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31 July 2017

Moroccan Mirage

Moroccan Mirage – Aharon Granevitch-Granot
They were hiking through the SaharaDesertlooking for the graves of tzaddikim, when all of a sudden, the huge edifice rose up in front of them. A hallucination? The Third Beis HaMikdash? Actually, it’s a massive fiberglass creation for an upcoming film, but the magnificent reconstruction of theHolyTemple is enough to make every Jewish heart long for the real thing
Wednesday, September 19, 2012



When Shachar Zaguri came face to face with the Beis HaMikdash in the middle of theSaharaDesert, he thought he was seeing a mirage.

“All of a sudden, this edifice appeared before me. It was just like in the pictures. I couldn’t help but think that in another moment, the white-clad Kohein Gadol, bedecked in the efod and choshen, would emerge from the entrance to the Kodesh HaKadoshim, the crowd accompanying him with the words from the Yom Kippur davening — ‘Mah nehedar hayah kohein gadol’ — in unbridled excitement. Could it be real?”

Zaguri, a Breslover chassid from Tzfas and musician by profession, who also works as a tour guide for Jews who wish to travel to the graves of tzaddikim inMorocco, will never forget the feeling he had when he saw the structure, built outside Ouarzazate –Morocco’s film capital – for the set of an upcoming movie. The temple is not real, of course, but at some level it has stirred the imagination and the longing in the hearts of every Jew who has made the pilgrimage to see it.

“Our group was going for two events. It was the hilula of Rabbi Yitzchak Abuchatzeira — the son of the Abir Yaakov and uncle of the Baba Sali — who is buried in the village of Tullal in the Sahara Desert, and the hilula of Rabbi Yichye ben Baruch, who is buried in a remote village near Ouarzazate. You have to understand,” Shachar adds, “that the area there is stunning and pristine. We’re talking about the bottom of theAtlas Mountains, on the edge of the desert, and there are entire regions there that have remained untouched since the creation of the world. This has become a favorite spot for filmmaking companies.”

One member of Zaguri’s tour group was Naftali Tzemach. Before the trip, Tzemach told Shachar Zaguri that really, his first reason for joining the expedition was to see what he heard was a replica of the Beis HaMikdash. Was it possible that the Moroccan leader in the industry, Atlas Films, or some other company had actually invested millions in such a project?

“Now, I consider myself a pretty worldly guy, but I had never heard about this ‘Beis HaMikdash,’ and I didn’t believe it existed,” Shachar says. “I had been in the area dozens of times, and I had never heard about any such structure. I thought it was impossible. But, I was still willing to take a quick look for the site. Late at night, we arrived at Ouarzazate,” Shachar Zaguri remembers. “We were scheduled to hike up a certain mountain the next morning, and our time was limited. But Naftali came over to me again and said, ‘Here we are, and what about your promise?’

“We got up early to daven vasikin and be on our way. We were planning to scale a mountain that would take us 4000 meters above sea level, on a path that hardly deserved to be called that.

“But Naftali was insistent, and anyway, how big is Ouarzazate? If there indeed was a massive Beis HaMikdash in the area, we would surely stumble across it. So we started walking, hoping we were going in the right direction. I was losing patience — this wasn’t on our itinerary and we were losing precious time. I told myself that if we didn’t find it within five minutes, we would give up. After all, we had to continue on our way.”

Then they saw it, standing in the heart of the desert. “We saw a building from a distance. It looked small from where we were standing, but as we got closer, the structure seemed to grow larger and larger, looming in front of us. We felt as if we were walking in a dream. We might have stumbled onto a movie set, but everything we’d ever learned about the Beis HaMikdash was all suddenly here, massive, in three dimensions, right in front of our eyes. We were incredibly excited. It may be trite to say that our hearts stopped beating, but that is exactly how we felt. Intellectually we knew it wasn’t real, but it was so real to us, we felt like we were in a time capsule.”

The rest of this article is in the Mishpacha Issue of September 19, 2012 (sorry I cannot get to it right now)

Arab Media Reports: Jews Planing to Build Third Beis HaMikdash IY”H


Jerusalem - Arab Media Reports: Jews Planing to Build Third Beis HaMikdash IY”H



Jerusalem - A conference of ultra-orthodox Hasidic Jews in West Jerusalem has called for the destruction of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the building of the “third temple” on its ruins.

In response, the Aqsa Foundation for Endowment and Heritage warned of an escalation of the attempts by the Israeli occupation authorities and “its arms” - conferences such as this - to promote construction of the “third temple” at the expense of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock.

In a press release, the Foundation said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is behind these calls. The Jewish groups pushing for the temple have urged Netanyahu to fulfil his promise that in the event of his re-election, he would approve and arrange for Jewish prayers to be held in Al-Aqsa.

Ultra-orthodox Hasidim have become more active in recent weeks, targeting Al-Aqsa Mosque, desecrating it and working towards its “Judaization”. Reports and pictures from the conference held on 30th December have been published on a number of right-wing and ultra-orthodox websites. The conference, it is claimed, was held especially to address the Temple issue. Its programme included demonstrations of the rituals to be observed in a new temple; the organisers presented the conference as if such rituals would be taking place in situ sooner rather than later. Right-wing Israeli groups have demanded that the Israeli Prime Minister makes the necessary arrangements with the police so that Jews can pray inside Al-Aqsa. Letters dating from 1995 and 2005 have been produced as evidence of Netanyahu’s promise to facilitate such prayers if he became Prime Minister for a second term; he was re-elected in 2009.

Successive Israeli governments have played down claims that Jews are planning to demolish Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock and replace the historic Islamic sites with a Jewish temple, despite the overwhelming evidence that many organisations within Israel and in the Jewish diaspora have that as their prime aim. Some ultra-orthodox Jews say that it is forbidden for Jews to pray anywhere with Al-Aqsa Sanctuary as they have no idea where the “Holy of Holies” lies; historically, only the High Priest of the temple was allowed to enter that inner sanctum.

















Source: VosizNeias

SIFTING THE MAKOM HAMIKDASH

Sifting the Makom HaMikdash
Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

"Are there any halachic issues involved in sifting through the earth removed by the Waqf from the Makom HaMikdash?"

To explain this shaylah, I will first explain what has happened, then discuss the halachic issues involved — and finally explain the answers. There is also a fascinating halachic-architectural issue that I noticed while studying photographs of the Moslem construction, which I will discuss at the end of this article.

During the past many years, the Waqf, the Moslem "Trust" that controls the holiest place on earth, the Har HaBayis, has been making major "renovations" there, including the construction of yet another mosque – this one located near the Shaarei Chuldah, which is the southern entrance to Har HaBayis. These gates are called Shaarei Chuldah because Chuldah the Prophetess stood between these two gates and admonished the Jews to do teshuvah.

For clarification purposes: The Kosel HaMaaravi where we daven is part of the Western Wall of the Har HaBayis, known in English as "the Temple Mount," which is the top of the mountain called Har HaMoriah. The Beis HaMikdash included open courtyards as well as the structure that stood on the Har HaBayis, but occupied only a small area of the mountain. Although the Har HaBayis has much more kedusha than that of Yerushalayim, the Beis HaMikdash has much greater kedusha than that of the Har HaBayis. Someone entering the area where the Beis HaMikdash once stood is chayov kareis, an extremely severe punishment. 1 The Mishnah (Keilim 1:8-9) lists seven levels of kedusha above that of Yerushalayim -- the highest being that of the Holy of Holies, the Kodesh HaKodashim area of the Beis HaMikdash, that only the kohen gadol may enter, and then, only to perform the service on Yom Kippur.

