#destruction of the beit hamikdash

[todaysjewishholiday]

7 Menachem Av 5784 (10-11 August 2024)

Shabbat Chazon concluded with the havdalah ceremony and we’re now in the final countdown to Tisha B’Av. If you are fasting this week, remember to hydrate heavily across the next 48 hours. Get what rest you can, and stay out of the sun. If fasting would be dangerous to your health, please remember that Judaism is a religion of life, and that we are commanded to choose life and not to afflict ourselves in harmful ways. There are other ritual ways to remember the sadness brought about by the two burnings of the Beit haMikdash and the resulting periods of communal exile and spiritual turmoil that do not involve self-harm. Fasting is one specific form of mourning for those for whom it is medically safe.

The years of rebellion against the Roman Empire were long difficult years. Factional conflict within the Jewish community and rebel leadership did not make it easier. And as is often the case the most extreme factions were often just as willing to target their own people as they were to attack the enemy they claimed to be fighting.

The Qanai’im (Zealots) and Sicarii (Dagger Bearers) had been advocating the overthrow of Roman occupation long after Nero’s excesses persuaded the rest of Judaean society to join the cause. Deeply aware that their views remained unpopular with the majority of Jews, they sought to force the majority into alignment with them through campaigns of terror. The Sicarii were so known because of their campaign of assassination against Jewish collaborators with the Roman authorities. The Qanai’im had taken their own name from the biblical word for zeal (as in the pasuk “the zeal of your dwelling has consumed me”) but were called Biryonim (Hooligans) by the authors of the Talmud, who blamed them for the revolt’s failure and the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash.

According to tradition, the wealthiest men of Jerusalem had pledged stockpiles of food and fuel to help the residents of the city survive an extended Roman siege. The Qanai’im encouraged a more aggressive campaign of attack against the Roman army, but were rebuffed by the other factions, who were convinced that Jerusalem’s strong defensive position was one of the rebellion’s greatest assets, and that a direct onslaught against the larger and better armed Roman forces was doomed to failure. The story goes that on the 7th of Av 3829, the Zealots set fire to the stockpiles of food and fuel that prepared the city for a siege, convinced that if the residents of Jerusalem had no choice but to fight than the revolt would succeed. When the majority still balked at a direct attack on the Romans the Qanai’im then seized control of the city and took retribution against those who disagreed with them, plunging wartime Jerusalem into civil war. Within a year, the city was in ruins and the Beit HaMikdash destroyed. The zealots has barricaded themselves within the walls of the temple in the final days of the siege, and while the Romans may have destroyed it under any circumstances in their revenge upon the city, the Talmudic sages were certain that the presence of rebels in the sanctuary using it as a fortress was a Jewish desecration which preceded and helped bring about the foreign desecration of the holy place.

[magnetothemagnificent]

Hi! I thought this might be a good question to ask you since you are so knowledgeable. I’m writing an epic fantasy story and I need to do some research on what life was like for Jews right before and after the destruction of the 2nd beit hamikdash because that is the basis of the setting. I would also love some information about the daily life of the kohanim at the time. Could you help me out with some reliable sources? Thanks so much!

Some aspects of Jewish life c. 1st century CE:

Economy:

Large-scale household pottery manufacture

-Pottery manufactured by Jews does not need to be ritually purified

-Certain pots began to be standardized in size, indicating importance of measurements for other industries

Expansion of oil and wine industries (hence the standardized jars)

Culture:

Stone vessels. Varying explanations, but all have to do with maintaining a distinct Jewish identity.

A new type of oil lamp- knife-pared lamp.

Dining rooms for the wealthy.

Lots of Mikvaot

Rock-cut familial burial caves

Display tombs but only in Jerusalem

Jews regarded as distinct ethnicity both by themselves and by the foreign powers

Prayer developing. Prayer distinct from Temple worship had already begun after the destruction of the first Temple, and continued into the second Temple era.

Lots of apocalyptic and messianic cults especially as the destruction of the Temple grew closer.

Spoken language is Aramaic and Hebrew

Synagogues beginning to appear

Strong relationship between the Jews of Israel and the Jews of Babylonia

Lots of Halakhic debates

Corruption within the Kohanim because of the Hasmonean power vaccuum and the Romans appointing the High Priests instead of the Jews.

