Midd contemplates "The Idea of Jerusalem"

Author: Lauren Armstrong

The Idea of Jerusalem Symposium commenced on Friday, April 15 in Mead Chapel. Opening remarks by Middlebury staff and faculty introduced the keynote speaker Francis E. Peters, professor of History, Religion and Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at New York University. His address entitled "One City, One God, Three Faiths," provided the audience with information on the conflict over the city of Jerusalem between Jews, Christians and Muslims. The significance of Jerusalem in the past and present and its meaning to these three cultures was the real focus of the symposium.

Benches in Mead Chapel were filled as several professors and many classes from the political science, history and geography departments attended. Allison Stanger, professor of political science and director of the Rohatyn Center for International Affairs at Middlebury, commented on the value of this "rich and meaningful program and [its] timely theme." Tamar Mayer, professor of geography, expressed her hope that the symposium would allow all those involved to "move beyond the headlines and into fruitful discussion."

Jimmy Butcher '08 spoke of the relevance of the symposium to his class on geopolitics of the Middle East. "One of the objectives of our class is to develop an understanding of the Middle East. Focusing on Jerusalem, which is in many ways a microcosm of the Middle East, provides us with an opportunity to extract the specifics related to the city and apply that information to the Middle East as a whole," he said. "Also, the city is such a hot spot that the ramifications of any event occurring within the city's walls will be felt throughout the Middle East.

Peters' presentation was punctuated by small snippets of well-appreciated humor that made allusions to the Democratic Convention, athletes on steroids and Babe Ruth. His presentation proved to be a good starting point for the Idea of Jerusalem Symposium as he provided the audience with a historical overview that began with the heretics, pagans and Crusades and moved through the centuries to the present. He focused on the basic questions necessary to jumpstart the discussion, such as "Why is Jerusalem a glittering prize? Is it such a glittering prize?"

Izzy Marshall '07 said about the presentation, "He helped us recognize the long-standing ideological differences between the three religions, so we have a better understanding of why there is conflict in Jerusalem today." Peters explained how the geographical area is a great focus of interest for these three popular beliefs, as they are bounded together by common origins. The dispute has turned into a Holy War and the use of force is legitimized by the fact that it is used in the name of religion.

But Peters demonstrated such familiarity and expertise that his brief overview of the struggle left some students puzzled. Erika Norman '06 commented on the informality of Peters' talk as he moved quickly from one aspect of the conflict to the next. "I enjoyed the jokes, which kept things interesting, but I thought that he could have been better organized. I never got a sense of what question or problem he was trying to address," she said.

Still, Butcher said that he would attend more symposium events as he was impressed with Peters' knowledge of the subject of Jerusalem. "Frank Peters is an authoritative voice on the events that transpire within the Middle East. His remarks provided a foundation on which to begin the examination of Jerusalem. He was a good choice to open the symposium," Butcher said. "His remarks were profound but, what was even more noticeable was his passion for the Middle East."

Other students shared Butcher's positive impression of the event and were impressed by the breadth and depth of Peters' understanding of Jerusalem.

Marshall noted, "Peters had a challenging job - to summarize the historical, religious and political disagreements between the three monotheistic religions that 'have been at it for a long time' in Jerusalem. And frankly, I think he did a good job. I appreciated his ability to include funny remarks while still achieving an objective. It was refreshing to crack a smile while receiving a sensitive understanding of the historic and current conflict in Jerusalem."