Insight Remember When Archaeological Concerns From the pages of the Jewish News from this week 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 years ago. Bar-Ilan expert focuses on careless destruction of artifacts in Temple Mount area. The community is invited to the dedication of the new building Young Israel of West Bloomfield. Adat Shalom Synagogue in Farmington Hills will hold a dinner to honor Cantor Larry and Gitta Vieder. He served the congregation 33 years. DON COHEN Special to the Jewish News D r. Aren Maeir is a man who gets excited about his work. Maeir, a senior lecturer at the Institute of Archaeology in the Department of Land of Israel Studies at Bar-Ilan University in Ramat Gan, shared his enthusiasm, his latest findings and his concerns about excavations on the Temple Mount with a group of Bar- Ilan supporters on July 22. The American-born Maeir will return to Israel at the end of the sum- mer after completing a sabbatical at the Massachusetts Institute for Technology. "They are destroying archaeological treasures," Maier said, reporting on the systematic destruction of Jewish arti- facts from the first and second Temples taking place at the Temple Mount with the full knowledge of the Palestinian authorities. He noted with sad irony that most of what they are destroying are medieval Muslim buildings. "They are doing it randomly with bulldozers and dump trucks," he said. "It is reckless from an engineering point of view. "Archaeologists cried gevalt [express- ing horror], but the Israeli government said, 'Let's make believe it doesn't exist.' The only thing that stopped it was when a large bulge suddenly began to appear on the Southern Wall," Maeir said. A collapse could kill many, and "Israel would be blamed." He expressed some relief that Palestinians, Israelis and Jordanians now are giving it attention. "You can get mad at the Palestinians," he told the audience, "but it gets me mad because my gov- ernment was so incompetent." To explain the history and signifi- cance of the Temple Mount, Maeir showed slides illustrating the growth of the site from Solomon's Temple to Herod's massive building project join- ing two small hills to create a platform and buildings in the Roman grandeur. When Rome became Christian, the 8/ 1 2003 24 recalled. His group needed to be evacuated from the area and the exit was never opened. A later attempt in 1996 result- ed in 13 Israeli soldiers and 80 Palestinians being killed. Maier also showed slides of the Tell es-Safi-Gath Archaeological project, which he directs. He explained that from the biblical text, Gath appears to be the most important of the Philistine cities in their early period and was the Archaeological Objections hometown of Goliath, who was felled Maeir served as archaeological inspector by a smooth stone from King David's well-aimed slingshot. Gath is one of for the Western Wall Tunnel in the Israeli's largest archaeological sites. late-1980s and mid-1990s, a project Harvey Brode of Farmington Hills that spurred violence from many found Dr. Maeir's presentation "fasci- Muslims when an exit in the Muslim nating," noting he has always been interested in archae- ology. "I'm against anyone who wants to destroy archaeologi- cal sites on the basis of politics or reli- gion," " he said. David Tanzman of Oak Park, whose granddaughter, Renana Strasberg, made aliyah and is studying at Bar-Ilan University, says, "The findings only David Tanzman of Oak Park and Dr. Larry Loewenthal of corroborate what we Southfield talk with Dr. Aren Maeir of Bar-Ilan Universi t y. read about in the Torah. It is fascinat- ing to hear and have projected for you Quarter of the Old City was to be the historic truth on which integrity opened. can be built." "The idea was not to have a signifi- For Larry and Shirley Loewenthal, cant excavation but to show more of the Western Wall," Maeir said, explain- who hosted the program at their Southfield home, Bar-Ilan University is ing that the very narrow tunnel does like an old friend. not go under the Temple Mount and "In 1964, when I made my first trip the mosques now sitting on top of it. to Israel with my parents, I remember "We just wanted to open up another standing with Phil Stollman near the exit for tourists." first two buildings on the campus. He 'A few of us were in the Muslim told me how the university would Quarter waiting when the Muezzins teach archaeology, biblical studies and called out that the Jews were going on modern history to link everybody to the Temple Mount to destroy the our past, present and future. It's great to mosques. I was quickly surrounded by see how his dream is coming true." ❑ hundreds of unhappy people," he Temple Mount was left "desolate and destroyed to show the Jews had been destroyed by not accepting Christianity," Maeir said. With the Muslim defeat of the Byzantine Empire, Islam incorporated Jerusalem in an attempt to attract Jews to the new religion. The story of the Prophet Muhammad's "Night Journey" made Jerusalem the third holiest city in Islam. 1993 1983 Gerald Rosenbloom, president of the Synagogue Council of Greater Detroit, announces a citywide syna- gogue open house to stress syna- gogue affiliation. 1973 American athletes capture 76 gold medals to lead the 9th Maccabiah games in Tel Aviv. Israel is second with 60. 1983 A memorial tribute to Eleanor Roosevelt will be presented at the Pioneer Women convention in Detroit. The Theodore and Mina Bargman Arts and Crafts Building will be dedicated next weekend at Camp Tamarack in Brighton. 1953 In recognition of service to Jewish causes and his leadership in the Zionist movement, United Hebrew Schools and the Allied Jewish Campaign, Detroiter Harry Cohen will be honored on his 70th birth- day with a forest in Israel. The 25th anniversary of the Detroit Farband Camp in Chelsea will be celebrated with special cere- monies. Detroit Mayor Edward J. Jeffries, at the Detroit Folks Committee for Russian Relief, welcomes two Russian envoys now visiting this country — Prof. Solomon Mikhoels and Lt. Col. Itzik Feffer. — Compiled by Holly Teasdle, archivist, the Rabbi Leo M Franklin Archives of Temple Beth El