MK (Ichud HaLeumi) Prof. Aryeh Eldad is sponsoring a Har HaBayis bill, seeking to legislate a law that will guarantee Jewish rights to daven on Har HaBayis on certain prearranged days. He feels an arrangement that is similar to the Ma’aras HaMachpela would be the correct direction to take.
Eldad envisions a law that would set hours for both Jews and Muslims to avoid controversy on the site.
In the Ma’aras HaMachpela, Jews are barred from Yitzchak Hall with the exception of special days, including yomim tovim. Eldad feels this type of situation would be suitable on Har HaBayis. This arrangement began after Dr. Baruch Goldstein fired at Islamic worshippers in the holy site, killing 29.
Israel liberated Har HaBayis from Jordanian occupation in the June 1967 Six Day War. The government returned control of the holy site to the Islamic Waqf Authority, which has since run the site, which R”L has resulted in massive destruction to the remnants of the Beis HaMikdosh as the Islamic community continues efforts to eradicate any Jewish trace to the holiest site in the world.
It must be noted that according to the Poskei Hador one is absolutely forbidden to visit the Temple Mount, and there is an Issur Kares for one that goes there.
Three years ago on Sukkos, Israeli President Shimon Peres paid a visit to the Sukkah of Maran Hagon Rav Elyashiv ZATZAL, where Rav Elyashiv called on the President to prevent Jews from visiting Har HaBayis, stating it is an act that that is viewed as extremely provocative by the goyim. Maran stated everything possible must be done to avoid a religious war, and the provocateurs are playing with fire.
Maran is quoted as explaining to the president that Halacha forbids going onto Har HaBayis but today, it is more than this, it is an act that may lead to a religious war and bloodshed.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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3 Responses
This is a real no-brainer….the warning of Rav Elyashiv, Z’tl, should be enough to prevent this legislation from even being considered, both from an inyan of halacha and national security. We already have nutcases trying to smuggle goats in their cars into the har habayis area so they can bring a korban pesach. We don’t need the security forces trying to keep more of these zealots from going up there and creating havoc with the muslim zealots. The police are currently streched to their limits and this would only worsen the situation.
Don’t understand. During the first Bayis, nobody was interested in ever going to the Mokom Hamikdosh. Nobody cared, besides some people who went to plant there some Tomenneh Asheiros for Avoideh Zoro. During the second Bayis, the third group for the Korban Pesach was deserted, nobody came. Yavneh was the place to be. Why suddenly Now??
In a sense, having an Israeli law giving official permission for the Moslem desecration of the site makes things worse. At least now, when they desecrate it constantly, it’s not with our permission. We tolerate it, we don’t think it worth using force to stop it (although really we should), but we’re not consenting to it. If this bill passes, then on the Moslem days it will be with our consent, which makes us accomplices to this terrible chilul hakodesh.
On the other hand something must be done to enforce the law on the police, who arrest people for daring to daven there. Jews are allowed to go there, but only so long as they don’t dare to move their lips. Moslem prayer is allowed there, and Jewish prayer not. This is intolerable, and a law should definitely be made to protect those Jews who want to exercise their inherent right to pray to Hashem.
As for the halachic question of where one may go and where not, it’s irrelevant because the law already allows people to go there, so long as they don’t pray. And it’s not as if any frum people go to places where there is an opinion that it’s not allowed. No posek has ever said that those places are within the azoroh; all any posek has ever said is that he doesn’t know, and therefore he can’t permit it, but he also can’t forbid it. And of course there are other poskim, equally great, who say they do know, and therefore can permit it.