Nationalism and the Haram Al-Sharif/Temple Mount: The Exclusivity of Holiness - Hardcover

by Erik Freas (Author)

This book examines the manner in which the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount has been appropriated by both Palestinians and Israelis as a nationalist symbol legitimizing respective claims to the land. From the late-nineteenth century onward, the site's significance became reconfigured within the context of modern nationalist discourses, yet, despite the originally secular nature of Palestinian and Israeli nationalisms, the holy site's importance to Islam and Judaism respectively has gradually altered the character of both in a manner blurring the line between religious and national identities.

Back Jacket

This book examines the manner in which Jerusalem's Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount has been appropriated by Zionism and Palestinian Arab nationalism as a nationalist symbol to legitimize claims to Eretz Israel/Palestine. Prior to the advent of these two nationalist movements, the site's significance was largely understood in religious terms. Beginning with the nineteenth century, however, the site's significance became reconfigured within the context of modern, nationalist discourses--a Zionist one and a Palestinian one. At the same time, one cannot really say that in either case, as a nationalist symbol, it became secularized, even if Palestinian nationalism and especially Zionism could be understood in their original incarnations as predominantly secular movements. Indeed, influence has run largely in the other direction. This book argues that the site's religious significance with respect to Judaism and Islam has gradually altered the character of both Zionism and Palestinian nationalism respectively, in a manner that has served to blur the line between the two and their respective majority faiths.

Author Biography

Erik Freas is Assistant Professor of Modern Middle East History at the Borough of Manhattan Community College, City University of New York, USA. Freas's research focuses on Muslim-Christian Arab relations in Palestine during the Mandate and late-Ottoman periods. He is the author of Muslim-Christian Relations in Late Ottoman Palestine: Where Nationalism and Religion Intersect.