Sources:

Jewish Life Before the Revolt: The Archaeological Evidence

Ethnicity and Ancient Judaism: Jewish Identities in 1st Century Alexandria and Antioch

Prayer in the Period of the Tannaim and Amoraim

Aramaic Tombstones from Zoar and Jewish Conceptions of the Afterlife

THE ORIGIN OF THE SYNAGOGUE: A RE-ASSESSMENT

‮אתא אגרתא ממערבא‬ ("An Epistle Came from the West"): Historical and Archaeological Evidence for the Ties between the Jewish Communities in the Land of Israel and Babylonia during the Talmudic Period

Were the Priests All the Same? Qumranic Halakhah in Comparison with Sadducean Halakhah

The Torah of the Jews of Ancient Rome

I'm also tagging @didyoumeanxianity because they have a lot more experience with that era (I'm more biological anthropology than cultural).

Good luck with your novel, it sounds so exciting!!

[hindahoney]

Hi! I’ve been doing some personal research on Judaism for just a few short weeks now and came across the history of the Nazirs/Nazirites and am really interested in learning more. And I was wondering if you have any Jewish resources to learn about it (because the majority of the ones I’ve found are from Christian resources and only really mention Samuel and Samson)? And do you know if the Nazirite vow is still taken today? Thanks in advance, your page has been a great resource for me!

Hello, thank you so much for your question.

For anyone who doesn't know, a Nazir/Nazirite is a Jewish person who vows to restrict themselves from drinking any grape product, whether it is intoxicating or not, cannot touch a corpse, or cut their hair, and remain abstinent. These vows can be temporary or permanent, depending on the duration the individual wishes to take on the vow. It is said that all of the restrictions that apply to the high priests are taken upon by the Nazirite. In essence, it is a person vowing to live a holy lifestyle and separate themselves from worldly pleasures.

Yes, there have been people who take on this vow, but after the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash it is exceedingly rare due to the fact that they cannot offer a sacrifice to HaShem should they violate their vow, but there have been people who still take it on. The most famous example is the Nazir of Jerusalem, Rabbi David Cohen (z"l, 1884-1972). It is difficult to find information about this group of people, as they are an exclusive group among an already exclusive group.

It's kind of controversial, from my understanding, because many believe Judaism is about experiencing the joys of life and that it's not necessarily a good thing to restrict yourself so much, as Maimonides points out that the laws of the Torah are restrictive enough, and that if HaShem did not want people to drink wine, He wouldn't have made it.

Here, here, and here are some Jewish resources on the subject, and they list their sources as well. Admittedly, I do not know much about the subject, so hopefully these sources can assist you better than I can.

[psychologeek]

I have these thoughts, about how fucked up it is that people use "genocide" and "holocaust" BECAUSE it's jews and a Jewish state they talk about.

How, even if it was genocide-

(it's not)

- out of 15 shades of genocide in the last century, you make sure to compare to something that happened to us.

That is still happening, because this is what being Jewish is-

"that in every generation", we say every year, "they are standing for us to parish us."

"שבכל דור ודור עומדים עלינו לכלותנו".

And the "them" isn't spesified (it's not like it's one. And they keep changing. Whoever has the power to.)

And it is present, continues, because it is ALWAYS and it's a warning and a promise and a reminder. It's happening. Now, tomorrow - it's coming.

Always.

I think about over two thousands bloody years.

I think about the way the holocaust shaped us -

The way The Destruction shaped us -

Two thousand years of blood and exiles and -

From the burning of The House to the burning homes in the ghettos.

I think about the way HaKhurban, The Destruction, is one word. A Name.

(there's one, big event)

I think the way HaShoa, the Disaster, is one word. A name.

I think about the destruction of the foundation, of Dat and Bnei Israel and the way it had to be shifted, as a way of life that is so inherently related to land, that it took about hundreds of years to make the transition from a Home, Beit HaMikdash, meaning "house of the hollying" to smaller houses of worship, Batey Knesset, meaning "houses of gathering".

I think about turning from a nation to smaller communities, Kehilot.

I think about destruction and ashes and death.

I think about shattered glass and people burning with holly places, and I don't know if it's 80 or 2000 years ago.

I think about destruction

I think about glass, melting in the heat. Turning to new shapes.

I think about waves, going back and forth.

I think about the doors of Nikanor, and a hidden basket on the Nile, and overcrowded ships.

