"And he dreamed, and behold!"(Genesis 28:12) Kislev 11, 5781/November 27, 2020 "And he dreamed, and behold!" (Genesis 28:12) There is nothing more ephemeral, more ethereal than a dream. Like dew in the morning sun, dreams fade from our memory almost instantly upon awakening. Where do they come from? Where do they go to? Dreams are elusive, impossible to latch onto or hold in our hand. Yet, nevertheless, dreams persist, in our mind's eye, in our hearts, in our visions and aspirations. Yaakov, upon leaving his home and setting foot in a place he would call Beit El - the House of G-d, had a dream that would change the world's waking reality forever. He dreamed of a ladder, firmly place on earth, that led to the heavens. Standing atop of the ladder and its ascending and descending angels, was a vision of G-d, speaking to Yaakov: "I am HaShem, the G-d of Avraham your father, and the G-d of Yitzchak; the land upon which you are lying to you I will give it and to your seed. And your seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and you shall gain strength westward and eastward and northward and southward; and through you shall be blessed all the families of the earth and through your seed. And behold, I am with you, and I will guard you wherever you go, and I will restore you to this land, for I will not forsake you until I have done what I have spoken concerning you." (ibid 28:13-15) Yaakov awoke, startled and terrified. But just as Yaakov grasped and held tight to the heel of his brother Esau while still in his mother's womb, Yaakov grasped immediately the enormity of his dream, and just as he purchased his brother's birthright, Yaakov took possession of his dream by immediately upon wakening, committing to it: "If G-d will be with me, and He will guard me on this way, upon which I am going, and He will give me bread to eat and a garment to wear; And if I return in peace to my father's house, and HaShem will be my G-d; Then this stone, which I have placed as a monument, shall be a house of G-d, and everything that You give me, I will surely tithe to You." (ibid 28:20-22) Yaakov, from his very conception, knew that the future belonged to him and his children. This is why he grabbed his brother's ankle, this is why he purchased the birthright, and this is why he deceived his father to receive his blessing. The physical reality of being born second and growing up in the shadow of his older brother was not going to hold him back. And this is why he was able to grasp both the meaning and the potential of his dream so quickly. G-d was committing to his future well-being, and Yaaakov, in order to lock into G-d's promise, committed his future to G-d. Yaakov made a covenant based on a dream. What could be more frivolous? Making a covenant and basing your future on a dream? It is like grasping the wind. "Vanity of vanities!" Yaakov understood at once that his dream was a direct and very real message from G-d, and he realized at once that it was the location of where he slept, the stones upon which he placed his head, which facilitated his dream: "Indeed, HaShem is in this place, and I did not know it." (ibid 28:16) So Yaakov, upon wakening, tethered his dream covenant with G-d to the hard reality of the rock upon which he slept, by setting it as a monument and anointing it with oil, thereby sealing the deal for all time. This was Yaakov's genius, tethering vision to reality, G-d's world to our world. What Yaakov gathered intuitively was that the stone upon which he slept was no ordinary stone. In fact, it was the Foundation Stone, the mythical, but very real stone upon which creation was founded in time and in space. The Foundation Stone, set in place by by G-d is the portal through which creation emanated and it is the portal through which G-d nourishes and sustains creation each new day, day after day. The Foundation Stone is where, if all time and all space could be rolled up into one single point of created reality, it would be right there, the place where Yaakov laid his head, the right place and the right time, because in reality, it is the only place and the only time. Yaakov tied a dream, the dream of G-d to bless creation with His presence, ("Build Me a sanctuary and I will dwell amongst you" Exodus 25:8) with his own dream, ("Then this stone, which I have placed as a monument, shall be a house of G-d.") The dream would become a reality when Yaakov's great great grandson, King Solomon would build the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Despite being twice destroyed, the shared dream of G-d and Yaakov remains alive to this day, expressed by the prophet Isaiah, "for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations." (Isaiah 56:7) The dream lives, awaiting upon us to awaken and build G-d's Holy Temple, fixing G-d's awesome dream to the rock of our reality. |
Tune in to this week's Temple Talk, as Yitzchak Reuven dreams about waking from a dream & changing the world forever, threading the needle of history through the foundation stone of creation, and remembers Bill Gibson, a humble seeker of the truth. When our forefather Yaakov gathered up stones on which to place his head and get a good night's sleep before exiting the land of Israel and heading off the Haran, he had no idea he was going to dream a dream that would change the world! Little did he know that the very place where he laid his head was the holiest place on earth - the place of the Foundation Stone, the place of the Garden of Eden and the binding of Yitzchak and the place of the future Holy Temple. Remembering Bill Gibson, a spiritual patriarch in our day. |
