Priestly Blessing on Temple Mount
Pastor Dale Morgan
Priestly Blessing on Temple Mount
by Hillel Fendel
(IsraelNN.com) A historic first: Last week, during a special visit to the Temple Mount, the Priestly Blessing (Numbers 6:24-26) was recited there, for arguably the first time since the 1st-century destruction.
The Blessing is recited daily in synagogues in Israel by descendants of Aaron the Priest, and only on festivals in the Diaspora.
www.TempleInstitute.org
The
special visit was held to commemorate the 842nd anniversary of
Maimonides's famous visit to the Temple Mount, Judaism's holiest site.
A group of some 25 Jews, organized by the Temple Institute in
Jerusalem, marked the special day with a commemorative visit. Giving
extra-special meaning to the occasion was a spontaneous Priestly
Blessing delivered to the group by Yehuda Katz, the lead singer of the
Reva L'Sheva band, and Eliezer Breuer, originally of the former Soviet
Union and now from Kiryat Arba.
Rabbi Chaim Richman, one of the
organizers of the trip, said, "This was probably the first time since
the destruction of the Temple [1,928 years ago] that the Priestly
Blessing was delivered on our holiest site. At times like these, when
there is talk of giving away our precious places, and when despair is
sometimes in the air, events of this nature serve to remind us that G-d
has not forgotten about us, and that He still has big plans for both us
and the Holy Temple - and that the Temple will yet become the focal
point of the world once again."
Another notable aspect of the visit was the welcoming attitude of the police. "In an unusual departure from standard procedure," one participant said, "we found that the police were particularly sympathetic to our needs. At one point, when the Moslem Wakf guards started yelling that we were praying, one of the policemen took our side and even threatened to remove them if necessary."
Maimonides, also known as the Rambam, made his historic visit to the Temple Mount on the sixth day of the month of MarCheshvan in the year 1166 (4926 in the Jewish calendar). Unanimously considered one of Judaism's greatest figures, the Rambam wrote that he put himself in danger to make a trip to Jerusalem, where he entered "the Large and Holy House [the Temple Mount] and prayed." Three days later, he also visited the Machpelah Cave in Hevron, and vowed to commemorate the anniversaries of those days as his personal festivals for years to come.
Last
week's visit was also led by Rabbis Yisrael Ariel and Yehuda Glick.
Rabbi Ariel is a former Yeshiva head, founder of the Temple Institute,
and one of the paratroopers who took part in the 1967 liberation of the
Temple Mount. Rabbi Glick made news briefly over two years ago when, as
Director of the Absorption Ministry's Ashkelon region, he became the
first public official to resign in protest over the plans to withdraw
from and destroy Gush Katif.
Though the Chief Rabbinate
disagrees, the Yesha Rabbis Council has ruled that one who ascends and
visits the Temple Mount while adhering to three conditions - prior
immersion in a mikveh; keeping the laws of Awe of the Temple (no
leather shoes, proper respect, etc.); and knowledge of the precise
permitted areas - is fulfilling a "great mitzvah [Torah commandment]."
www.TempleInstitute.org
To arrange a trip to the Temple Mount in accordance with the above
requirements of Jewish law, click here.
"The
more Jews who visit this holy site," Rabbi Richman told Arutz-7, "the
more cooperative the police are with us and the more respectful they
are of our needs - as some police officers have indicated to me. And
the more we encourage Jews with stories like what happened last week,
the more they will come."
Pastor Dale Morgan
*
Priestly Blessing on Temple Mount*
by Hillel Fendel
(IsraelNN.com) A historic first: Last week, during a special visit to
the Temple Mount, the Priestly Blessing (Numbers 6:24-26) was recited
there, for arguably the first time since the 1st-century destruction.
The Blessing is recited daily in synagogues in Israel by descendants of
Aaron the Priest, and only on festivals in the Diaspora.
The special visit was held to commemorate the 842nd anniversary of
Last week's visit was also led by Rabbis Yisrael Ariel and Yehuda
Glick. Rabbi Ariel is a former Yeshiva head, founder of the Temple
Institute, and one of the paratroopers who took part in the 1967
liberation of the Temple Mount. Rabbi Glick made news briefly over two
years ago when, as Director of the Absorption Ministry's Ashkelon
region, he became the first public official to resign in protest over
the plans to withdraw from and destroy Gush Katif.
Though the Chief Rabbinate disagrees, the Yesha Rabbis Council has ruled
that one who ascends and visits the Temple Mount while adhering to three
conditions - prior immersion in a mikveh; keeping the laws of Awe of the
Temple (no leather shoes, proper respect, etc.); and knowledge of the
precise permitted areas - is fulfilling a "great mitzvah [Torah
commandment]."
The group stands on a staircase built recently by the Muslim Waqf on the
Mount's southern end, leading to new mosques below. The Waqf does not
allow entry to non-Muslims.
To arrange a trip to the Temple Mount in accordance with the above