HaTenu'ah LeChinun HaMikdash
MIKDASH-BUILDVolume III, Number 812 Nisan 5759 |
Table of Contents
- 1. PASSOVER LIBERATION CELEBRATION
- 2. GUIDE TO THE PASSOVER SACRIFICE
- 3. THE TORAH OF GEULA, part III
At 7:30, after a Shaharit prayers at sunrise, there will be guided ascents to the Temple Mount. At 10:30, there will be a tour of the gates of the Temple Mount from the outside, ending approximately 12:30 with light refreshments and Mincha prayers.
Please immerse in a kosher mikvah beforehand and bring Yom Kippur (non-leather) shoes.
For more details, please call Hillel at 08-9364801.
(from Beit HaUlam LeMizbeach, issue 21)
1. One should sign up in advance with a group that is being organized to offer the Passover Sacrifice and pay them for the "kezayit" of meat from the Passover Sacrifice. Before the time to slaughter the sacrifice, one should immerse in a mikvah and wear clothing which has been previously immersed and guarded from contact with "midras" defiled clothing or with a women in "niddah". Similarly, one should not touch the clothing he removed before immersion. Likewise, one should guard himself and his clothing from contact with "midras" or "niddah" the entire time for slaughtering his Passover Sacrifice and keep this purity guard until evening. In the evening, he should eat from the Passover Sacrifice.
2. If one became defiled after his Passover Sacrifice was offered, he may not partake of it at night. Nevertheless, he has fulfilled his obligation, he is exempt from "karet", and he does not need to do "Pesach Sheni", since the blood was offered when he was still fit for the sacrifice.
3. Regular clothing (even Men's clothing) is considered to be "midras", which in turn defiles people, so any clothing to be worn when the Passover Sacrifice is offered should be immersed in a mikvah.
4. If someone is defiled by contact with "midras", his defilement is light enough that he does not in turn defile clothing he touches, so he can carry them in his hands. But if regular clothing assumed to be "midras" touches clothing which was immersed, the clothing is defiled. Therefore, after immersing one's clothing, one should cover it so that it is not touched by other clothing or women presumed to be in "niddah". The clothing should be hung in a guarded place, so that they do not become defiled.
5. A woman in "niddah" who sits on a chair, bench, or bed -- or in a car or bus, or has sat or lied down on top of clothing -- these objects have become "midras".
6. If one's clothing touched "midras", only the clothing are defiled, but the person wearing them remains pure. Therefore, with lack of alternative, the Passover Sacrifice may be slaughtered for the person wearing such clothing.
7. A person who himself touched "midras" is defiled and may not have
the Passover Sacrifice slaughtered for him. If the sacrifice has not yet
been slaughtered, he should immerse in a mikvah, so that someone else may
slaughter the Passover Sacrifice for him.
(from "Your Jerusalem", vol XXII, no. 4 Tishrei 5759)
I was recently invited to a conference that took place at Binyane Ha'uma (the International Convention Centre). 1500 people attended. Quite a crowd. Unlike most conferences (doctors', lawyers' or political gatherings) however, the participants had no personal or vested interest and no commercial motivation: this was the Annual Conference of the Movement for Re-Building of the Mikdash (Temple).
Yes, there is such a thing. All manner of Jews are members of this organization: traditional, national-religious, and haredi. They were treated to an evening of speeches, poetry reading, music and film on the theme of the Miqdash. By all accounts, those who paid 65 NIS to attend enjoyed themselves and felt it all to have been worthwhile. All this would indicate that a growing number of Jews sincerely desire to see the Mikdash rebuilt in their lifetime. (I remember the first of these annual events which took place eight years ago, to which about 65 people showed up.)
I must, however, admit that despite the personal invitation extended to me on the phone, I did not attend. Not because I do not consider the cause a worthy one; certainly not because I doubt the sincerity of those involved. I am simply tired of 'occupational therapy'.
Allow me to explain. A friend of mine once invited me and a third person to hear his proposals for turning Israel into a Jewish state (as opposed to Herzl's 'State of the Jews'). After listening to my friend, this third person replied: "It will not work. You're fooling yourself. And what you're doing is nothing but 'occupational therapy'". By this clever turn of phrase he meant that the only useful purpose served by activities such as those suggested by my friend, was to alleviate the deep-seated pain he was experiencing by the illusion of doing something about it; to effect a kind of 'catharsis through action' (or the suggestion of action).
I cannot state categorically that such a gathering serves no purpose. We should, however, recognize that such an approach is in reality skirting the real issue.
There are three factors that together explain the sad fact that we have no Mikdash today. The first two are plain enough:
1) the Moslem presence on Har Habayith (the Temple Mount);
2) the willingness and interest of successive Israeli governments to maintain the status-quo.
3) The third and major factor is the nature and mind-set of establishment Orthodox Judaism today.