I think about communities burning, living behind one from town, two from family. An ember saved from the Pyre.

I think about the destruction of communities.

I think about the re-forging of a nation.

(it isn't pretty. It isn't gentle. It is broken and painful and destructive and heat)

I think about Rabi Akiva looking at the destroyed Kodesh HaKodashim, the Holliest chamber in the Holliest place, where even the Kohen Gadol can only enter once a year.

I think about foxes running around, in the violated, broken sanctuary.

(I think about bones, dry and old, rising from their graves and forming a structure. I think about the pain of recreating neurons and muscles and skin)

I think about Rabi Akiva, and remember -

(He laughed)

[tinyshe]

Is There a Greeting for Tisha B’Av?

It’s a trick question: on Tisha B’Av, Jews observing the day refrain from greeting one another. If someone who does not know the custom greets them, they will either simply incline their heads or answer the greeting very softly, so as not to give offense or hurt feelings. As with Yom Kippur, it is a solemn day and therefore it is inappropriate to say “Happy Tisha B’Av.” [emphasis mine]

However, there are some Hebrew words it will help to know if you attend services or interact with other Jews that day:

Tisha B’Av (tee-SHAH b’AHV) or (TISH-ah Bahv) – The Ninth of Av, on which we remember the destruction of the Temple and other disasters in Jewish history.

Av (AHV) – The eleventh month of the Jewish year.

Eicha (AY-khah) – A Hebrew word meaning “How?” it is also the name of the Book of Lamentations in the Bible.

Megillat Eicha (meh-gee-LAHT AY-khah) – the Scroll of Lamentations, which we read on Tisha B’Av.

Megillah – a scroll, especially one of the “Five Scrolls” read on certain days of the Jewish Year.

Tzom (TZOHM) – a fast. The fast for Tisha B’Av is from sunset to sunset. Those who keep the fast refrain from eating, drinking, sexual activity, anointing, wearing leather shoes, and studying Torah. It is similar to the fast for Yom Kippur. Just as on that day, children and people who are sick or pregnant should not fast.

Beit Hamikdash  (BAYT ha-mik-DAHSH) – The Holy Temple. The first Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The second was destroyed in 70 CE by the Romans.

The Kotel  (KOH-tel) – The Western Wall, a retaining wall that is all that remains of the Second Temple. Jews do not refer to it as the “wailing wall,” but as the Western Wall or the Kotel.

[from the coffee shop rabbi site]

[gonnauseanomdeplume]

Came up with a new story idea and had to make an aesthetic for it. It's a fantasy story based on the aftermath of the destruction of the second Beit Hamikdash set in a secondary world with a magic system based on the teachings of Kabbalah. Starring a former Kohen named Yehuda who's been taken as a war prize and a Jewish woman named Adira who has the magic needed to bring their enemy's false god back to life, both are imprisoned by the ones who've destroyed their people's temple. Yehuda teaches Adira about how to control her powers so they can escape before she is forced to revive their enemy's god. Along the way they are helped by a guard named Callum and they all might just be falling in love with each other.

[alexlevin2024]

Examining the Significance of Beis Hamikdash and Beit Hamikdash: The Real Sanctum

The names Beis Hamikdash and Beit Hamikdash refer to the two Superb Places of refuge that were situated on Jerusalem's Haven Mount. Up to its destruction by the Babylonians in 586 BCE, the Basic Place of Refuge, built by Ruler Solomon in the ninth century BCE, served as a testament to the value and significance of ancient Israelite human progress. 

[artlevin234]

Historical Overview: Tracing the Legacy of Beis Hamikdash

Beis Hamikdash has a rich and complex history that spans centuries. The First Temple, constructed by King Solomon in the 10th century BCE, was a magnificent structure that served as the centerpiece of Jewish worship and national identity. However, it was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The Second Temple, rebuilt by the Jews under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah, became the spiritual heart of Jerusalem for nearly six centuries before its destruction by the Romans in 70 CE. Despite these tumultuous events, the legacy of Beis Hamikdash endures as a symbol of Jewish resilience, faith, and devotion to God.

