HaTenu'ah LeChinun HaMikdash
MIKDASH-BUILDVolume III, Number 523 Shvat 5759 |
by Elitzur Segal
(originally published in Yibane HaMikdash, issue 75 -- for 10 Tevet 5754)
The previous section dealt with a statement in the Talmud (Rosh HaShanna 18) stating that the Ninth of Av is observed as long as there is no peace. The Rambam holds that the Ninth of Av was observed as a fast day even during the Second Temple Period, while the other Rishonim hold that during the Second Temple Period, Jews did not fast on the Ninth of Av.
The idea that the Second Temple was not a true redemption is expressed in other realms. For example, Rabbi Hasdai Kreskes in his book "Or Hashem", maamar 3, volume 1, rule 8, chapter 2 (page 369 in Rabbi Shlomo Fisher's edition) writes, "In the end, the Second Temple Period was as if the King of Egypt who is now ruling Eretz Yisrael would give permission to the Jews in some of his lands to go up and rebuild the Temple on the condition that they remain loyal to his government. It is not surprising that if, after a period of time, they would rebel and be exiled and enslaved. This was indeed the case for the Second Temple Period, and our current state of Exile is a continuation of the destruction of the First Temple ... In the time of Ezra, they were 'accounted' ('nifkedu'), as they said, 'since the seventy years of Babylon have been filled, I will account you.' (Yirmiyahu 29:10). Therefore, it was not a full redemption, but only an accounting."
Similarly, in the Drashot HaRan, Drash 7 (p. 123 Feldman ed.), "The kings who ruled during the Second Temple Period were not independent rulers at all, only clerks of the Persian, Roman, and other kingdoms."
The question remains -- why was the Second Temple Period not considered a time of peace?
One possibility is that it was because of a lack in the Beit HaMikdash. Several things were missing in the Second Temple, as iterated in Tractate Yoma 21b, "Why do we read "ve-artza ekavda" (Hagai 1:8), when it is written 'ekaved' -- missing the letter 'he'?! These are the five things that were in the First Temple and not in the Second Temple: the Ark with the covering and angelic figures, the heavenly fire, the Divine Presence, Divine Inspiration (ruach hakodesh), and the Urim VeTumim." In the Jerusalem Talmud (Makkot 2:6) states, "Rabbi Shmuel stated in the name of Rabbi Aha, Five things were missing in the Second Temple that were in the First Temple: The Fire, The Ark, The Urim VeTumim, the Anointing Oil, and Divine Inspiration." Therefore, the peace between Israel and our Father in Heaven did not return, so the question addressed to Zechariah was if it was still required to fast. This interpretation is similar to the opinion that "peace" is when the Beit HaMikdash is standing, and the Rambam would hold that for there to be true "peace" the Beit HaMikdash must be in its full splendor. The Ritva likewise writes, "The building of the Second Temple was less important because it was merely putting up a fence where it had been broken into." (like the Or Hashem) It is also worthy to note that the Ritva wrote, "peace, meaning that Israel dwells on their land, and the Beit HaMikdash is standing." -- with two conditions, the Rashba's that Israel is on their land, and Rabeinu Hananel's that the Beit HaMikdash is standing.
Another explanation is that the flaw is in Israel having the upper hand, since the Second Temple was built under Persian rule, so that period was not considered true peace.
According to this assumption, it is necessary to consider what was done at the height of the Hasmonian Kingdom, under King Yannai and under Queen Shlomtzion -- did they fast then? Furthermore, the Rambam writes in Hilchot Megilla VeHannuka 3:1, "The Hasmonian High Priests overtook them and killed them and saved the Jewish People and crowned a King from the Kohanim, and the Kingdom of Israel returned for over two hundred years, until the destruction of the Second Temple." The Rambam, therefore, considers Herod and Agrippus to be full Jewish Kingdom, despite their wickedness and convert ancestry, and despite their being fully subject to the Romans. Since the Second Temple only stood 480 years, almost half of the time was under Jewish sovereignty. Perhaps, the Rambam meant that the Ninth of Av was observed only at the end of the Second Temple Period, when they were under direct Roman control, but when they were under Jewish sovereignty, they did not fast. Or perhaps, they fasted because the the Beit HaMikdash was built under Persian rule. The problem with this reasoning is how such a flaw could be corrected. Was the only correction for them to go into exile again so that they could be fully redeemed correctly? This is illogical.
There are, as we see, two approaches:
1. Considering the Second Temple Period a time of peace.
2. Considering it neither a time of peace nor a time of persecution.
These two approaches are expressed in the different versions of the Mishnah and the consequential different rabbinic opinions.
These two approaches can also be understood as a fundamental disagreement in Jewish Philosophy. The Babylonian approach, that the Second Temple is fundamentally flawed with its destruction built in, being still part of the exile and never a true redemption. By contrast, the Israeli approach considers the Second Temple as a full redemption, which did not reach its beckoned peak because of the sin that the Jewish People did not fully take advantage of the opportunity to rebuild. According to the Israeli approach, the Second Temple is the model for the future redemption, and according to the Babylonian approach, the Exodus from Egypt is the model for the future redemption. The Babylonian approach emphasizes miracles and wonders, while the Israeli approach emphasizes dealing with the difficult situation and realizing the Hand of G-d acting in a natural manner.
I think that what we see in our generation, the irreversible path of redemption in human hands is the opposite of the Babylonian approach, and not even the original Israeli approach. Since it takes away the fundamental free choice and places everything on G-d regardless of human action. This is different from the true Israeli approach, which views everything as a chance that G-d gave us, with our ability to miss the boat -- more of a live and conscious dialogue with the Divine Presence in every situation.
HaTenu'ah LeChinun HaMikdashGathering en masse to arouse consciousness among the People,
its rabbis, and its leaders to rebuild the Beit HaMikdash
and return the Kohanim to their Service
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