The Tribes of Israel Reconsidered, The new way into the New Jerusalem - the way of Asher

by Rev. Michaël Merle

In Chapter 21 of The Revelation to John (The Book of the Apocalypse: Revelation) we read part of the description of the New Jerusalem, a picture of a mighty vision experienced by John in the Spiritual World: “The city has a great and high wall and twelve gates. And on the gates twelve angels, and names were written on them: the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel.” (verse 12)

This year we hope to uncover an understanding of the twelve ways in which we can enter the New Jerusalem.

The way of Asher
The name Asher means “happy” or “blessed”. It represents both prosperity and pleasure, and carries the idea of abundance. Asher is, therefore, the dimension of blessing beyond the norm – to be given more than what is necessary for survival. Asher is the epitome of the personality that not only gets what is needed but also enjoys it.

The symbol of Asher is the olive tree. Olives are a particularly important crop of the ancient world. It added through the richness of its oil richness to food. It is this gift of riches and richness in both the acquisition of the things that bless, and the pleasure derived from them that is referenced by Jacob (Israel) in his spoken blessing of his son Asher: Shmenech lachmi, literally: His food shall be oily. Asher reminds us that we are to enjoy and celebrate the blessings we receive and to appreciate the abundance of our blessings even when we may be tempted only to look at the challenges and difficulties of the lack that we also suffer. Metaphorically we could see that our food (the spiritual sustenance we have) is indeed prepared with olive oil (enriching our lives with its substance).​