Are You a Spy or a Tourist?
4 min read
The Rabbis teach that any generation in which the Temple is not rebuilt is viewed as if it were destroyed in that very generation.1 Rabbi Yaakov Weinberg, of blessed memory, explained that this means that had the Temple been extant in that generation, it also would have been destroyed as a result of people’s actions. Accordingly, the actions that caused the initial destructions are still very relevant to the present generation.
The Talmud offers one explanation as to why the first Temple was destroyed. It tells us that after the destruction of the first Temple and the exile that followed, the sages and prophets did not know what had caused such a terrible punishment, until God Himself told them that it was because “they left My Torah.”2 Rav explains that this does not mean they were not learning Torah. Rather, they did not say the blessing on the Torah before learning.3
The commentaries find a number of difficulties with this.4 Why were the people punished so severely for the relatively minor sin of not saying the blessing on the Torah? Moreover, this piece of Talmud seems to contradict another part of the Talmud which states that the first Temple was destroyed because of murder, idol worship, and immorality.5
The Maharal addresses these problems.6 He writes that it is impossible to understand the Talmud literally, that they were not saying the blessing on the Torah. Rather, they did not say the blessing with the proper intentions. When a person says the blessing on the Torah, he should focus on his great love and gratitude toward God for giving him the tremendous gift of the Torah. The sages of the generation did say the blessing. Moreover, they did not say it merely by rote. However, they did not focus sufficiently on their love of God when saying it.
The Maharal proceeds to explain how this subtle failing was the root of the terrible sins that led to the destruction of the Temple. If a person focuses sufficiently on God in his learning, he merits tremendous Divine Help in avoiding sin, and even if he does falter, it enables him to repent without great difficulty. Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner writes that this is what the Rabbis mean when they say that “the light of Torah returns a person to goodness.” However, if one does not connect to God through his learning, he loses that Divine help, and if he falters, he is far more likely to become trapped in a downward spiral of sin.7
Based on this explanation, we can resolve the contradiction between the two parts of the Talmud. The Temple was destroyed because of the terrible sins of murder, worshiping idols and immorality. However, the failure to say the blessing on the Torah with the proper attitude was the root of the deterioration of the Jewish people to the point where people were sinning so greatly. Because they didn’t connect to God properly, they lost their Divine help and consequently fell prey to the powerful temptations of the evil inclination.
The Three Weeks is a time to reflect on the various causes of the destruction of the Temple. A key area to work on is maintaining a constant awareness of God during one’s Torah study and fulfilment of other mitzvot. By doing so, Maharal teaches, each of us will have great Divine help in avoiding the other sins that caused the destruction. May we all be privileged to see the rebuilding of the Temple speedily in our days.
