He removed his black jacket, and tailor Aviad Jarufi, a small man in a white robe and horn-rimmed glasses, took out his green measuring tape. The first member of the priestly class who came to be measured was Nachman Kahana, a local rabbi. Temple model, Israel Museum (Photo: Ron Peled) He wore a Biblical-looking robe, long sidelocks, and a pair of Nike flip-flops. "From the moment we see we're ready here, the clothes will be ready and the priests can get to work when the time comes," said Hagai Barashi, an assistant tailor. Made to measure But the small group in this basement, members of a hard-line fringe among Israel's religious nationalists, see that thinking as an excuse for inaction. Most Orthodox Jews see the rebuilding of the Temple as a theoretical event to be undertaken by God when the Jewish people are deemed to deserve it, and Judaism has traditionally forbidden making practical preparations of this kind. Since then, Judaism's focus has changed drastically, from a Temple-centered ritual of animal sacrifice led by priests to a faith revolving around individual study and piety taught by rabbis. Was leveled by the Romans in the year 70. The first Jewish Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians 2,500 years ago, and the second It is God's will that this is a place for Muslims to pray, and they must respect that.” "And if they do, they will make 1.5 billion enemies. But groups like the institute, however marginal, have played on Muslim fears that Jews plan to destroy their holy sites to pave the way for rebuilding the Temple.Īdnan Husseini, formerly the top Muslim official at the site and now an adviser on Jerusalem affairs to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas,Ĭalled the work of such groups a ‘provocation.’ "If they talk about building the third temple, what does it mean? It means they will destroy the Islamic mosques,” Husseini said. The Temple Institute does not advocate violent action and says its activities are purely educational. By sewing garments for the temple priests, his institute is "continuing a process that was neglected for 2,000 years," he said. "The light of God is coming back, and it's happening before our eyes," Glick said. The Temple Institute and similarly minded believers think those modern priests will soon have to resume the rituals of their ancestors in a rebuilt Temple, and that by preparing their garments they are bringing that day closer.
Their most common family name is ‘Cohen,’ meaning priest. The memory of belonging to that class has been preserved by Jews through the centuries. Provocation?The priests, made up of descendants of the Biblical figure Aaron, were an elite group entrusted with the Temple and its rituals, such as sacrificing animals and making other offerings to God. The blue dye which the Bible calls ‘tchelet,’ is made from the secretions of a snail found in the Mediterranean Sea, and the red color comes from an aphid found on local trees. The thread, six-ply flax, was purchased in India, and the diamond-patterned fabric was woven in Israel. Now we're engaged in the practical fulfillment of the divine commandment," said Yehuda Glick, the Temple Institute's director, at a ceremony marking the workshop's opening last week. "Before, the clothes we made were to go on display.
THE PRIESTS GARMENTS FULL
If you are a descendant of the Jewish priestly class, a full outfit, including an embroidered belt 32 biblical cubits (48 feet, 15 meters) long, can be yours for about $800. 'Conflict over holy space.' Temple Mount, Jerusalem (Photo: AFP) The institute recently received rabbinic permission to begin using sewing machines for the first time, bringing the cost down and allowing them to produce dozens or hundreds of garments, depending on how many orders come in. The Temple Institute has made priestly garments in the past for display in the small museum it runs in the Jewish Quarter, but those were hand-sewn and cost upward of 10,000$ each. These conflicting claims lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and past efforts to upset the status-quo have erupted into violence. For the past 1,300 years, the site has been home to Islam's third-holiest shrine, the Noble Sanctuary, including the golden Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Temple itself was destroyed by Roman legions two millennia ago. Temple rebuiltThe project, run by a Jerusalem group called the Temple Institute, is part of an ideology that advocates making practical preparations for the rebuilding of the ancient Temple on a disputed rectangle in Jerusalem sacred to both Jews and Muslims.Īnd venerate it as their holiest place.