As we said, the Har HaBayis has far less sanctity than the Beis HaMikdash. Nevertheless, most contemporary poskim prohibit ascending the Har HaBayis. A minority of poskim permit entering areas of the Har HaBayis that are not part of the Beis HaMikdash in order to daven or perform a mitzvah, but only after one has performed certain taharah procedures, including washing one’s self thoroughly, making certain that one has no chatzitzos (interrupting substances on one’s body), and immerses oneself in a mikveh. All agree that it is prohibited to enter any part of the Har HaBayis if one is tamei with what halacha calls tumah hayotzei migufo, which includes people who are baalei keri, zav, zavah, niddah and yoledes.

The Moslem construction

The Moslem construction is without any permits and is illegal. However, the Israeli authorities refuse to interfere, citing concerns about violence! One of the Waqf’s goals is to obliterate any remnants of the Batei HaMikdash from the Har HaBayis so that they can persist with their lies that Jews never lived in Israel, and that the Batei HaMikdash never existed. The Waqf has removed hundreds of truckloads of "debris" from the Har HaBayis, which they dump in the Kidron Valley and other sites around Yerushalayim.

With the help of volunteers, Israeli archeologists are painstakingly sifting through the rubble removed from the Har HaBayis, to look for artifacts. (Thus, there is no halachic concern of ascending to the Har HaBayis.) Someone asked me whether he can volunteer for this work, citing the following potential shaylos:

1. Is there a halachic concern that in the unearthing of these items someone is receiving personal benefit from property of the Beis HaMikdash, thus violating the severe Torah prohibition called me’ilah.

2. Since we are all tamei, is there concern that one might be rendering impure (i.e., making tamei) property or the stones of the Beis HaMikdash?

3. What are we required to do with stones or earth that were originally part of the Beis HaMikdash or the Har HaBayis?

4. The remnants being unearthed include bone fragments, some of them human. This leads to two specific questions: (a) May a kohen work in this project? (b) Is there a halachic concern of mistreating the dead, since these human remains will not be buried afterwards, but will be stored and used for scientific research and study?

5. Some artifacts that surface are clearly from what were once idols. Is there a halachic requirement to destroy them? Is it the finder’s responsibility to destroy them, something which the archeologists do not permit?

The archeological finds

Now some background on what the search is revealing, so that we can explain the halachic issues raised. Everything found on the Har HaBayis has a dark gray-ash color, rather than the typical white limestone color of Yerushalayim earth. This is because the fires of the destructions that transpired discolored the Har HaBayis earth.

Every bucketful of sifted earth contains numerous historical items, including coins, pottery and glass fragments, arrowheads and other primitive weapons and pieces of human or animal bone. Coins unearthed date from as early as the second Beis HaMikdash to as late as the period of Napoleon III (mid-nineteenth century). The pieces of animal bone are presumably from what people ate there – possibly, leftovers from korbanos, but also leftovers of non-Jewish meals of the last centuries.

Other remnants unearthed are connected with the churban, such as Babylonian and Roman arrowheads, and Roman catapult projectiles, all sad reminders of the Jews who died there during the two churbanos.

Probably a greater reminder of the churban is the general attitude of the Moslems, who, in effect, rule over the Har HaBayis today. One would think that the Moslems would treat the Har HaBayis with some level of sanctity, since they claim that it is one of their holy sites. Unfortunately, this is not true. The workers loiter and smoke there, and children play soccer. Their chief concern seems to be that Jews not pray there.

We can now begin to answer the questions raised above:

Beis HaMikdash property

Question #1: Is there a halachic concern that in the unearthing of these items someone is receiving personal benefit from property of the Beis HaMikdash thus violating the severe Torah prohibition called me’ilah.

Much broken pottery has been found among the artifacts. These items are of great archeological curiosity because they indicate who used the Har HaBayis and ate their meals there over the millennia. Halachically, we know that kohanim ate meat of the holier korbanos only in the Beis HaMikdash area. After cooking these korbanos, the halacha required that the earthenware pots used be broken in a holy area of the Beis HaMikdash. 2 The shards discovered may indeed be remnants of these vessels. However, these earthenware pieces have no sanctity, since all holy vessels were manufactured from metal only.

Remnants of holy vessels

Many types of holy vessels, such as bowls, baking dishes, forks, and numerous other items were used in the service in the Beis HaMikdash. What is the halacha if someone found a usable metal item that might be one of the holy vessels of the Beis HaMikdash, or something that might be a remnant from the mizbayach (the altar)? Is there a prohibition of me’ilah in using these items?

Because of complicated halachic issues, the poskim dispute whether one would violate me’ilah in such a case. Allow me to explain. Based on a pasuk in Yechezkel, 3 the Gemara presents us with a halachic concept referred to as "ba’u peritzim vichilaluhu" - when the lawless entered, they removed its sanctity, meaning that under certain circumstances, misuse of Beis HaMikdash vessels defiles them and removes their kedusha. 4 The Rishonim dispute when this concept applies. The Baal HaMaor explains that when the Hellenized Jews used the mizbayach of the Beis HaMikdash inappropriately (during the events prior to the Chanukah story), this defiling removed the sanctity from the stones of the mizbayach. In his opinion, the other vessels of the Beis HaMikdash still maintain their sanctity, and, furthermore, only Jews can cause the kedusha to be removed, not gentiles.

Thus, according to the Baal HaMaor, someone who uses a vessel of the Beis HaMikdash today violates the severe prohibition of me’ilah. The Ramban disagrees with the Baal HaMaor, explaining that when the gentiles entered the Beis HaMikdash to destroy it, they profaned the sanctity of the building and its vessels. In his opinion, someone who subsequently made use of these vessels for his own personal purposes would not violate any prohibition of me’ilah. As a result of this dispute, one should not use a metal utensil found in the Har HaBayis ruins, because of the possibility of committing me’ilah, based on the Baal HaMaor's stricter opinion.

Question #2: Since we are all tamei, is there concern that one might be profaning (i.e., making tamei) property or the stones of the Beis HaMikdash?

I could find no halachic literature directly discussing this shaylah. There is a prohibition of making something tamei in the Beis HaMikdash. 5 However, I am unaware of any halachic source that prohibits making these items tamei once they have been removed from the Beis HaMikdash grounds. Furthermore, stones themselves do not become tamei.

Question #3: What are we required to do with stones or earth that were originally part of the Beis HaMikdash or the Har HaBayis?

Destroying the Beis HaMikdash (chas veshalom)

To destroy any part of the Beis HaMikdash violates a Torah prohibition. 6 This includes removing a stone from the mizbayach or from any other part of the Beis HaMikdash with the intent of destroying it. 7 To destroy items that belong to the Beis HaMikdash, even those that are not used for a holy purpose (kodashei bedek habayis), or to intentionally destroy part of the Har HaBayis is prohibited miderabbanan. 8

Is there a responsibility to bury the broken stone from the Beis HaMikdash or from the Har HaBayis?

The halacha is that damaged stone from the Beis HaMikdash or its vessels must be buried, just as we bury worn-out sifrei Torah. 9 Thus, the halacha requires that stone or other remains from the Beis HaMikdash be respectfully buried. Unfortunately, today, the stone and other remains that have no archeological value are simply abandoned at the worksite.

Does the earth from the Har HaBayis have sanctity?