[todaysjewishholiday]

10 Menachem Av 5784 (13-14 August 2024)

The mourning of the three weeks and the nine days does not fully conclude at the end of the ninth of Av. For many communities, it continues into the tenth, either until midday or fully through to sunset. This is because while the fire that destroyed the Beit HaMikdash was lit on the ninth of Av, the conflagration continued through the tenth. The Talmud even records a makhlokhet over whether the ninth or tenth should be the communal fast day. After all, the majority of the building burnt on the tenth? Shouldn’t we be more concerned about the day that was more destructive? The sages answer that because the flames of the tenth were a continuation of the fire set on the ninth, it’s the start of the fire that we emphasize. The destruction of the temple isn’t divisible into greater and smaller fractions— it’s a single tragedy. The tenth of Av then is a day of aftermaths, of consequences, of digging through the rubble and trying to make sense of what’s befallen us. The tenth is a reminder that grief can’t be turned off like a faucet. It stays with us. We learn to bear it because there is no other way forward.

In many ways, the fires lit by the Babylonians and Romans continue to burn— empires still seek to rule the world by violent conquest, oppression still fills the earth, Jewish communities are the targets of external hate and are fractured by sinat chanim within.

And yet we still have hope and find joy. The sages say that when the Beit HaMikdash was destroyed the Shekinah (dwelling presence) refused to depart from the Jewish people and return to heaven. Instead, she wanders with us. Our sorrows are her sorrows, our joys are her joys, and she waits with us for the redemption of the world.

[zaprowsdower27]

I'd rather have the Beit HaMikdash whose looting and destruction provided the funding to pay for the colosseum's construction than the colosseum, myself. Can't separate Roman Empire from its imperial legacy.

Rome

[rickwhite]

Hidden Connections: Sinat Chinam, the destruction of the Temple and the death of the tzadik.

“However, in the Second Temple period the people were engaged in Torah study, observance of mitzvahs, and acts of kindness, so why was the Second Temple destroyed? It was destroyed due to the fact that there was baseless hatred during that period. This comes to teach you that the sin of baseless hatred is equivalent to the three severe transgressions: idol worship, forbidden sexual relations and bloodshed.”

~ (Yoma 9b)

The Talmud (Baba Mezia 30b) states that:

Rav Yochanan said: “Jerusalem was destroyed only because the judges ruled in accordance with the strict letter of the law, as opposed to ruling beyond the letter of the law.”

* Note: The allegation against the children of Israel during the second Beit Hamikdash era was that they learned Torah with feelings of pride and superiority. This is akin to revolting against the Kingship of Hashem. The Midrash states (Tanna d’vei Eliyahu Rabbah 1), “Good character precedes Torah.” Torah is meant to bring a person to perfect his actions (see Kiddushin 40b). If their Torah study did not accomplish this, they were obviously not learning in the correct way. Instead of according Torah its proper respect by living by its precepts, the nation scorned it by behaving diametrically opposed to its teachings. Therefore, the charges against them were much greater than those against the generation of the first Beit Hamikdash. During the first Temple era, the people neglected Torah study altogether. During the era of the second Temple, they learned Torah, but did not internalize its message.

At the end of the day, those who lived during the second Beit Hamikdash era were involved in Torah study, whereas those of the first Beit Hamikdash were not. How could the later generation be held so much more accountable, immersed as they were in the sea of Torah? How could their Torah study, the potion of life, not rub off on them, affording them the balm of positive character traits?

Am Yisrael’s fault was that they were not careful in avoiding avak lashon hara (evil speech against their fellow man and even righteous ones). Many people fall into the sin of avak lashon hara because it seems insignificant in their eyes. It is man’s nature to become accustomed to sin. The evil inclination is very subtle. Because Israel at the time of the Temple were negligent in seemingly small things, they eventually spoke lashon hara and committed other offenses between fellow Jews.

Secret sparks

It is taught by the Sages that the tzadikim as well as objects are considered holy when G‑d’s presence rests within them. Just as we have awe and reverence for a Torah scroll because of the G‑dliness vested in it, so, too, we have awe and reverence for a tzadik.

One my object, all we need is to focus on Torah study and the mitzvot!? On this the Talmud explains (Kesubos 111b) :

“You should attach yourself to Him, [i.e., to G‑d],” and asks, “How can one attach oneself to G‑d? G‑d is compared to fire, so how can you attach yourself to fire?”

It is explained there that the way to become connected to G‑d is by attaching and connecting oneself to a tzadik. Connecting to a tzadik is neither “un-Jewish” nor a spiritual luxury for a select group of truth seekers; on the contrary, it is the only method prescribed by the Torah to become truly connected to G‑d.

