Jerusalem has been a religiously significant site throughout history. Excavations allow us to surmise that the Temple Mount was used by the Canaanites as a site for sacrifice. The biblical founding father, Abraham, is said to have gone here to sacrifice his son Isaac as a sign of his devotion to God, lore that can be found in the writings of all three monotheistic religions. According to Talmudic interpretation, God forged the first human from the earth on Mount Moriah - Jerusalem's Temple Mount. He and his descendents are said to have offered sacrifices there.

An offering table and a stele were found in Jerusalem that point to the cult of the Egyptian gods Seth and Osiris. Other local deities such as Shalim and Hepa were also worshiped at this time - indeed, the name Jerusalem (Urushalim) comes from the cult of the god Shalim. Mesopotamia also had a verifiable influence on the region - myths from this culture can also be found in the holy writings of the three monotheistic religions. The tribes and people groups encountered one another through trade and large migration movements and hence there was an exchange of gods and religious beliefs among the old oriental societies. Widely known and worshiped Canaanite deities such as Baal, El, Astrate and Moloch, among others, are mentioned in the Bible or the Koran. In the Bible, the Israelite tribes' fight against polytheism is described, which culminated in the belief in "the LORD" (YHWH) - the one Jewish God.
       
In the Old Testament book of Samuel, King David was summoned by the prophet Gad to: "Go up and erect an alter to the Lord on the barn floor of the Jebusite's Araunah." (2 Samuel 24:18) According to biblical tradition, David constructed an altar over a Canaanite cavern sanctuary on Mount Moriah and brought the Ark of Covenant (the holiest Jewish religious object) to Jerusalem. In doing so, David sought to make the city a holy place. Solomon's temple construction further strengthened its religious significance.

The destruction of the temple by the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar II, and the Babylonian captivity was a traumatic experience for the Jews. Contemporary textual research points to a part of the biblical Old Testament being written down for the first time during this banishment. Jerusalem maintained a special position in the text.

The city was the site of the royal residence – it remains controversial whether Jerusalem was a small state or a large kingdom.  In Jerusalem’s ancient history, which is full of change, the Assyrians, Romans, Sassanids and Arabs, among others, ruled the city – and the conquerors used the Temple Mount for their own rituals.

These reports triggered the construction of many churches between the 4th and 6th centuries - especially under Empress Eudokia beginning in 438. Records show that Jerusalem was increasingly becoming a destination for Christian pilgrimages by the 3rd century and that after 135 years of being forbidden from entering the Temple Mount, the Jews were once again allowed entry to some extent.

After the conquest of Jerusalem by the Arabs, the religious significance of the city grew. In Islam, it is considered the third holiest city after Mecca and Medina. Though Jerusalem isn't mentioned by name in the Koran, tradition does say that the Prophet began his Night Journey from here. The "far place of worship" (al Aksa) mentioned in the Koran had been equated with the temple area by the first century of the Muslim calendar.

The words of Ibn al-Faquih al Hamadhani reveal the significance the city had by the 3rd century: "Those who pray in Jerusalem are as those who pray in heaven." Under Abdel Malik Ibn Marwan, the Dome of the Rock was built in 692 on the Temple Mount.  His son constructed the Al-Aksa Mosque later, giving the site a facelift.

The Muslim rulers allowed their citizens religious freedom. This was ended, however, under Fatimid Caliph al-Hakim. In 1009 he ordered the demolition of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, thus creating the provocation for the Christian crusades at the end of the 11th century.

Today, people of various religious belief live in Jerusalem. The Christian community is divided into the Ethiopian, Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Armenian, Syrian Orthodox, Protestant and Roman Catholic churches, among others. Each of them has their own chapels, monasteries, and hospices. Six Christian denominations manage the Church of the Holy Sepulchre together; control over the keys has been held by the Joudeh family for centuries (presumably since Saladin's time). They act together with the Nusseibeh family as arbiters in the continuously reoccurring conflicts between the representatives from the various denominations.

The libraries of the religious communities are famous - they represent the spiritual center of the religious institutions and research facilities. In addition to the Talmud schools and other religious teaching institutions, the Ecole biblique et ecole archeologique Francaise opened in 1890, the papal Bible Institute was founded in 1927 and the Institute of Jewish Religion opened in 1963.