The Mizbayach Adamah, 10 whose author was the rav of Yerushalayim during part of the eighteenth century, discusses a shaylah whether grapes grown on the Har HaBayis are prohibited because of me’ilah. From his discussion, it is clear that he considers all earth of the Har HaBayis to have kedusha that might create a prohibition of me’ilah. Thus, the same concerns I raised above about the stone remains exist concerning the earth itself, and it must be buried in a respectful way.

Question #4: The remnants unearthed include bone fragments, some of them human. This leads to two specific questions:

(a) May a kohen participate in this project?

(b) Is there a halachic concern of mistreating the dead, since these human remains will not be buried afterwards, but will be stored and used for scientific research and study?

Human bones

The discovery of human bone fragments on the Har HaBayis is puzzling, since Jews would never have buried anyone there. In all likelihood, these are bones of non-Jews that were interred there, or perhaps of Jews who were killed on the Har HaBayis and, unfortunately, not buried according to halacha. Even if we assume that these are bones of non-Jews, a fragment as small as the size of a barleycorn will convey tumah, if moved or touched. Therefore, since there is a reasonable chance that a kohen might touch or lift a human bone fragment, he should refrain from participating in this project.

Burial

Does a non-kohen need to be concerned about the possibility that he will locate bones, and that he now has a mitzvah to bury them?

If one can assume that the bones discovered were from non-Jews, there is no mitzvah to bury them, but only to be certain that they do not render a kohen impure. Even if the bones are from a Jew, it is unclear whether the mitzvah of burying a Jewish meis applies to such a small amount. The Mishneh LaMelech 11 rules that the mitzvah of kevurah does not apply to part of a corpse, whereas the Tosafos Yom Tov 12 rules that one is required to bury a piece of a Jewish meis as small as a kezayis. However, it is unclear how small a piece of bone requires kevurah.

Avodah Zarah

Question #5: Some artifacts that surface are clearly from what were once idols. Is there a halachic requirement to destroy them? Is it the finder’s responsibility to destroy them, something which the archeologists do not permit?

Some background to this shaylah: It is prohibited to benefit from an idol; furthermore, there is a Torah mitzvah to destroy idols in a way that no one can ever benefit from them. 13 The suggested method is to grind up the idol and scatter the filings to the wind or the sea. One may also not benefit from a broken idol, and the same halachic requirement exists to destroy it. 14 Obviously, the archeologists overseeing the work will not allow this halacha to be fulfilled.

Thus, in conclusion, it appears that one unless one found usable metal vessels, one does not need to be concerned about using Beis HaMikdash property while sifting earth removed from the Har HaBayis. It also seems that a non-kohen may participate in these activities if he can have control over the items that he finds and can destroy the idols and bury the human bones and any remains from the Beis HaMikdash that he may find. However, he may not participate as a member of a "dig team," where he is forced to follow the instructions of an archeologist who is not following halachic guidelines.

A halacha background

From photographs I have seen of the new mosque, it appears that the Waqf did very little actual construction, but simply hollowed out one of the underground archways as it was originally constructed when the Beis HaMikdash was built. Explaining this underground construction is, in itself, a fascinating halachic subject.

Underground archways

Someone who stands above a buried corpse or part of a corpse becomes tamei (with the exception of the case I will describe below). When the Beis HaMikdash was built, the building was constructed in a way that it was impossible to become tamei, even if someone was once buried in the earth beneath the Beis HaMikdash, itself an almost impossible scenario. In order to eliminate the possibility of someone becoming tamei from such a corpse, the Har HaBayis was constructed with "archways on top of archways." 15

To explain this construction, I will elucidate how tumas ohel works. If there is tumas meis under a building, tumah spreads throughout the building, but does not spread above the building. Therefore, someone walking on the roof of the building remains tahor, even though he walked directly above the meis.

Similarly, if one constructs an archway, and there is tumah under the roof of the archway, the tumah spreads underneath this entire archway, but not above it. This is because an archway is a building –tumah spreads underneath it, but the archway prevents tumah from rising above it.

However, if the meis was buried beneath the pillar of an archway, the tumah is not inside the ohel, but under the pillar – and the tumah rises vertically and contaminates the area directly above it.

The way to prevent this tumah from proceeding upward and rendering people above it tamei is to construct another archway directly above the pillar. This way, although the tumah will rise through the pillar of the lower archway, it will then remain within the ohel of the upper archway and not spread above it.

This is the concept of "archways on top of archways" -- where both of the upper archway's pillars rest on the arch of the lower archway, which effectively blocks tumas ohel from spreading from the ground below to any area above the double archway. If the meis is beneath the arch of the lower archway, the lower archway blocks tumah from rising above it, and if the tumas meis is beneath the pillar of the lower archway and its tumah rises above the lower archway, it will be blocked by the upper archway.

Thus, to avoid any possible tumas meis in the Beis HaMikdash, the entire Har HaBayis was constructed with underground double sets of archways, thereby guaranteeing that no tumas meis could spread upward from a meis below. The Waqf apparently cleared out the debris accumulated under one of these archways, and used it as the roof of their mosque!

Incidentally, this method of making "archways on top of archways" is used to correct the problem of roads discovered to pass over graves or cemeteries. In this instance, very small "archways" are constructed, but this is sufficient, because to accommodate this halachic problem, each section of archway-ohel needs to be only a tefach high.

We all hope and pray that the day will soon come when the Beis HaMikdash returns as the Bayis Shlishi, and we will ascend to the Har HaBayis in purity, sanctity, and joy to serve Hashem by observing all of the mitzvos


^ 1.Kaftor VaFerech, Chapter 6; Kesef Mishneh, Hilchos Beis HaBechirah 6:14; Magen Avraham 561:2; Shu’t Binyan Tziyon #2.
^ 2.Zevachim 93b
^ 3.7:22
^ 4.Avodah Zarah 52b
^ 5.Mishnah and Gemara Eruvin 104b; Rambam, Hilchos Bi’as HaMikdash Chapter 3
^ 6.Rambam, Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah 6:7
^ 7.Rambam ibid.; and Hilchos Beis HaBechirah 1:17
^ 8.Shu’t Achiezer, Yoreh Deah #49; Aruch HaShulchan HeAsid 4:24-25; Minchas Chinuch #437
^ 9.Tosefta, Megillah 2:10; Rambam, Hilchos Beis HaBechirah 1:15
^ 10.Cited by Machazik Bracha, addendum to Orach Chayim 151
^ 11.End of Hilchos Aveil
^ 12.Shabbos 10:5
^ 13.Rambam, Hilchos Avodah Zarah 7:1; Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 146:14
^ 14.Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 146:11
^ 15.Mishnah, Parah 3:3; Rambam, Hilchos Beis HaBechirah 5:1

TWO VIDEOS: HATING ISRAEL – and – NAPOLEON AND PURPOSE OF MOURNING


Hating Israel: Understanding Tisha B’Av through Today’s Headlines
How preconceived notions cause baseless hatred.
by Eitiel Goldwicht


Courtesy of Aish.com

_____________________________
The speaker happens to be the son of Rabbi Meir Goldwicht, who is a sought after speaker in the Rehavia/Shaare Chessed areas where I live. Rabbi Eitiel is also the assistant Rabbi at Rabbi Berl Wein’s Shul in Rehavia. 