Hence now getting to our initial subject, the tzadik and the holy Temple are intimately connected. Hatred, disrespect of the tzadik is a desecration of G-d’s Name which is intimately connected to the tzadikim.

And so we are taught (Rosh Hashanah 18b) :

“The fast of the fifth (month) refers to Tishah B’Av, for on that date the house of our G‑d was burned. The fast of the seventh (month) refers to the third of Tishrei, for on that date, Gedaliah Ben Achikam was assassinated.... The [latter] day is included here to teach you that the death of the righteous is equivalent to the burning of the house of our G‑d.”

It is an obvious deduction that if the passing of a tzadik is like the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash, then the life of the tzadik must also be similar to the purpose and function of the Beis HaMikdash.

It is also taught that during unto second Temple period when Yeshua of Nazareth a holy tzadik lived, he was sold to Rome and killed because of baseless hatred:

“But the word that is written in the Torah must be fulfilled: ‘They hated me without a cause.’ (John 15:25; Psalm 35:19; 69:4; 109:3).

The murder and death (silukim shel) of the righteous is very much connected to the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash. The enemies of holiness understand that the tzadikim, just like the Temple, are the source of our spiritual well-being and must be eliminated.

Rabbi Eytan Kobre explains the dilemma:

“I sometimes try to imagine standing in the Beis Hamikdash at the unspeakably painful moment when the crazed Roman hordes first breached its holy walls, or when a flaming arrow first found its mark, igniting the blaze that would soon reduce Makom Hamikdash to smoldering ash. The true aveilus, of course, is over the complete destruction of the Bayis. But there’s a certain poignancy to that first brazen breach, the taking of a flame to the abode of the Master of the Universe. I close my eyes and witness it, and I cry inside.

If the demise of a tzadik is tantamount to the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash, then perhaps an assault on the honor, certainly on the actual person of such a holy Jew, is nothing less than a flaming arrow aimed at Hashem’s dwelling place.”

In Midrash Eicha 1:37 explains that the death of the tzadik is even more tragic than the destruction of the holy Temple. This seeming contradiction is explained in Yoma 21b, where it states that the Shekhinah rested in the First Holy Temple but not in the Second. The Shekhinah dwells in the gadol haDor beis hamidrash (his Torah teachings), so his death is as tragic as the destruction of the First Temple (which housed the Shekhinah), and more tragic than the destruction of the Second Temple which did not house the Shekhinah.

B”H

[uchcrivens]

My thoughts on Tisha B'av. And some art

It's the end of Tisha B'av. It's often hard to figure out what to do on Tisha B'av, since the general idea is that you're supposed to be sad and mourning, and there's a limit on learning and an idea to try and stay away from anything that could give you joy, which is why I was a little uncertain about this. But I decided that when in mourning, art is a standard way of processing, and I hoped that drawing the destruction would help me connect in some ways that I hadn't before.

Something I hadn't expected, but very much felt, more than anything, while drawing this: a feeling of desecration.

I went into this drawing with some thought of demonstrating my recent thoughts about what the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash represented. I had meant to depict the concept of a community center torn apart, of a center of worship torn apart. I've thought a lot, over the day, about the meaning of the Temple not as a building that housed God (Yirmiyahu desperately fights against the idea of the Temple being the one house of God, the idol-like emphasis on the building itself), but as a center of interaction. Interaction between both God and people, and between people themselves. The destruction of the Temple was a destruction of a city. It was the tearing apart of a people. It wasn't just about large scale destruction, it was about the individual tears between families and friends that collected and heaped unto one another until the whole of Israel fell apart in flames. "Sinat Chinam (baseless hatred) caused the destruction." It's not an abstract punishment. It's a direct cause. Taking apart a community causes... the community to be taken apart.

Now, that had been my initial plan for this drawing. I was going to depict the Beit Hamikdash, but at a closer look, it would be made out of people, etc etc. Maybe one day I will explore that concept more. The thing is, once I got started, and tried depicting some of the destruction and death described in Eicha, in the Kinnot, and once the piece I actually created fell into view, I felt... wrong. Something about drawing the Temple, the Holy Temple, God's stronghold, and then drawing the blood. And the tears. And the death. And even though it was in abstract terms, I felt like I was desecrating a holy site.

