Av Newsletter 5785

This newsletter is dedicated to the souls of the fallen and the murdered Israelis, along with the safe return of all the Israeli citizens held in captivity.

Every year in the month of Av we mourn the destruction of the Temple.
But what have we lost and perhaps we don't even know when we don't have the Temple?

Activities

Throughout the month, there were many activities related to the Temple, suitable for the period of the Three Weeks. Together with our friends from various organizations involved with the Temple, we invested in education and discussions about the Temple that will be rebuilt speedily in our days, Amen.

In 2025, 29,926 Israeli Jews and 25,824 tourists ascended the Temple Mount.
What about you?

(Credit: Journal Makor Rishon)

The site of the Temple is a place where the Divine Presence dwells, a space where heaven and earth meet. In order to understand God's wondrous guidance, which will soon be revealed once again in the Third Temple, we will review several sources from the Sages (Chazal) that discuss the manner in which Divine Providence manifested in the Temple.

1. The Miracles that Occurred in the Temple:
The Mishnah in Pirkei Avot (Ethics of Our Fathers) describes ten miracles that occurred in the Temple at the time of the First Temple. Here are a few examples:

a. No woman ever miscarried because of the smell of the holy meat.
A miracle occurred in the Temple: if a woman smelled the aroma of the roasted meat, the sacred meat and craved it, and did not eat from it, she would not miscarry.

b. The wind did not prevail over the column of smoke
The smoke from the sacred fire in the center of the altar always rose straight up into the sky, even in strong winds.

c. Never did a snake or scorpion cause injury in Jerusalem
No person in Jerusalem was ever bitten by a snake or scorpion.

d. And no man ever said to his fellow "My lodging in Jerusalem is too cramped for me”
Even during the three pilgrimages, when multitudes of the people of Israel came up to Jerusalem, every visitor always found somewhere to stay. The residents of Jerusalem were blessed that God provided for their needs, and none of them had to leave the city in search of sustenance.

2. The Divine Presence in the Temple
The Temple is a house where the Divine Presence permanently descended into the lower realms. All the upper chariots and upper forms were reflected in the actions and vessels of the Temple, connecting the deeds performed below to their higher counterparts. When the Temple was built in the days of King Solomon, there was peace both above and below—a state of complete rest. (Zohar, Parashat Pekudei)

Just as oil gives light, so too does the Temple illuminate the entire world, as it is said: "And nations shall walk at thy light, and kings at the brightness of thy rising." (Exodus Rabba 1,36)

3. The Virtues of Torah Study at the Time of the Temple
“…And so it is in the Torah, that now we do not receive anything new in the Torah as we did at the time of the Temple, but only what we find written in the first books.” And during the time of the Temple, there were fountains for the Torah... “And all we have are the remnants of the earlier sages—may we at least be able to comprehend their words.” (Compilation of Tikkunei Zohar)

4. The Virtues of Sacrifices in the Temple
“How is the Temple service performed? As long as the service of the Temple is performed, the world is blessed for the sake of its inhabitants, and the rains fall in their proper time. that stated (Deuteronomy 11,1): “to love the LORD your God, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul…”

“there is no service dearer to the Holy Blessed One than the service of the Holy Temple...” (Avot D’Rabbi Natan, Chapter 4,4)

When the sacrifices were offered in the Temple, even a single se'ah of wheat would yield many fine types — flour, semolina, and more. But now, since the sacrifices have ceased, receives less from it.

When the showbread and the first fruits were offered — all the produce (like bread and fruits) were blessed throughout the land. (Rabbi Huna bar Abba)

Never was there a person in Jerusalem with a sin in his hand. How? The continual offering of the morning atones for transgressions that were at night, and [that] of the afternoon atones for transgressions that were performed during the day. In any case, no person lodged in Jerusalem with an iniquity attributed to him, as it is stated: “Righteousness lodged in it… (Bamidbar Rabba 21:21).

And this was the great merit of the Temple’s construction, by virtue of the sacrifices, that no trace of sin remained at all. There is no greater joy than when a person leaves (the Temple) righteous.” Beautiful in its view, joy of the entire earth” (Shemot Rabba 36:1).

The month of Av, despite being a month of destruction, also holds within it hope and consolation — its name "Menachem Av" (Comforter of Av) hints that it will also be a time of rebuilding.

To build the Third Temple is to desire and advance a better world.

The Third Temple will be eternal and greater than all its predecessors. It symbolizes the unity of the People of Israel and a place of comprehensive miraculous Divine Providence—not only personal. "Where there is no blemish, where all offer a pleasing aroma: one through his fear (of God), another through his righteousness, another through his love for Israel, another through his generosity, and another through his Torah.

The nations of the world will recognize its importance and see it as a source of blessing.

The time has come to build the Third Temple of Jerusalem on the Temple Mount, and this should be done in the ways of peace.

(From Rabbi Menahem Makover and Rabbi Menahem Brod)

"As the essence of man's life comes from the earth, so came the essence of life from the Temple"
(The Holy Bible, Isaiah 1:7)