Napoleon and the Purpose of Mourning on Tisha B’Av
Why do Tisha B’Av and Passover always occur on the same day of the week?
by Rabbi Yaakov Cohen


Courtesy of Aish.com

TISHA B'AV SPECIAL MARCH, AUGUST 1

A NEWSLETTER TO LOVERS OF ZION IN THE WORLD


TISHA B'AV SPECIAL MARCH, AUGUST 1, 2017, OF THE FAITHFUL MOVEMENT TO JERUSALEM AND THE HOLY TEMPLE MOUNT. ISLAMIC ARAB THREATS: “DO NOT ALLOW ISRAEL TO BUILD THE TEMPLE.” UNITED NATIONS ORGANIZATION: “THE TEMPLE MOUNT AND JERUSALEM ARE ISLAMIC SITES AND ISRAEL SHOULD STOP HER EFFORTS TO REBUILD THE TEMPLE”

THE FAITHFUL MOVEMENT MARCH WILL ANSWER THEM AND THEIR THREATS:


“The G-D of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build: but you have no portion, or right, or memorial, in Jerusalem.” Nehemiah 2:20

THE MARCH WILL CALL THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL TO TRUST G-D AND NOT TO FEAR THE LYING RESOLUTIONS AND THE THREATS: 


“IF G-D IS WITH US, WHOM SHALL WE FEAR?!”

The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement will conduct a special march to Jerusalem and the Holy Temple Mount on Tisha B'Av, Tuesday, August 1, 2017, at 11:30 am at a very significant time in the history of Israel and the entire world. Tisha B'Av is the day that memorializes the destruction of both the First and the Second Holy Temples. It has been almost 2,000 years since the destruction of the Second Holy Temple in the year 70 CE and the First Holy Temple was destroyed in the year 586 BCE. Tisha B'Av continues to be a day of heavy mourning, fasting and remembering of the most critical and terrible event in the life of the people of Israel. This year marks the Jubilee Year of the liberation of the Holy Temple Mount and Biblical Jerusalem in the year 1967. The government of Israel decided that this Jubilee Year will be a year of celebration and joy: After 2,000 years of destruction and exile, the dream of the G-D of Israel and His people Israel was that from the destruction would come forth the building of the Third Holy Temple, the eternal Temple of the G-D of Israel. Unfortunately because of pressure and threats that came from the great powers of the world, the government of Israel delayed again and again the fulfillment of this great hope and dream to make it a reality in our lifetime.

The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement was founded in order to build the Third Holy Temple with no delay and to trust the G-D of Israel that He will stand with us. “If the G-D of Israel is with us, whom shall we fear?!”

The Faithful Movement is now counting the 50th year of an historical campaign to fulfill the expectation of the G-D of Israel and is prepared to start right now to rebuild the Holy Temple.

The Tisha B'Av march this year is the Faithful Movement's historical call to the government of Israel to build the Third Holy Temple with no delay and to re-establish the kingdom of the G-D of Israel and to remove, with no fear, the pagan foreign occupation from the most Holy Mountain of the G-D of Israel.

The foreign Islamic Arab enemies of Israel, together with the United Nations and other great powers, who understand the godly atmosphere in Israel and the motivation of the Faithful Movement to rebuild the Holy Temple with no more delay, made resolutions one after the other saying: “The Temple Mount, Jerusalem, Machpelah (the tombs of the forefathers and foremothers of the Jewish people) and even the tomb of Rachel are all Islamic sites. Israel should stop her efforts to return the Holy Temple Mount to the Jewish people and to rebuild the Holy Temple.” These resolutions and threats have come a short time before the Tisha B'Av 2017 Jubilee March of the Faithful Movement to the Holy Temple Mount.

The Temple Mount Faithful Movement will march on Tisha B'Av to call from the Holy Mountain of the G-D of Israel to immediately rebuild the Holy Temple. The goal of the march is to answer the absurd, false, filled with lies and ridiculous U.N. resolutions and to rebuke their threats against Israel. The Faithful Movement will answer them with the words of Nehemiah to the enemies of Israel during a very similar situation and era in the history of Israel:


“The G-D of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build: but you have no portion, or right, or memorial, in Jerusalem” Nehemiah 2:20

During this very special Tisha B'Av 2017 march, the Faithful Movement will call the people and the government of Israel not to fear these threats and to immediately reject the falsified U.N. resolutions. The movement will encourage the people of Israel, saying, “If the G-D of Israel is with us, whom shall we fear?!”

Everyone in Israel and outside of Israel are invited to participate in this special march to the Holy Temple Mount and Jerusalem. We are calling the Lovers of Zion and Israel to march together with us like dear brothers and sisters of Israel. We shall meet on Tisha B'Av, Tuesday, August 1st, 2017 at the Goren Plaza in the front of the Holy Temple Mount at 11:30 am. May the G-D of Israel bless all of you.

IN THE ALMIGHTY G-D OF ISRAEL WE TRUST!!

30 July 2017

The Beis HaMikdash – Laws of The Holy Temple

The Beis HaMikdash
Laws of The Holy Temple

Jewish teachings explain that when we learn the laws of the Holy Temple, its structure, the services and sacrifices practiced there, it is as if we are building it. This study should be carried out in anxious anticipation of the Holy Temple being rebuilt. We should study about the Holy Temple with the awareness that in the very near future we will see what we are studying about in actual reality.

The Mitzva to Build

When the Jews received the Torah at Mt. Sinai, they were commanded to build a Holy Sanctuary for G-d, called in Hebrew, a Mikdosh. The purpose of the Mikdash [Temple] is to provide G-d with a place to dwell in this world, a House to which offerings may be brought.

Men and women must help to build the Temple. It is a mitzvah to build it as beautifully as possible. If money is available, one should even cover the whole structure with gold! However, children may not be taken away from learning Torah, even for the sake of building the Temple. We do not build the Temple on Shabbat or on Yom Tov.

A person is meant to go to the Temple three times a year, to celebrate the Festivals of Pesach, Shavuot, and Succot.

A Bit of History

The first Sanctuary was built by Moshe and the Jews. It was movable, and could be transported with the Jewish people from place to place in the Wilderness.

Nearly 400 years later, King David, designed a permanent Temple for G-d in Jerusalem. It was built by his son, King Solomon. This was the first Holy Temple. It stood in the holy city of Jerusalem for 410 years. The first Temple was destroyed by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar, who cast the Jews into exile.

After 70 years in Exile, the Jews were at last able to return to Eretz Yisrael, under the leadership of Ezra the Scribe. He supervised the construction of the Second Temple. This occurred soon after the story of Purim took place. The Second Temple was larger than the First, and stood for 420 years. It was destroyed by the Roman armies led by Titus.

The Third Temple will be rebuilt on the same spot that the first two Temples stood, when Moshiach comes, may it be very soon!

The Structure

In building the Temple, large, expensive stones were used. Some were used in their natural form, others were shaped with tools, such as the huge stones still standing in the Western Wall.
On the Temple Mount itself, however, no iron tools could be used. Even to hear the sound of an iron tool was forbidden, because iron (as used for weapons) shortens the life of man, and the Temple is meant to prolong it.

The Temple Mount

The entire Temple area was built on a mountain slope, not on flat ground. When a person would enter the Temple, he would have to walk up Mt. Moriah, mounting steps from level to level as he went. It is no accident that the Temple is built on a mountain. On a mountainside it is very hard to stand still. You always have to keep climbing. When it comes to learning Torah and doing mitzvot, it is the same. We must also keep climbing--by learning and doing more.

