the highest Jewish court -- con-
vened on the Temple Mount. the
Oleh Regel could sit in and learn
from the discussions of the great
Sanhedrin.
An opportunity to visit the Tem-
ple was an opportunity to grow and
develop as a practicing, thinking
and God-fearing Jew. Despite this
role that the Temple existed to ful-
fill, the nation made the Temple
complex into a national icon. They
envisioned it as the indestructible
home of God.
Jeremiah, the prophet at the
time of the destruction and the au-
thor ofLamentations which is read
on Tisha B'Av, was mocked, scored
and imprisoned by his people for
prophesizing about the Temple's
destruction. The generation of the
second Temple also had a warped
perception of what the Temple's
role was, for the leadership was cor-
rupt and priests were able to bribe
their way into powerful positions.
The Temple whose objective was
to be a place where one attained
knowledge of God became an icon
which was nothing more than a
means of Jewish self-aggrandize-
ment and national pride.
Having analyzed the flaw of
each generation, we can now un-
derstand why both Ezra and the
Talmud saw an underlying con-
nection between these tragedies
that befell our ancestors on this
date. In each case, the people cor-
rupted the institution that God
gave them to use in His service,
the land of Israel and the Tem-
ple respectively. Therefore, God
had to remove that very institu-
tion so that the people would be
able to relearn its ultimate pur-
pose and be worthy of its exis-
tence and its presence in their
lives, and in their mission.
Our generation has been both
blessed and challenged. We have
been given sovereignty over the
State of Israel. Israel must be as
adept as any other country and
must be able to compete with any
other country. Yet, while this lev-
el of achievement is essential to Is-
rael's existence, we must question
whether this should be the objec-
tive and essence of Israel's exis-
tence: There are some leaders, who
feel that it is.
Will we fail to see that Israel, the
institution as a homeland is a
means to an end? Can we recognize
that Israel is not meant to be just
like the other nations of the world,
defined solely by economy, military
and culture?
It is the challenge of our gener-
ation to attest that the objective
and essence of the Israel of today
— strive toward the objective of the
State of Israel in antiquities — that
it must be a society which serves
as a paradigm of a divine system
of ethics and morals and is a vehi-
cle to convey the philosophical val-
ues and intellectual truths given to
mankind by God. 0
Steven Well is rabbi of Young
Israel of Greenfield
"We Not Only Wanted
Our Kids To Get
The Best Education.
We Wanted Them
To Get The Best
Jewish Education."
Ahuva and
David Newman
As an Israeli mother, Ahuva Newman wanted to give her two young children a Jewish education with a taste
of Israel and some of its culture. The place that gave the Newman children that education was Hillel Day
School. The organization that gave Mr. & Mrs. Newman that opportunity was Hebrew Free Loan Association.
Save the date, September 10th, for Hebrew Free Loan's Centennial Celebration.
Our guest will be Nobel Prize winner, Elie Wiesel.
•
1895 T.
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TO •HFLA
1995
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