I had drawn myself a temple and now I was destroying it. Maybe it was because I sketched the outline of the building before everything else, underneath the overall drawing. I don't know what it was, but even though I had gone in with not a single thought to the idea of desecration, as I continued to draw it was all I could think about. It's quite dramatic for a small sketch, I know. But in that moment of creation, I felt the pain of desecration, and I think there's some small chance I felt maybe one tiny iota of what God felt, or in the absence of a God that feels in that way, one iota of the feeling that the people (my people) felt.

TLDR: my feelings on destruction of a community on Tisha B'av, some art, and my feelings while creating it

[eretzyisrael]

Why do we fast on Tisha B’Av?

Most people would readily respond it’s on account of the destruction of both Batei Mikdash, while others might point out the Sin of the Spies as the cause. Neither of these answers are wrong – this is what Chazal told us in the Talmud (Taanit 26b) – but both answers are incomplete. The problem is that those answers are looking in the wrong direction: they are facing the past instead of the future.

Judaism is not a religion about dwelling in the past. We remember where we came from and who we were, and build upon that to move forward into the future. Our sights should always be on what we’re doing now in order to guide where we are headed. With that perspective, we fast not for what we lost, but for what we’ve yet to gain.

Zechariah prophesied (Zecharia 8:19) that, in the future, the fasts associated with the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash (the 17th of Tammuz, the 9th of Av, the 10th of Tevet, and the Fast of Gedaliah) will turn to days of rejoicing. This is the future we’re aiming for, when the Mashiach arrives, the Third Beit HaMikdash is built, and these fasts turn to days of happiness rather than sorrow. So the real reason we fast is because the Mashiach has yet to arrive.

What is he waiting for, then? All too often our perspective of Mashiach is affected by the non-Jewish views of the Messiah. To them, the Messiah is one who comes to rescue from the terrible reality of the world. That’s not what the Mashiach is. He will come when we are deserving for the Beit HaMikdash to be rebuilt. Both Batei Mikdash were destroyed because of our sins, and they cannot be rebuilt until we have corrected the error of our ways. The first one was destroyed because idolatry had run rampant, and was returned to us when, on a national level, we had absolved ourselves of that sin. The second was destroyed because of Sinat Chinam, baseless hatred, so the third can’t be built until we have absolved ourselves of that as well. It’s been taking us a while to figure that one out.

So why do we fast on Tisha B’Av? Because our nation is fractured. We have split ourselves up into factions and bicker among ourselves. Jews treat their brothers and sisters as enemies because they don’t see eye-to-eye to them, treating them with disdain at best and outright aggression at worst. Others vilify their fellow Jew for being of a different faction and attempt to force their own agendas on them, rather than cooperate and find a way to live together. Even worse, there are those who speak of the import of Jewish unity, but blame everyone but themselves for the lack of it!

This coming sunday, I will be fasting. I’ll be fasting to mourn the destruction of the Batei Mikdash, I’ll be fasting as I long for the coming of the Mashiach, but most of all I’ll be fasting over the hatred and bitterness that has yet to be removed from the hearts of Bnei Yisrael.

Tzom Kal.

[magnetothemagnificent]

Taanit Esther because of it's uniqueness- all the other non-Yom Kippur fasts are directly tied to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Beit HaMikdash and our exile. Taanit Esther, meanwhile, commemorates an event occuring while in exile. It's not a fast mourning what was already lost, but a fast pleading for redemption. It's a fast of bittersweet hope.

Please only vote if you're Jewish (or a convert-in-progress) and observe these traditional fasts.

[Edit: I left Yom Kippur off of here because it's the only fast that's a "happy" fast in some sense - yes, it's penitential but it's also because we are emulating the malachim. It's the whole "on Tisha b'Av we fast because we're so grieved that who can eat? But on Yom Kippur we fast because we are so happy to be forgiven that who can eat?" thing.]

Here's an explanatory link for those who are curious and don't know.

[girlactionfigure]

#Livingthedream day 1,991. FASTEN YOUR SEAT BELTS FOR THIS ONE.

