Destroyed temples, times of destruction

Every year, Jews commemorate a three-week period remembering the destruction of the temples in Jerusalem. A temple that was destroyed on the 9th of Av, once in the year 587 before the Common Era, and the second time in the year 70 of our era. The king's Babylonians Nebuchadnezzar They did it the first time, Titus's Romans the second. 

The temple was the center of life for the nation in the capital city of the kingdom of Israel and later Judah. The parishioners came three times a year bringing the Easter offerings and it worked every day with the required sacrifices. It represented the indestructible link of the Hebrews with their G‑d, who in a figurative sense dwelt in their premises. 

The destruction of the temples meant exile for the Israelites, in addition to the death and desolation that took place. The Jewish people became a wandering people, a description filled with sadness and disgrace. A people longing to return not only to a place, to a stage of spiritual elevation.

In the long history of the Jews, the three-week period preceding the 9th of Av, and more specifically the nine days of the month, have been days of tragic and sad events. Both for the Jews and for humanity. During that period, divine punishment was decreed that condemned the people to 40 years in the desert after leaving Egypt. Various desecrations occurred in those days prior to the destruction itself. The expulsion of the Jews from Spain took place around that time, as well as everything related to the dropping of the atomic bomb on Japan. Highly notable massacres occurred during that period of time in the Shoah, the Holocaust perpetrated by the Nazis against the Jews in World War II. Jewish law recommends taking care of yourself these days, avoiding celebrations and postponing any legal dispute between parties. These are not days of luck or prosperity. 

The destruction of both temples is attributed to punishment for the behavior of the Jews and humanity. In the case of the first temple, bloodshed, promiscuity and belief in false gods are mentioned. For the second, gratuitous hatred is the reason for punishment. And the reason why the conditions have not been met to rebuild a third temple is the persistence of these conditions that cannot disappear. 

Although it seems like symbolism, it is not trivial. 

The world today is plagued by violence. Violence personally and between countries and peoples. Many confrontations in many parts of the world, with deadly results and absolute cruelty. War remains a very common event, with all its burden of death and pain. If it is due to promiscuity, we certainly live in an era of great relaxation in values ​​and customs. Under the excuse of poorly understood liberalism or progressivism, disrespect has been given free rein that also enjoys transmission on social networks and mass communications. The value of the family as a fundamental cell of society is somewhat under review. False gods must be perverse ideologies, those that promote anti-values, those that do not encourage respect for the Creator, solidarity between human beings, those that profess selfishness and do not take care of the necessary common good.

The theme of gratuitous hate is disturbing. It is something that happens in interpersonal relationships, which are the very basis of the human condition. The cause of the death of more than twenty thousand scholars, students of the legendary Rabbi Akiva, is assumed to be the lack of respect on the part of each other. Enlightened people were capable of falling into this terrible behavior. And the consequences were not long in coming. Disrespect and gratuitous hatred are severe causes of social decomposition.

When we see the world of our days, the same one that can be observed from the screen of a phone or computer, we can realize that the causes of the destruction of temples are very present, current and even growing. Bloodshed, promiscuity, anti-values, disrespect, gratuitous hatred. In all environments, at all scales. Temples that signify peace and tranquility, connection with the Creator and just causes cannot be built or maintained in such an environment. It is not the physical structure that is missing, it is the solid foundations of a condition that honors the adjective of humanity.

Destroyed temples occur in times of destruction. Times we live trying to survive.

Elias Farache S.