The Temple Mount is called Mount Moriah. The word moriah is from the word yirah, meaning "fear" and "awe." When the Temple was standing, the world was filled with fear and awe of G-d. The word moriah is also from the root ho-r'ah, which means "teaching." This is because the highest court in all Israel, the Sanhedrin, used to sit in the Temple, so that teaching and instruction would go out from there to all the Jewish people.

The Sanhedrin, The Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of seventy-one Sages (The Sanhedrin) had its chambers in the Temple. Here they would judge the people, and teach them to go higher and higher in Torah and mitzvot.

The room in which the Sanhedrin would meet was called the Chamber of Hewed Stone. It was called by this name because the chairs for the judges were carved out of solid stone.

The wisest and most righteous judges in Israel used to meet there, right by the Temple, so that when they were deciding the most difficult problems of the Jewish nation they would always think of G-d, and explain His Torah correctly.

When Moshiach comes - may we merit this speedily - and the Temple will be rebuilt, the great Sanhedrin will once again meet in the Chamber of Hewed Stones in the Temple. At that time, peace will reign, and the city of Jerusalem will expand to include all of the Land of Israel!

To Hold The Temple in Awe

We are commanded to hold the Temple in awe, and to revere it. Of course, it is not only the building that we revere, but the One who commanded us to build it.

How do we revere the Temple? We are not to enter the Temple Mount holding a staff, or with sandals on our feet, or dressed in informal clothes, or with dust on our feet, or money in our hands. Needless to say, we should not spit.

A person should not take a shortcut through the Temple Mount, entering on one side and going out the other, just to make the way shorter. Rather one should walk around the outside, and enter only for the sake of a mitzvah.

When leaving the Temple, a person should not turn around and walk away. He should go backwards slowly, and then turn to his side until he is out of the courtyard.

A person should not act frivolously or joke around opposite the eastern gate of the Temple, for it is directly opposite the Holy of Holies.

Even though the Temple is now in ruins because of our sins, a person must hold it in awe and behave in a dignified manner at all times, just as when it was standing.

The Mitzvah To Guard The Temple

It is a mitzvah to station guards around the Temple, just as a king would have guards around his palace. Not that we have to protect G-d, for He is mightier than any army, rather we station guards to show Him honor.

Every night, 24 guards would take up their positions around the Temple. The Kohanim (Temple priests) stood guard inside, and 21 Levites stood guard on the outside.

The Vessels

The following vessels must be in the outer courtyard:

1. The Great Altar

The Great Altar was made of stone. It was for burnt offerings, such as animals, birds, flour baked into matzos, and libations (pourings) of wine.

On top of the Great Altar three fires were kept burning: one was for the daily offerings, one to provide coals for burning the incense on the Golden Altar, and one just to fulfill the commandment of always having a fire burning on the Altar of G-d.

The kohanim (Temple priests) were not allowed to go up on the Altar by means of steps, nor was it permissible to build steps for the Altar. Only a ramp was allowed.

The Great Altar of the Temple was in a very precise place, which may never be changed. This place is so holy that even non-Jews recognize its holiness and have never worshipped idols on the spot.

The Great Altar was built on very holy ground. It is the same place where our forefather Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac (Yitzchok). Noah had made offerings to G-d there after the flood. Even Adam had made his offering to G-d there. In fact, our Sages tell us it is the very same spot G-d had taken the earth with which He created man Adam, the first human being.

The Altar of our Third Temple will also be built exactly in this same place.

Large amounts of wood were used for the fire on the Great Altar.

Kohanim who could not serve in the Temple, either because of age or some other reason, would check all the wood for worms before it went to the outer Altar. They did this in a chamber called the Wood Room.

2. The Kiyor, Wash-basin

The Kiyor (Wash-basin) was a large vessel full of water, used by the Kohanim to wash their hands and feet, before beginning their service in the Temple.

The Kiyor, originally had only two taps [faucets], but later it was redesigned by one of the High Priests called Ben Katin, to have twelve taps. This enabled all the twelve priests who participated in the daily offering to wash their hands and feet at once, before they began the Temple service.

In the inner Holy Chamber, there are three vessels:

1. The Small Golden Altar

The small Altar was made of pure gold, and was for offerings of sweet smelling incense.

2. The Menorah

The menorah was made of pure gold. It had three feet, and seven straight branches. On each branch there were three upside-down cups. Near the base was another cup, bringing the total to 22 cups--exactly equal to the number of letters in the aleph bais, the Hebrew alphabet.
There were also 9 flowers and 11 egg-shaped bulbs decorating the menorah. The flowers were a symbol of the world's potential for growth and development. The bulbs were a symbol of limitless spiritual pleasure.

The menorah was lit by the Kohen Gadol, the High Priest, every day toward evening.

All the flames in the menorah faced the central lamp. This lamp was called the nair ma'aravi--the western lamp--because it faced the Holy of Holies. This lamp was the first one kindled every day toward evening, and it would burn miraculously long after the others had burned out, until it was time to rekindle the menorah the next day. This was a sign to the entire world that G-d dwelt with the Jewish people.

3. The Shulchan, The Table

Twelve specially baked "loaves" were placed on this golden table every Friday before Shabbat. They stood in two rows. Between each tray was an air-space, the "loaves" were called the lechem hapanim, because they were shaped like a barge, facing in 2 directions at once.

The Kodesh HaKodashim

The holiest part of the Temple was in the west. It was called the Kodesh HaKodashim - Holy of Holies. In it stood the Aron [ark], in which the Tablets with the Ten Commandments were kept. This box was square, just as the tablets were square and made of wood, with a layer of gold inside and a layer of gold outside. There were really three boxes, one within the other. [see also The Subterranean Temple

The cover of the Ark - the Kapo'res - was solid gold more than 6" thick.

On top of the Kapo'res were two golden figures, a boy and a girl. Like soldiers they stood guard over the Torah. G-d spoke to Moshe through their wings.

Our Sages tell is that when G-d was pleased with the Jewish people, these figures would face towards each other with love.

Beside the Ark was the legendary staff of Moshe's brother, Aaron, the first high priest, which once miraculously sprouted almond blossoms overnight, and a flask containing manna, a memorial from the time of Moshe and from the time the Jews were in the wilderness. This was to remind Jews how G-d sustained our ancestors for forty years in the desert, and how surely, He can sustain us now and at all times!

No one was ever allowed into this Holiest Chamber except the Kohen Gadol - the Hight Priest - and he could only enter once a year, on Yom Kippur - the holiest day of the Jewish Year, to pray for the welfare of the Jewish people.

To clean the Holy of Holies, men were lowered from above in special baskets. The baskets faced the wall, so that the men could do their job without looking into the room itself.

When King Solomon built the Temple, he knew that it would ultimately be destroyed. He built secret underground rooms in which to hide The Ark with the Ten Commandments, as well as Aaron's staff, the small vessel with manna, and the oil for anointing.

Before the First Temple was destroyed, King Yeshayahu commanded that the Ark be placed in these secret passageways. He also hid the staff of Aaron, the bottle of manna, and the oil for anointing.

None of these things were found again, not even in the time of the Second Temple, but they will all be returned in the time of Moshiach, when the Third Temple will be rebuilt, may it be speedily NOW.

ISRAEL CAUGHT IN A TRAP

ISRAEL CAUGHT IN A TRAP OF ITS OWN MAKING


Ever seen how a jackal kills its prey? 

Usually, it doesn’t kill it with one blow or bite. It surrounds it, it challenges it, it probes for points of weakness. It then gets its jaws around the neck of its prey and won’t let go. Whenever the animal struggles it makes itself weaker.

