How Solomon’s Garden Became a Weapon in the Fight for East Jerusalem

Mixed media illustration featuring images of City of David, maps of Jerusalem, Solomon's Gardens, and people in East Jerusalem. Photos: Shutterstock, public domain, and Ryan Rodrick Beiler via Shutterstock.com. Design: Candace Sanders / Sojourners

A short walk from the Temple Mount, in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Al Bustan, there’s a plan to replace dozens of Palestinian homes with a new tourist destination: a lush garden on the site where some say King Solomon built his royal gardens and wrote the book of Ecclesiastes.

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An image of the November 2026 issue of Sojourners, titled "Face to Face." It features George Lakey on the cover
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