What a privilege today! I was able to tag along with #Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, Bel Harbour Mayor Gabe Groisman and superstar advocate Avi Abelow as they took a private tour and filmed a segment for Israel Unwired of the newly opened Pilgrimage Path in City of David Ancient Jerusalem. The Jerusalem pilgrim road is THE 2,000+ year old road used by Jews to ascend from the mikvah in the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount and Beit Hamikdash via the Hulda Gates in the Southern Wall. This was the path just showcased around the world at its opening with David Friedman - U.S. Ambassador to Israel two days ago. The stones you walk on, squeeze through and touch are the exact same stones and walls our ancestors walked on when they had the blessing to visit the Temple. To walk on this famous road mentioned everywhere by all historians was an amazing privilege. I was so excited to see it I had trouble sleeping last night and still feel the adrenaline pumping this afternoon.   It is amazing that we can see our history today right in front of us. Stories that 2,000 years of Jews only heard from their parents, teachers or books, come alive. Deputy Mayor Hassan-Nahoum made a really poignant point that I'd like to share and hit me in the gut as she said it. We were all jovial and excited as we exited the underground tunnel. Half the path we took was through a skinny tunnel built as a sewage line by the Jews of the Temple time. It ran under the pilgrim road. During the destruction of the second Temple, the Jews snuck down into the sewage tunnel to hide and escape the Roman invaders. With all of my excitement, I had forgotten about the suffering our people experienced at the hands of the Romans and countless other enemies so many years ago. This tunnel wasn't a joyous place, it was a mournful place. Until we rebuild the Beis Hamikdash, we mourn daily over the destruction that took place and lives itself in our lives every single day. We all have a half-meter square of unfinished wall at the entrance to our homes to remind ourselves that our house can never be complete until we complete God's house. That and so many other practices remind ourselves that with all the dreams we are living here in Israel, there is still one large nightmare to end. Today, the suffering manifests itself past our daily ritual mourning. Our enemies today deny our historical claim to the land of Israel. They say these archaeological digs, which take place 60 meters below ground, uproot Arab homes. They say there's ancient Arab history in the City of David (look at any picture from pre-1967 and you'll see empty land, no Arab houses, and pre-1948 you'll see a Yeminite Jewish community). I spoke to The Times of Israel Editor in Chief David Horovitz last night who made an excellent point. So much of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is centered around Palestinian refusal to admit our history in the land. Well now, it's open for everyone to see, This is the Jewish homeland. We are back, and we're never leaving.

Uri Pilichowski

[diwonmusic]

Tisha B’av is the most somber day in the Jewish calendar. It’s sobering to think that thousands of years ago, we were on top of the world: in the Promised Land, with our Beit HaMikdash (Holy Temple), fully connected to Hashem. & how quickly that connection was destroyed. When you really consider a loss like that, no matter how ephemeral it may be in the bigger picture, its weight can feel unbearable. The generation that left Egypt & wandered through the desert are referred to as dor hamidbar. They were a generation of dor dei’ah, a generation of knowledge, which paralleled Moshe who perceived Godliness. The generation that entered into Israel, however, weren't on the same level of perceiving Godliness, cuz they were involved in mundane realities. Dor hamidbar “saw” @ Mt Sinai, whereas the new generation only “heard,” it’s written, “Now, Israel, listen” Seeing is believing cuz when we see something with our own eyes, doubts dissipate, whereas when we hear, when the moment has passed & anyone questions the moment or experience, oftentimes belief dissipates. The Rebbe explains that when Devarim (repetition of the Torah) was given to this generation, it was important to emphasize concepts such as mesirat nefesh (self-sacrifice). Though it may seem that the generation to enter the land was on a lower level & that the descent would breed hopelessness. The previous generation were told, “For you have not yet come to the resting place & heritage…,” referring to Shiloh & Jerusalem. It would only be the generation that entered the Promised Land that would inherit this “heritage.” It was the descent to the worldly that ushers in the revelation of the celestial. & so much like in our own lives, the temporal descent effects the ultimate ascent. This is hinted at in our reading Devarim the Shabbat preceding Tisha Ba’av (destruction of the Beit HaMikdash). But, as R’ Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev saw it, from the descent from the 1st & 2nd Beit Hamikdash, we have Shabbat Chazon, (vision of the 3rd & final Beit HaMikdash) which transcends the previous two & brings the full revelation, ushering in the final redemption. READ THE FULL DVAR/ARTICLE @ www.lightofinfinite.com 🕊 https://www.instagram.com/p/Cg2YGahPB9T/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=