as the home to three of the world's major religions, serves as a cultural and religious beacon to billions of people around the world; and

Whereas, The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has passed a series of anti-Israel resolutions in recent years regarding Jerusalem, including Israeli attempts to preserve sites holy to Judaism, Christianity and Islam; and

Whereas, These resolutions are attempts to erase or minimize the Jewish and Christian historical and religious ties to Jerusalem, and include omitting reference to the Temple Mount and only using its Muslim name, Al-Aqsa or Al-Haram al-Sharif; and 

Whereas, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to the UNESCO resolution by noting a statement that "Israel has no connection to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall is like saying China has no connection to the Great Wall of China or Egypt has no connection to the Pyramids;" and

Whereas, Numerous archaeological excavations, such as those taking place in the City of David, Israel's most archaeologically excavated site, have uncovered a myriad of antiquities that scientifically reaffirm Jerusalem's historical significance to Judaism as well as Christianity; and

Whereas, The City of David, which is adjacent to the Temple Mount, is the archaeological site of ancient Jerusalem and is believed to be the very site recorded in the Bible upon which King David established the capital of ancient Israel; and

Whereas, Since 1867, international excavations at the site of the City of David, today carried out under the highest scientific standards under the auspices of the Israel Antiquities Authority, have unearthed antiquities from over 10 different civilizations, including Canaanite, Israelite, Roman, Byzantine, and Persian; and

Whereas, Among the most significant archaeological discoveries unearthed from the City of David are the Siloam Inscription (8th century B.C.E.), which recounts the preparations made by King Hezekiah of Judah for the impending Assyrian siege against Jerusalem, consistent with the Biblical account from 2 Kings; clay seal impressions/bullae (6th century B.C.E.) bearing the names of two Judean Government officials who are mentioned in the very same verse in the Bible, Jeremiah 38:1; the Pool of Siloam (1st century B.C.E.), which served during the Second Temple period as a ritual bath for the hundreds of thousands of Jewish pilgrims ascending annually to the Temple and stood atop the Temple Mount; and the Second Temple Pilgrimage Road (1st century C.E.), which began at the Pool of Siloam and served as the main thoroughfare of Second Temple period Jerusalem that carried hundreds of thousands of people on their annual pilgrimages to the Temple; and

Whereas, The Pilgrimage Road located within the City of David, which stretches 600 meters from the Pool of Siloam to the footsteps of the Western Wall, will be open to visitors upon completion of the excavation; and

Whereas, These discoveries affirm the undeniable truth that the City of David, the Western Wall, and the Temple Mount are inextricably linked together physically, historically, and symbolically as the bedrock of the connection between the Jewish people and Jerusalem and have been for millennia;  and

Whereas, Israel has suspended its cooperation with UNESCO in response to these resolutions because it unjustly singles out America's close ally Israel with false accusations and criticism; and

Whereas, The United States Senate has introduced a similar themed resolution, S. Res. 291, as has the United States House of Representatives, H.  Res. 590; now, therefore,

 

     Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

     1.    This House condemns any past, present, or future efforts by UNESCO to rewrite and deny the history of Jerusalem and delegitimize the connection the Jewish people and Israel have to Jerusalem.

 

     2.    This House affirms the historical connection of the Jewish people to the ancient and sacred city of Jerusalem and to the Temple Mount.

 

     3.    This House commends the government of Israel for protecting the freedoms of all faiths in Jerusalem including Jews, Christians, and Muslims, ensuring their access to holy sites so that they may worship freely.

 

      4. This House calls upon New Jersey's United States Senators and members of the House of Representatives to support and endorse the approval of S. Res. 291 and H. Res. 590.

 

     5.    Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Director-General of UNESCO, the United States' Ambassador to the United Nations, the Israeli Ambassador to the United States, New Jersey's two United States Senators and twelve members of the United States House of Representatives.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This Senate Resolution affirms the historical connection of the Jewish people to the ancient and sacred city of Jerusalem and condemns efforts by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization to deny the Jewish people's millennia-old historical, religious, and cultural ties to Jerusalem.