This is what we have been seeing from Israel. We are caught, like an animal, unable to shake off the obsessive hunger of those who have their claws into us and want to destroy us. Like a wounded animal, we didn’t assess the threat, or appreciate the real danger. In nature, the targeted animal often appears to be so powerful it could easily resist the deadly jackals. They thought their strong and non-offensive posture would appease the hungry killers into not attacking.

Like the wounded beast, Israel finds itself caught in a trap of its own making. Like that animal, Israel is caught in the jaws of those that want to destroy us.

How did we get to the point that a strong Jewish state is strategically so meek that we have too readily surrendered Judaism’s most holy site to a comparatively weak adversary? It’s down to a failed policy of playing nice.

The Temple Mount on Tuesday morning.
(photo credit:JOINT COUNCIL OF TEMPLE ORGANIZATIONS)


The thrilling historic announcement, exactly 50 years ago, that “The Temple Mount is in our hands” was true – for a few days. Playing nice began half a century ago when Gen. Moshe Dayan countermanded Motta Gur by saying about the Temple Mount, “What is this? The Vatican?” and handed the administration to the Muslim Council. The battle then was not against Palestinians. Israel was fighting a defensive war against invading Arab armies bent on our destruction.

The baying Palestinian protesters recently shouted that the Temple Mount is for “Muslims and Palestinians only.” Jews and Christians throw away your bibles. The Israeli government has failed you. Through a fear of being disliked, we have adopted an assimilated-Jew psychosis, of trying to appear nice or appeasing the goyim and the Muslims, yet we still fail to win friends or influence people. It is we that are being influenced to surrender all too often and too easily.

We can feel the claws of our enemy embedded in our flesh. Like wounded animals we are either frozen into inaction or, worse still, make decisions that tighten their deadly lock on our carcass.

We may pretend that Jerusalem is the undivided capital of the Jewish state but there are parts of Jerusalem where the municipality fears to tread, places where obsessive Jew hatred and a desire to see the end of Israel is growing. People are not aware that in this part of our “undivided capital” football cubs play under the auspices of the Palestinian Football Association and their champion team supervises soccer tournaments honoring killers of Israelis without any response from our government against this incitement to terrorism being practiced in Jerusalem. The government won’t stamp this out because they don’t want to upset anyone.

We have lost not only our courage but our moral compass.

We are in a battle for survival that can only be won by victory over those trying to destroy us bite by bite.

Recently, NGOs came together to form the Israel Victory Caucus.

The Israeli government must open up to a serious dose of strategic reality therapy. We are on the path to our own destruction. It is time to go on the offensive with courage and commitment. No other remedy can result in permanent peace.

Germany and Japan surrendered only after being brought to their knees. Only when the Palestinians have been brought to the point that they admit defeat, give up on their obsessive Jewish hatred, their feverish martyrdom complex and an overarching ambition to destroy us can any form of peace take hold.

They are the ones, not us, who need to make painful concessions.

As Daniel Pipes of Middle East Forum wrote in January, “True peacemaking means finding ways to coerce Palestinian to undergo a change of heart, give up rejectionism, accept Jews, Zionism, and Israel. Defeat compels them to come to terms with their irredentist fantasies and empty the rhetoric of revolution.”

To achieve that, Israel has to extract itself from the psychological and strategic trap it has set for itself.

Written by Barry Shaw. The author is the senior associate for public diplomacy at the Israel Institute for Strategic Studies. He is the author of Fighting Hamas, BDS and Anti-Semitism, and the best-seller 1917, From Palestine to the Land of Israel.

SOURCE: JPost

התקום מדינת דאע"ש על כביש 6? י

ARE WE LOOKING AT WAR: TRUMP SENDS 2 B–1 BOMBERS TO KOREAN PENINSULA

Trump turns on China: 

Furious president says country could 'easily' solve problem with North Korea but does nothing to help America except 'talk' as he dispatches two B-1 bombers to Korean Peninsula

Trump took to Twitter on Saturday night to call out past American leaders who he believes went lax on China helping out with the growing North Korea problem. Kim Jong-Un successfully launched a missile on Friday that experts said could reach the US (top). Trump wrote that leaders had allowed China to make hundreds of billions a year in trade but that 'they do NOTHING for us with North Korea, just talk.’

  • President Trump slammed China in a series of tweets on Saturday night.
  • He blames past American leaders for 'allowing' China to profit off trade and not helping with North Korea in return.
  • Trump said China could 'easily' solve the problem if the country wanted to.
  • North Korea launched a successful missile that landed near Japan on Friday
  • Experts claim the country can reach mainland US cities with the weapons
  • Hours later, the U.S. flew two B-1B bombers over the Korean peninsula, joined by Japanese and South Korean fighter jets, in a show of force


















North Korea tests missile that could threaten Los Angeles, Chicago or New York CBSnews


WASHINGTON -- North Korea launched another sophisticated missile Friday, one that could potentially hit the mainland U.S. The rare late-night launch sent a ballistic missile into space. It remained airborne for more than 40 minutes, flying 1,000 kilometers due east before splashing into the Sea of Japan. It was the second successful intercontinental ballistic missile test within the past month, and it flew longer and farther than any previous missile.














Donald Trump will attack weapons site in North Korea 'within the next year' after communist state said it had successfully fired a ballistic missile
(is this a leak?)

Donald Trump is poised to order a military strike against North Korea ‘within the next year’ after the communist state said it had successfully fired a ballistic missile capable of hitting the US mainland.

Senior military sources in Washington DC told The Mail on Sunday that Pentagon officials have laid out plans to obliterate a nuclear weapons facility operating deep within a mountain in the rogue state.
(is this fake news?)
















Source:  DailyMail (no link)

29 July 2017

Between the Temples by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato

Between the Temples
from the teachings of Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato (Ramchal)

Now I will explain to you why the Future Temple will be different from the First and Second. This is no empty matter. Pay careful attention and make every effort to follow. There are certain important points that you must understand first.

Two roots of creation

The word 'bereishit' thus indicates two beginnings….

It is written: "In the beginning [in Hebrew, "bereishit"], G‑d created the heavens and the earth". (Gen. 1:1) The Sages commented that the letter beit [the second letter of the alef-beit] in the word bereishit also has the connotation of "two", this being the numerical value of the letter beit. The word "bereishit" thus indicates two beginnings. You must grasp this great fundamental in order to understand things clearly and know the meaning of the idea of the rectification [tikun] of the world.

When the Creator blessed-be-He decided to create this world, He set the lights in their proper places and the guards at their posts, arranging all the different orders of Creation in His Wisdom [chochma]. This chochma was exalted above all His other works, and upon this chochma everything depends. This chochma is signified by the yud of His glorious, awesome Name.

But above chochma is found another beginning [keter], which is wholly concealed: "Deep, deep, who can find it?"(Ecclesiastes 7:24) This is what gives chochma its power and strength. Because of its intense holiness, this higher beginning is totally hidden within chochma and completely invisible from outside. When all the ministers and officers who receive from the King see that they all receive from chochma, they say, "Surely this is the beginning [in Hebrew, 'reishit'] of everything, this is the source that never ceases." For this reason chochma is called "the beginning".

Everything brought about by chochma derives from this higher beginning….

But included within chochma is this other, higher "beginning" [keter]. There is no separation between the two. Everything brought about by chochma derives from this higher beginning, and it is from here that chochma receives its orders. There is nothing in the world that chochma brings about that does not derive from this other beginning, signified by the cusp of the yud. You will find that the cusp is never separated from the yud nor the yud from the cusp. Thus all things have a beginning, and, in addition, there is the beginning of the beginning. This is the concept of the two beginnings (beit [the letter] + reishit) of which I spoke above.

