Let us go up rejoicing to the house of the Lord
September 26, 2023 - Tuesday, 25th Week in Ordinary Time
Psalm 122:1-5
Psalm 122 belongs to a group of Psalms known as the Songs of Ascent. There are fifteen of them, from Psalm 120 to 134, and they are associated with the pilgrimage to Jerusalem. According to the Old Testament, the Jewish people should appear in Jerusalem three times a year on the most important feasts of their faith. The first and most significant was the Passover, which celebrated their liberation from slavery in Egypt. Then fifty days later was the feast of Pentecost that celebrated the gift of Torah. Finally, in Autumn, there was the feast of the Tabernacle, during which they recall the journey of their ancestors through the desert towards the promised land.
“Jerusalem, built as a city with compact unity. To it the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD”(Ps 122:3-4). Jerusalem was the capital of the Jewish nation and its spiritual centre. The magnificent temple with its daily liturgy was there. The people could experience God’s presence there, offer sacrifices and receive the priestly blessing. And so every pious Jew rejoiced, going up to Jerusalem. It is estimated that nowadays up to hundreds of thousands of Jewish pilgrims could visit the city yearly to participate in those three great festivals of their faith.
In the imagination of the prophets, Jerusalem was also to become a pilgrimage destination for all the nations. Prophet Isaiah announces that “all the nations shall flow to it” (Is 2:2). They will want to go to “the house of the God of Jacob” to be taught how to live (see Is 2:2-4). Before the pandemic, around million of Christian pilgrims from different nations yearly visited Jerusalem, particularly during Easter. There is also a substantial number of Muslims that yearly visit the city.
Jerusalem is located on the mountain, and all pilgrims going to Jerusalem had to climb it to enter the house of the Lord. This location of Jerusalem becomes a metaphor for our spiritual ascent to the heavenly Jerusalem which is our mother, our home, and our life destination. This heavenly Jerusalem is described in the book of Revelation as “the dwelling place of God with man” (Rev 21:3). But unlike the earthly city of Jerusalem that often fell into the hands of evil empires and was destroyed by the enemies of God’s people, the new Jerusalem is assured of peace and prosperity (Is 65:17-25). This new city, a centre of the new heaven and new earth, will not know suffering or death (Rev 21:4). “They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,” says the LORD (Is 65:25).
So, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord. Our life is a pilgrimage towards the new Jerusalem, the heavenly city prepared for us by God where he will wipe every tear from our eyes and “death shall be no more” (Rev 21:4).