My friends, this day is almost prophetic, it is a historic day which marks a new era in Israeli – American relations. Today the United States of America opens its embassy in Jerusalem, the rightful and eternal capital of the People and Nation of Israel. There are few words to express the joy we feel on this occasion. Jerusalem has always been and will always be our capital. It can be said that today we celebrate the recognition of that age old fact by a great and mighty nation and ally, the USA, but what we really celebrate today is the breaking of the shackles of fear and terror. Not far from Jerusalem, on the Gaza border, and around the world, our enemies rage, and terrorize, and destroy and kill, outraged at the notion that the land of Israel belongs to the Jews and Jerusalem is our heritage. They threaten the world with violence and terror, but today our two countries and others who will follow have declared in one voice, “We are not afraid!” We are not afraid of the aggression of the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, Hezbollah, Syria, Iran or even ISIS or Al-Qaeda, we are not afraid of you! We will no longer apologize for who we are and what we believe. From now on, we stand firm on our hallowed ground, to champion and defend our right and the rights of every people “to live in freedom in the land of Zion and Jerusalem.” We have declared with one voice, that for Zion’s sake we will never be silent again. Our opposition tells you Israel is the bully, but they ignore the fact that Israel is the only government in Levant history which has respected and even protected the rights of all religious and ethnic minorities, and Jerusalem is a perfect example of that freedom and coexistence. In her streets you can find the Jewish, Christian, Muslim and Armenian quarters united within her walls. As you enter the city you are awestruck by the sounds of Church Bells, the Islamic call to prayer, and the sounds of Hebrew prayers and songs echo as they bounce off the walls of the three thousand year old city. How appropriate it is, for this epic occasion to fall just one day after Mother’s Day, for she is the mother of us all. Jerusalem is the City of Peace, and believe it or not, she is the key to eventual world peace. Those who have sought to destroy her, have all but disappeared from history, and yet she stands firm as a silent but ever present witness. If her walls could speak, one could only imagine the  lessons she has to teach us. Jerusalem is an example of how the world should be. Though this battle is won, the war is far from over, and there is still much work needed to be done. There is a long road ahead of us, but together, we can walk through this adventure triumphantly until the days of Mashiach the Prince will come. Until that day, let us not leave all the work to him, rather as the teaching from the Ethics of Our Fathers says, “In the place where there is no one, be the one.” Let us work together to draw real solutions to the problems facing the Middle East, in Syria, Gaza and other regions. Even now, for the first time, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and other Arab nations have chosen to break with old customs and make history by declaring that Israel has not only the right to exist, but the right to defend herself. It is a sign of changing times, it is a sign that peace is possible, and it is a sign of a future where peace and prosperity is a reality in the Middle East, and the words of the Prophets would be fulfilled, “Nation will not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they study war any more.” Now let us say, Amen!