The prohibition against going onto the Har Habayis today is
well known. Because of the serious nature of the
aveiroh that is involved — a potential issur
koreis — virtually all rabbonim from all
communities and even with the entire range of
hashkofos, prohibit going onto Har Habayis today. Even
most of the Mizrachi rabbis agree that there should be a
blanket prohibition against going onto the Har Habayis
today.
In the past, when access to the Mount was much freer, many
Jews transgressed this prohibition unwittingly. As a result,
a special guard was posted at the Mugrabi Gate, atop the
Kosel Plaza, to explain and warn Jews who sought to enter
onto the Har Habayis about the serious aveiroh that is
involved. Most of the time that he was there, the expenses
were funded by private donors.
Maran HaRav Eliashiv shlita used to walk to the Kosel
on Shavuos for Musaf but now that it is too far for
him, he goes the day after Shavuos — this year two days
after Shavuos since the yomtov was followed by
Shabbos. This year HaRav Eliashiv met the rav of the Kosel
while he was there, and he asked him to reinstate a guard at
the entrance to the Har Habayis, and also that an appropriate
sign be posted.
Reports of this request elicited a furious response from
Rabbi Yisrael Ariel, the head of the Machon Hamikdash known
in English as the Temple Institute. In media interview, Rabbi
Ariel takes on everyone who prohibits entry to the Temple
Mount to Jews today which, as we said, is most of the
poskim of our time: "The trend here is to perpetuate
the exile and to give the Mount over to the Arabs. . . . Is
this what talmidei chachomim mean by restoring the
former glory? This should embarrass every Jew who hears about
it . . . I mean to say that not only is it prohibited to put
a guard there, but the rabbonim should go in first and be in
control of the Mount. . . This is part of the tendency to
perpetuate exile and destruction . . . This is the worst
catastrophe that was performed within Am Yisroel, and
in Eretz Yisroel, since the destruction of the Second
Temple. There is no greater embarrassment and there is no
greater shame to Toras Yisroel, to Eretz
Yisroel, to the Mikdash — than this fact."
Afro lepumei.
According to Rabbi Ariel, if Jews were to run riot over the
potential koreis aveiroh of entry on the Temple Mount,
that would be liberation from exile and the harbinger of
Geulah. This is contrary to our approach that says that the
path to Geulah is not paved with aveirohs, and
even Moshe Rabbenu on his way to redeem Klal Yisroel
from Mitzrayim and bring them to Mount Sinai could have been
felled by his failure to perform his obligation for the
milah of his son.
Rabbi Ariel and the other staff members of the Temple
Institute are serious workers and the materials they produce
are visually attractive and thoroughly researched. Thinking
that the Beis Hamikdash is a "neutral" topic, many
sincerely religious people purchase and study their products
without inquiring too deeply into the views and character of
the people who are behind it all.
Anyone who can just brush aside the broad-based, unambiguous
psak halochoh that absolutely prohibits entering the
Har Habayis and respond in such disrespectful terms, is not
worthy of any support for his activities. Though his
graphically polished and well-researched and documented
seforim are marketed to the chareidi community, they
are not worthy to be purchased. The mass of genuine
information can mask the poisonous opinions of their
originator, and the damage can be done before one realizes
it.
As one example, in his Siddur Hamikdash (and the newly
published Siddur Hamikdash Le'Eim Ulebas Yisroel)
Rabbi Ariel eliminates the traditional Nacheim prayer
said on Tisha B'Av and substitutes one to his liking that
does not suffer from what he calls an ungrateful attitude
towards the bounty of Hashem.
Rabbi Ariel seems to think that the essence of rebuilding
Yerushalayim is sticks and stones and human bodies, rather
than the spiritual content that they are all meant to
have.
