The Second Beit HaMikdash

Found 11 Search results

1. Multiple Reflections Upon the Fast of Tammuz

   Rabbi Dr. Aharon Adler

   תאריך פרסום: תשע"ג | |

   Turning to the book of Zekharya, we begin with a question posed to the prophet: are the fast days still to be in place after the exile? An ambiguous and lengthy answer ends with the response that they will be transformed into days of joy. Conspicuously absent in the answer is a time frame. To better understand what is going on, we explore what happened on the day commemorated by the “fast of the fourth month.” Excerpts from poetry of Ibn Gabirol, among other sources, contribute to a richer picture of what the fast day is about.

2. Wall or Doors

   Haftarot: Shabbat Hanuka

   Rabbi Mosheh Lichtenstein

   After speaking out against the nations who have disrupted the lives of those who have returned to Zion, the prophet turns to the Jewish nation and explains that the nature of the redemption will be determined by them.

3. By the Waters of Babylon: Analyzing Mizmor 137

   Rabbi Yitzchak Etshalom

   תאריך פרסום: תש"ע | |

   Traditionally, mizmor Tehillim 137 of "Al neharot bavel" is known to be about mourning for the Beit Hamikdash while in exile. However, by analyzing this mizmor within the context of the purpose of Tehillim as a whole, we can uncover an alternative understanding - that this mizmor is actually a joyous reflective song about survival and triumph in the face of destruction.

4. Chagai on Hoshana Rabba and Chanukah

   Shani Taragin | 4 minutes

   In the second chapter of Haggai, Rabbanit Shani Taragin notes how Haggai speaks on days that are significant to us today for different reasons. On the 21st of Tishrei- Hoshana Rabba – Haggai further encourages people to continue building, saying that  God will make this Mikdash great- and provide much – needed rain. Haggai turns to the Kohanim, quizzing the delegated teachers about purity and impurity. The book of Haggai concludes on the 24th of Kislev with a call for a political turnover in addition to the glorification of the Mikdash. Though Zerubavel does not not heed his call, the prophecy continues to reverberate in later generations.

5. The 24th of the 9th Month - Biblical Hanukka

   Elisheva Brauner

6. Tablets, Temples, and Tefilot

   Shani Taragin | 55 minutes

   Two of the tragedies that befell Am Yisrael on 17 Tammuz are the breaking of the first set of luchot by Moshe following the Sin of the Golden Calf, and the beginning of the destruction of the first Beit Hamikdash. By placing the mourning for the luchot and the Beit Hamikdash on the same day, Chazal are pointing out important parallels between them, in order to understand the tragedy of the day. By exploring the differences between the first and second luchot and appreciating the relationship between them, we can better understand the differences between the first and second Beit Hamikdash, and learn about the partnership between God and Am Yisrael as we learn from the past and look towards the future. 

   Courtesy of  tanachstudy.com

7. The Missing Years

   Rabbi Tzvi Sinensky

   Before studying the book of Ezra, the controversy concerning the chronology of the kings of Persia must be addressed.

   Modern scholarship assumes that the Persian Empire spanned approximately 206 years and the Second Mikdash stood for 585 years.

   By contrast, traditional rabbinic sources present a dramatically different portrait of the Persian era. The Persian empire spanned 52 years and the Second Mikdash stood for just 420 years.

   Five traditional approaches exist as how to deal with this controversy. It is evident that the dispute concerning the chronology of the Persian kings carries significant theological, historical and exegetical implications. Throughout our treatment of Shivat Tzion we will be operating within the framework of the scholarly consensus.

8. Confronting Anti-Semitism

   Rabbi Tzvi Sinensky

   Ezra-Nehemya is sub-divided into three major sections: Each of the three major segments evinces a similar organizational structure: (a) aliya, (b) a confrontation with antisemitism, (c) support of the Temple/Jerusalem, and (d) working toward ensuring the everyday functioning of society.

   On a local level, chapters 4-6 of Ezra neatly break down in similar fashion. The three chapters sub-divide into three sections. All three segments consist of the enemies’ efforts to stall the construction, a response from the Jews or king, and a resolution.

   The author of Ezra-Nehemya implies that although the events of Shivat Tzion transpired over the course of nearly a century, featuring varied monarchs, Jewish leaders, and gentile antagonists, fundamentally the story is the same. The major motifs in Shivat Tzion are recurring: the challenge of abandoning comfortable diaspora communities and returning to Judea; the need for proactivity in combating antisemitism and rebuilding; and the importance of confronting the social rifts in our community. By presenting the stories of Shivat Tzion in chronologically interwoven, structurally repetitious fashion, our author suggests that these challenges are universal to the era of Shivat Tzion, and possibly all eras as well.

9. Malakhi’s Opening Chapter

   Rabbi Tzvi Sinensky

   Malakhi structures his prophecy as an ongoing series of dialogues between God and the Jewish People, forming the backbone of the book and as well as its central motif.

   Malakhi consistently sees the world through the lenses of the intimate relationship between God and the Jewish People. In this sense, he is fittingly named “my messenger,” emphasizing the immediacy of the connection between God and His people.

   Malakhi places great emphasis on the centrality of family relations to our responsibilities not only toward God, but also our fellow Jews and humanity.

   Although the Second Temple has not yet attained the honor described in Haggai’s prophecy, Malakhi chastises the priests for relating dishonorably to the sacrificial service.  Apparently, given the Temple’s relatively sorry state, the priests likely saw no reason to act reverentially toward the service. Moreover, although the exact date of Malakhi’s prophecy is unknown, the sense is that the Temple had already been functioning for some time. At this point, the Temple was likely no longer a novelty, and quite possibly was taken for granted by the priests.

   Today, many younger people take the existence of Israel for granted; they did not see the founding of the State or the miraculous victories in wars, such as in 1967. The challenge of the current generation is not to fall into the trap that ensnared the priests – to remain passionately committed to Jerusalem even when its restoration is no longer freshly imprinted upon our hearts.

10. The Month of Kislev and the Second Beit HaMikdash

    Rabbi Jonathan Snowbell

11. The Ultimate Hallel: Praising God in Zion by All Peoples and Creation

    The Structure & Story of Book V (107-150)

    Dr. Beni Gesundheit | Hour and 20 minutes

    Pesukei deZimra: the Concluding Mizmorim of Tehillim (145, 146-150)

    How do these concluding Mizmorim of the Book of Tehillim contribute to the narrative of the book? And why were they chosen to be an integral part of the daily Shacharit prayers?

    In Tehila 145 David praises God for the last time and invites the entire world to follow him; indeed in 146-150, that is what King David's audience does. The final Mizmorim that conclude the Book of Tehillim display a subtle tension between God’s unique covenant with the Jewish people and the universal vision for the future of the world. Intertextual and contextual observations reveal the historical background of the 2nd Temple period and the philosophical messages of this final unit of the entire book of Tehillim: everybody - Jews and Gentiles alike - are encouraged to join King David's praise of God  in the rebuilt city Zion; all citizens of Zion and all nations will join till the entire universe and every soul will praise God - HALLELUYAH.