Seeking Paradise

       Karen Armstrong, in Chapter 1 of Jerusalem, in trying to explain why the specific place of Jerusalem is so important, discusses the yearning of humans for "something different from the flawed present."  People innately search for a place that puts them in touch with the sacred.  Armstrong then argues that "Today many people seek this paradisal harmony in art, drugs, or sex; in the ancient world, men and women sought it by living in a place where, they believed the lost wholeness could be recovered."  Although, some people do turn to sex, drugs, success, etc. to create their paradise, I think wrong for her to claim that these are the only ways of people today and that only in the "ancient world" did people associate paradise with a particular place.  If this was true, why does the conflict over Jerusalem still exist today?  People today, still look to specific locations to provide harmony and wholeness.  Jerusalem is important to all who claim it as their own because of their personal histories attached to it and the idea that it is their home, in which they, as a people, once enjoyed success, power, and harmony.  Jerusalem still represents a paradise and people are still seeking it.