Jerusalem, as all men know, is called "The Holy City," and it has that name because this is where God commanded the first temple be built. But that, of course, presents a question: Why did He pick that particular spot? About that there is a story.
Once there were two brothers who shared a farm. The older brother had several children and the younger brother had none, but each year they would gather the grain and divide it evenly, each taking half to his own granary.
After a while, though, the younger brother got to thinking that it wasn't exactly fair that they divided the grain evenly. After all, his brother had all of those children to feed while he had no one but himself. So each night he took to going to his own granary with a sack, filling it full of grain, and carrying it to the granary of his brother.
At about the same time, the older brother also got to thinking that it wasn't exactly fair that they divided the grain evenly. After all, he had all of those children - to look after him in his old age - while his brother had no one but himself. So each night he took to going to his own granary with a sack, filling it full of grain, and carrying it to the granary of his brother.
Eventually, of course, what had to happen happened. The two of them met there in the middle of the night - and what could they do but fall upon each other, and embrace, and count their blessings for the love in the family?
Now it's said that God, looking down, saw this. "That," He declared, "is a holy spot."
And when the time came to build the first temple, that was the spot that He chose.