When…keter is revealed in all its power and glory, all the lights will come to a far greater, higher level….

Why did Scripture use an expression that bears two meanings? The reason is that since the day the world was created until the present time the world has not attained perfection. Everything depends on man's deeds. Had man not sinned, the universe would have come to perfection. Because of his sin, it was not perfected. So far the Creation has only come to the level of rectification corresponding to chochma. But there is a far greater, higher level that is still to be attained. For when the hidden beginning (keter) is revealed in all its power and glory, all the lights will come to a far greater, higher level, after which there will be no more decline.

The lights have not yet attained this level, but in times to come they will indeed attain it. And then abundant good will come into the world, peace and tranquility will reign everywhere, and sadness and sighing will be banished. Of those days it is said: "On that day, G‑d will be one and His Name one." (Zacharia 14:9)

If I were to expand on this matter, it would lead into very extensive discussions that would take me way beyond the bounds of my subject. It is humanly impossible to grasp every single detail to the very end. Accordingly, I will not stray far from the path. I will simply set before you a number of introductory explanations. Examine them carefully and you will gain an understanding of hidden secrets that are sealed up and reserved for the remnants whom G‑d calls, secrets that serve as the garb of the Ancient One (cf. Isaiah 23:18 as explained in Pesachim 118a).

The First Temple: Chochma

What you must know is that until now all the lights and all the levels have been based only on chochma, whereas in the future the concealed beginning [keter] will be revealed and all things will ascend to the greatest, most precious levels.

Know too that the sin of Adam spoiled everything and caused all perfection to become concealed, with the result that the world was not even able to return to its previous state [i.e. the level of chochma] except in the days of Solomon, when the Temple was first built. Thus it is written, "And G‑d gave chochma to Solomon". (I Kings 5:26) For then chochma was revealed in all its beauty and radiant glory, enabling all the lights to shine with great strength and joy. In those days, on every level in all the worlds there was only holy power and delight the like of which had never been seen. Even so, because everything was based only on chochma and did not reach the ultimate goal [of keter], this peace and tranquility came to an end and the Temple was destroyed.

The Future Temple

But in times to come, when the hidden beginning I mentioned [keter] is revealed, the happiness will be far, far greater, and it will never cease. All things emanate from their source. Likewise, all the rules governing the lights and their functioning, whether in motion or at rest, follow their source. Any change in the source from which the lights receive affects the whole world. For this reason, in times to come the world will undergo many changes, and the Holy Temple will certainly be different since this is the place from which life is channeled to all the creatures in all the worlds.

When the boundaries of chochma are surpassed, the world will enter a new state of joy….
The First Temple, then, corresponds to chochma, the chochma that was given to Solomon and with which he built the Temple, as I have explained, while the Future Temple corresponds to the hidden beginning [keter] that has yet to be revealed.

Nevertheless, there is certainly nothing new under the sun. All the changes and developments that have taken place and continue to take place every single day for the six thousand years of Creation were decreed at the very outset. Even so, in times to come, when the boundaries of chochma are surpassed, the world will enter a new state of joy. This is a great fundamental, though I will not discuss it at length now. Let me just say briefly that, initially, G‑d made all things the way they are now on the basis of chochma alone, yet they contain within them the power to be ordered according to the supreme beginning [keter]. And when this beginning is revealed, everything will be drawn after it through the original power already planted within them at the outset. The entire creation will then be renewed as if it was born at that moment. That is why Isaiah spoke of: "The new heavens and the new earth" (Isaiah 66:22).

The Third Temple Above

The Temple above never ceased to exist, even though the Temple below was destroyed….
And now I will reveal a very great secret, so apply your intelligence resolutely in order to descend to the depths of the matter. Know that this future Temple is the one that Ezekiel the Prophet saw immediately after the destruction of the First Temple. You have already heard that the Temple above never ceased to exist, even though the Temple below was destroyed. For the Temple in This World could only be built through the great power of the lights [the sefirot] which radiated from level to level until they reached this world, producing the Temple. In the absence of this power the Temple could not remain in this world. But this did not mean that the Heavenly Temple had to be destroyed. It simple became darkened and did not shine as at first.

However, those familiar with the paths of wisdom know a great secret: had those who lived when Solomon built the First Temple not fallen into sin but held firm to the path of purity, they would have ascended from level to level until everything was perfected. The world would then simply have changed directly from one state to another, and what was to have been revealed would have been revealed.

But the influence of evil and the proliferation of sinners caused the destruction of the First Temple that was built according to the initial design. When this happened, the Heavenly Temple no longer stood in its original form. In a single moment it disappeared and was rebuilt in a different form and structure: that of the Future Temple. One building disappeared and the other appeared without so much as a hairsbreadth between them. However the new structure was not revealed in the lower world. Only in the future will it be revealed. But in the Upper World, from that day on, so it was and so it is.

That is why Ezekiel saw it, for it was already built and standing. Had the Jewish People only been worthy, the redemption in the time of Ezra should have been like the redemption from Egypt, and their entry into the Land should have been like Joshua's entry. Then they would have built the Temple according to the plan seen by Ezekiel, and the two Temples, above and below, would have been perfectly aligned.

The Shechinah in the First and Second Temples

Since the people failed to improve their ways, the redemption in the time of Ezra was a quiet affair and they did not have the strength to build the Temple according to the plan of the future Temple. On the instructions of the prophets among them they built it partly like the First Temple and partly like the future Temple which already existed above. But the time was not ripe for them to build it entirely like the future Temple.

Thus in the time of Solomon the two Temples - in this world and the higher world - were in perfect alignment, and accordingly the Shechinah found a resting-place and dwelled in the earthly Temple. But the Second Temple was not similar to the Heavenly Temple and the Shechinah did not dwell in it.

The Shechinah in the Future Temple

However, in times to come, not only will the two Temples be similar, but the Upper House will extend until it reaches the Lower World. This is the meaning of the saying of our Rabbis that the Third Temple will be the work of the hands of G‑d. For the Heavenly Temple will not be uprooted from its place. Rather, it will extend until it reaches the lower world, and then around it will be built a physical structure at fitting in this material world, and the two structures will be joined and become one and will never again separate. G‑d's glory will be fully revealed there, as it is written, "And the glory of G‑d will be revealed, and all flesh will see". (Isaiah 40:5) Then there will be complete peace and happiness forever.

There is an allusion to this secret in the verse: "…the Sanctuary, Ado-nai, that Your hands established [in Hebrew, 'konenu']". (Ex. 15:17) The beauty of the limbs and ornaments of the Shechinah is revealed according to the way she receives. When the light of this beginning will shine, the glory of Her crown [keter] will be greatly exalted. Thus the Sanctuary will be built on the foundation of keter, and the numerical value of the letters of the word "konenu" [spelled kaf, nun, nun, vav = 126] is equivalent to the sum of [the rebua value of the divine name Ado-nai cited in the verse:] alef plus alef-dalet plus alef-dalet-nun plus alef-dalet-nun-yud, which shines in this crown [keter].

All these matters are very deep and far more rooted in wisdom than might appear.