The Holy Tora states: "And let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them" (Shemoth 25:8). This is a commandment like any other - as evidenced by the fact that it is listed in Rambam's Sefer Hamiswoth (Positive No.20), Sefer Hachinuch No.95, as well as in all other such works and is incumbent upon the Jewish people as a whole (Rambam, Sefer Hamiswoth, after listing the positive Miswoth). As with all the commandments, it is our duty, not Hashem's. We thus find in the Rambam's Mishne Tora (Hllkhoth Melakhim 1:1): "The nation of Israel was commanded to attend to three things upon their entering the Land: to establish a monarchv, to wipe out Amaleq, ... and to build the Temple, as it is written, 'you shall search out a place for Him, and there shall you come ..' (Devarim 12:5)"
Once the site for the Miqdash was fixed in the days of Shemuel and King David, it is immutable (Mishne Tora, Beth Ha'behira 1:3). 'All' that remains to do at a time such as the present is to rebuild the physical structure, and reinstitute the Temple Service that all religious Jews pray for thrice daily. This is precisely what occurred when our forefathers returned from the Babylonian Exile (Ezra Chap. 3); they immediately commenced rebuilding the Temple. (See Mishne Tora, Beth Ha'behira 1:4).
The building of the Second Temple by the Babylonian exiles upon their return, (despite not being politicailly independent, not having their own king, nor having merited to witness the days of the Mashiah), was not in the least bit unusual. It was the obvious and natural course of action for normal Jews to embark upon: Hashem commanded us to do this, so, needless to say, as soon it became feasible (the King of Persia had given his permission), our ancestors set about doing His Will. If all external obstacles are removed, the commandment, which was always in force, awaits out attention. And it is our duty, as Jews, to give it our fullest attention -- it is simply incorrect to imagine that the commandment is somehow 'on hold' until further notice, or until the advent of the Mashiach.
In the words of the Rambam: "One should not imagine that the Mashiach must produce miracles, or bring about radical changes in theworld ... as certain fools claim. ... And the truth of the matter is as follows: that the laws and statutes of the Tora shall never, ever change; one may not add nor detract from them (Hilithoth Melakhim 11:3).
Where do we see such an idea in recent times? The famous giant of Torah R. Akiva Eiger once (approx. 190 years ago) asked his illustrious contemporary the Hatham Sofer (R. Moshe Sofer) if it would be possible, (assuming the Ottoman Sultan to be agreeable), to offer the Korhan Pesach (Pesach Sacrifice) - which would involve, at the very least, building an altar on Har HaBayit. The Hatham Sofer's reply was a resounding 'Yes!' (Responsa of Hatham Sofer, Yore De'ah No.236).
Many representatives of Establishment Orthodoxy rabbis of the Haredi and National-Religious persuasions with whom I have broached the subject become noticably uncomfortable when asked the simple question "Why do you consioder the Mikdash to beyond the scope of Judaism today?" Some mention awaiting the Mashiach; others raise the issue of Tumath Meth (ritual impurity resulting from contact with the dead). My response to the former is as mentioned above: our ancestors from the Babylonian Exile rebuilt the Temple despite the lack of a Mashiah, or even a king. The Rambam does not mention having to await the Mashiah; such a view is in fact quite the opposite of the Rambam's express approach to such matters: "And if you should suggest that the Mashiah shall do this, that is impossible, as I have already explained in the introduction that the Mashiah neither adds nor detracts from the Torah" (Commentary to Mishnah, Sanhedrin 1:3). The Rambam's intention is clear - the Mashiach plays no role in 'activating' or performing the Miswoth. With regards to the question of Tuma. the Halakha is explicit: when all or most of Am Yisrael are ritually impure, all public sacrifices (including the Qorban Pesach) are nevertheless offered. The Tuma is overridden (Hilchot Biath HaMiqdash 4:9-13).
And yet, despite all Halachic indications to the above effect, the stand of Establishment Orthodoxy is a vague and numbing complacency. To claim that any commandment - and particularly this most central of Mitzvot is for some inscrutable reason inoperative, is to negate these words of the Rambam and deny the veracity of the Halachic decision of the Hatham Sofer. No Tora scholar would deny the possibility of opposing views within the world of Tora - it is however my contention that a reasoned and well-documented Halachic standpoint, divergent from the above- mentioned opinions, simply does not exist. (I would welcome the comments of readers who are aware of such arguments).
In the absence of cogent Torah reasoning to the contrary, I would suggest that the fundemental cause of this phenomenon is inertia. Establishment Orthodoxy is simply stuck in the rut of Galuth Judaism and lacks the ability to disengage itself from the form of Torah observance to which we became accustomed in our long and bitter Exile. No-one really knows why we continue as we do -- it is simply by default. As mentioned in my first article (Torah of Geula I), many in the Torah world have been led to believe that change, of any sort, (even Torah ordained change for the better), is simply beyond our ken.
The tragic, heart-rending truth is that even if the Moslems were to voluntarily vacate Har Habayith tomorrow, Establishment Orthodoxy would not know what to do with the Temple Mount. In its heart, Establishment Orthodoxy recognizes this. The Moslems and the authorities are, in reality, convenient distractions, serving to obviate the need for serious Tora discussion. Thus many Jews are quite content with the present situation, and conferences and dinners will not change this.
The Arabs are not the problem; nor is it a question of political machinations and interests. The problem is deep-seated and fundamental: do we possess the vision and direction to live a complete and authentic expression of Torah?
The problem is within ourselves. As is the solution.
HaTenu'ah LeChinun HaMikdash
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