Whose Holy City?

Jerusalem and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

By Colin Chapman

"A balanced and topical assessment of the central position of Jerusalem in world politics and religious history".

Jews, Christians and Muslims - who together make up 55% of the world's population - all view Jerusalem as a holy city which is crucially important to their faiths. Worshippers from all three faiths want unrestricted access to worship in the sacred sites within the city, and the question of who should control the city politically and have sovereignty over Jerusalem (especially the Old City) is one which has led to much debate and violence over the years.

"It is a tragic irony", says experienced author Colin Chapman, "that Jerusalem - once known as the 'city of peace' - has become the centre of such a bitter and intractable conflict. Whose Holy City? explores and explains the background to the power struggle over the city. Colin maintains that, if the problems in Jerusalem can be solved, this would be a major step closer to solving the Middle East conflict on a wider scale. The challenge - and it is no small task - is to find a formula that goes some way towards satisfying the nationalist and religious aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians, and of Jews, Christians and Muslims.

After looking at the history of Jerusalem and the surrounding area, from Old Testament times to the present day - in scripture, in history and in politics - Whose Holy City? focuses on the importance of Jerusalem to Muslims, Christians and Jews, including the Muslim ideology which motivates Islamic extremists. Colin analyses the current conflict and looks at possible ways forward to peace and reconciliation. In the final section of the book, he suggests ten fundamental changes of attitude and approach, which need to occur on all sides in order to move closer to a resolution of the situation in Jerusalem. This intelligent and topical book will be accessible for people of any faith or none at all.

In writing on this topic, Colin Chapman combines his in-depth knowledge of Biblical and Middle Eastern history, Christian-Muslim relations and Islamic Studies with first-hand experience, having spent nearly 19 years working and living in the Middle East between 1968 and 2004, most recently as a Lecturer in Islamic Studies at the Near East School of Theology in Beirut, Lebanon.

Whose Holy City is published 22nd October by Lion, price £8.99.

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