[Translated by Avraham Greenbaum in Secrets of the Future Temple from Mishkeney Elyon;
published by the Temple Institute and Azamra Institute]

Source: Chabad

28 July 2017

Rabbi Mizrachi Told Us The Erev Rav Would Say This To Mashiach


AND THEY ARE ALREADY SAYING IT. HE ALSO SAID THAT THERE ARE RABBIS THAT ARE NOT SPEAKING THE TRUTH ABOUT OUR HOLY TORAH AND THEY ARE LEADING JEW TO GEHINNOM:

Jerusalem Post Opinion*
I DON’T WANT THE TEMPLE MOUNT

Building the third Temple would be the destruction of modern Jewry and would, I believe, lead directly to the end of the modern State of Israel.The Temple Mount is not really “in our hands” – and I really don’t want it to be.

The Temple Mount is not really “in our hands” – and I really don’t want it to be. Yes, I know it is “the holiest place in the world for Jews” and yes, it was the site on which the First and Second Temples stood. But I don’t want a third Temple and I leave “redemption” to the Almighty – not Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government.

Growing up I sang “yibenai, yibenai, yibenai Beit Hamikdash” (the Temple will be rebuilt) just like everyone else.

I sang it until I met an ultra Orthodox Jew, a rabbi and a scholar, who said to me “after you sing that phrase you should whisper to yourself ‘yibenai – but not in my lifetime.” That got me thinking. I don’t want to be part of a religion that engages in animal sacrifices. I don’t want Judaism to return to its pre-Temple-destruction pagan-like days. I don’t want to see Temple priests and religious functionaries – we already have too much with the official Orthodox rabbinate, its corruption and monopoly on matters of personal status, and the lack of separation between religion and state.

Building the third Temple would be the destruction of modern Jewry and would, I believe, lead directly to the end of the modern State of Israel. So, as far as I am concerned, I want the status quo – let the Muslims worship on the Temple Mount. Let the Wakf have full control. Let the Jews who want to continue to pray at the Western Wall and let us agree that no one, and no government will change that arrangement without mutual agreement. And if there is a G–d, and if G–d favors the Jews and wants to rebuild the Temple – then let’s leave that in the hands of Gød – not in our hands.

READ IT ALL GERSHON BASKIN SPOKEN LIKE A TRUE MEMBER OF THE EREV RAV.

Parshat Devarim – THE MIGHTY ONES OF ISRAEL

THE MIGHTY ONES OF ISRAEL
By Roy S. Neuberger

I think it behooves us to appreciate the world situation on the eve of Tisha B’Av

Please imagine the following: you are on a beach in a “tropical paradise,” an unspoiled panorama of clear water and blue sky. Palm trees wave in a gentle breeze. Suddenly, the water drains from the beach and seems to be sucked into the depths. As far as you can see, the ocean floor is exposed as the water suddenly disappears. Everyone stares in wonderment. They come running. No one has ever seen such a thing.

My friends, what I have described is the sign of an incoming tsunami, a wall of water which destroys everything in its path. Here is an idea of the power of this type of natural disaster. The highest wave ever recorded in history occurred in Lituya Bay, Alaska in 1958. This tsunami, triggered by a landslide which was in turn caused by an earthquake, reached a height of seventeen hundred and twenty feet in the surrounding mountains! This one wave was equal in height to the length of almost six football fields! 

“Praise Hashem, Oh Yerushalayim! Laud your G-d, Oh Tzion. For He has strengthened the bars of your gates and blesses your children in your midst. He Who makes your borders peaceful … He scatters frost like ashes; He hurls His ice like crumbs… before His cold who can stand?” (Tehillim 147) Who can stand before the Power of the Al-Mighty? “The voice of Hashem is upon the waters, the G-d of Glory thunders; Hashem is upon vast waters.” (Tehillim 29) 

Why am I telling you this? 

I heard recently from a reliable individual that eighteen families from a choshuve neighborhood in Yerushalayim are preparing right now to return to chutz l’Aretz. These dedicated bnai Torah do not want to leave, but for various reasons they cannot make it in the Holy Land. This, my friends, is the sign of a tragedy beyond understanding. I have not slept for many nights. 

The Mighty Ones of Israel are leaving the Land! 

I read recently in the Yated that a well-known “rabbi” stated “there needs to be a place for people who are not Orthodox at the Western Wall….” He was also quoted as having said, “The Conservatives and Reform are not against the Orthodox.” 

Was he sleeping during the parshios of Sefer Bamidbar? For how long will the Ribono shel Olam tolerate rebellion? “When you beget children and grandchildren … in the Land, you will grow corrupt … and do evil in the eyes of Hashem, your G-d, to anger Him.” (Dvarim 4:25; read on Tisha B’Av)

On Tisha B’Av, this day of endlessly-deep tragedy, we were forced to flee our beloved Land. We were driven into a Golus in which we are still drowning some two thousand years later. We have begun to return, but the only reason for return is to strengthen Torah.

If we don’t return for Torah, then for what do we return? 

The Mighty Ones of Israel are the warriors of the Bais Medrash. “Behold the couch of Shlomo! Sixty mighty ones round about it, of the mighty ones of Israel. All gripping the sword, learned in warfare, each with his sword on his thigh ….” (Shir Hashirim 3:7-8) 

Meam Loez says on these possukim, “In the warfare of scholarly argument in the Law of Moses, ‘all of them are gripping the sword’ … The Jewish people skillfully wield the words of the Torah. They are like valiant warriors seasoned in the skills of war....  According to the Midrash, the [passage] refers to the Kohanim and Leviim serving as watchmen in the Temple. Within this interpretation, ‘the couch of Shlomo’ means the Bais Hamikdosh … the dwelling place of the Al-mighty Sovereign.”  We say these very words every night in Krias Shema al Hamita, because these warriors of Torah protect us in the night called Golus

My friends, we are created “b’tzelem Elokim,” and we are supposed to imitate Hashem. Hashem Echad is One and His Name is One. Everything is contained within Hashem; there is nothing “outside” Hashem. We exist only as products of His will; we have no existence without His willing us to exist. 

The catalyst for Golus is sinas chinom, which is the opposite of achdus

Sinas Chinom is equivalent to the fragmentation of Am Yisroel into disparate parts which fly away from each other, each in its own direction, like those fireworks on July 4 which explode and fly in all directions, only to fizzle out in the blackness. We received the Torah at Har Sinai only because we were “k’ish echad b’lev echad… like one man with one heart.”  When we separate from each other, G-d forbid, we cannot be zoche to Torah. We need to be One. 

Sometimes I want to say “Shalom Aleichem to a Yid,” but he turns his face away. Am I not his brother? Don’t think I’m such a tsaddik, because I don’t always want to say “Shalom Aleichem,” but I know in my heart that I have to want to say “Shalom Aleichem,” and I have to answer “Aleichem Shalom” when he greets me. Yosef Hatzaddik said, “I am seeking my brothers.” (Beraishis 37:16) We have to seek our brothers. 

If we want to continue to exist, we have to imitate the Ribono shel Olam and become One. It is very difficult to speak about this, but the tsunami is coming. Soon the world as we know it will be swept by forces that are beyond our ability to comprehend. One can escape the tsunami only by running for high ground. We can survive the tsunami. The High Ground is Torah. We can fly on wings of Torah, but we can fly only if we know that we need to fly. There is no survival other than Torah. And the prerequisite for Torah is achdus. In the dark night of Golus, the warriors surround the Couch of Shlomo. 

“Let him put his mouth to the dust … there may yet be hope.” (Eichah 3:29)

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Roy Neuberger, author and public speaker, can be reached at roy@2020vision.co.il.

© Copyright 2017 by Roy S. Neuberger

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