Positivity & the Holy Temple: Join The Holy Temple Rebellion! Gold! The miraculous liberation of the Temple Mount in 1967 was a game changer. For 2000 years Jews have prayed for the moment when we can rebuild the Holy Temple, yet, fifty three years after liberation the Temple Mount, the Holy Temple remains unbuilt. Why? The orthodox religious establishment in Israel, embodied by the state recognized Rabbinate, is still not on board. Justifications for not building are offered, but they are not built on the words of either the written Torah or the oral Torah. The transition from exile to redemption which has taken place over the past seventy years has passed over many of the great rabbis of our generation, who remain unwilling to accept either the privilege or the responsibility of having possession of the Temple Mount. But many other people, rabbis included are ready, willing and able to begin the rebuilding of the Holy Temple today! There are times when the establishment is out of step with reality. In such times it is up to the people to take up the cause, in spite of the establishment's misgivings. Join the Holy Temple rebellion! |
Dreams are a partial and veiled version of reality. They may be our subconscious speaking to us. They may be nonsense. But they also may be a way to tap into the awesome nature of the world we live in and the vast potential to see what is not so apparent on the surface. It is a bit unfortunate that we frequently cannot remember most of our dreams. Perhaps they contain smidgens of visions like this one Yaakov had. Perhaps they could show us things about ourselves that would open up gateways to a heaven that we didn’t know were there. Perhaps they could even show us that wherever we go, we might find ourselves in the house of G-d. Life, in a sense, is being in the house of G-d and not knowing it. Vayeitzei (Genesis 28:10 - 32:3)
Parashat Vayeitzei is read on Shabbat:
Kislev 12, 5781/November 28, 2020 |
Haftarah For Shabbat Parashat Vayeitzei Hosea 11:7 - 12:14: "For My people persists In its defection from Me; When it is summoned upward, It does not rise at all. How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How surrender you, O Israel? How can I make you like Admah, Render you like Zeboiim? I have had a change of heart, All My tenderness is stirred. I will not act on My wrath, Will not turn to destroy Ephraim. For I am G-d, not man, The Holy One in your midst: I will not come in fury... " |
The Temple Institute Mourns The Passing Of Bill (Tuvia) Gibson The Temple Institute is greatly saddened by the passing of Bill (Tuvia) Gibson. Bill was a pioneering Noahide, a true friend of the Temple Institute and a lover of the people of Israel, the land of Israel, the Torah of Israel and the G-d of Israel. |
Temple Mount Sifting Project Uncovers 3,000-Year-Old Gold Bead Lost On Holy Site A first, First Temple-era gold bead was revealed during wet sifting of earth from the Temple Mount in August, when nine-year-old Jerusalemite Binyamin Milt uncovered the perfectly preserved minute cylinder, created by four layers of tiny gold balls. |
Palestinian Site With Same Headline Every Day: "Jews Defile Al Aqsa Mosque" Talk about evergreen headlines! The Palestine Information Center has screaming headlines every day - in English - that Jews visit the Temple Mount, almost invariably saying that the Jews are "defiling" the holiest Jewish spot. These are only 10 of the headlines - from November alone! Sometimes is it "scores of settlers," sometimes "hordes." Always "settlers." Always "defiling." This is every month - hundreds of these headlines. |
Game Die From Second Temple Period Uncovered In Beit El A building project in Beit El, the town in which the patriarch Yaakov laid down his head to sleep and dreamed about a house of G-d, (in this week's Torah reading, Vayeitzei), has revealed many artifacts, some from the time of the 67CE Jewish revolt against Roman occupation. |
Maimonides' Mishneh Torah, Laws Of The Chosen House, Chapter 1, Mishneh 7 "The Menorah belongs on the south side, on your left as you enter, and the table --which holds the show-bread -- on the right. Both of them are just outside the inner sanctum. The incense altar goes between them, but further out from the inner sanctum. The court is divided into sections for priests and Israelites, and rooms are built there for the various needs of the Temple. Each room is called an office (Lishka)." |
Waqf To Allow Gulf Tourists To Visit Temple Mount Tourists from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain who want to visit the Temple Mount will be able to enter the site through the "Jordanian-Palestinian gates," according to an agreement reached by representatives of the UAE, Bahrain, Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority. |
Maimonides' Mishneh Torah, Laws Of The Chosen House, Chapter 1, Mishneh 6 "Vessels must be made for the Holy Temple: An altar for burnt offerings and other sacrifices, and a ramp to access the altar; these are placed in front of the Hall slightly southward (of center). The basin and its base, which the kohanim (Temple priests) use to wash their hands and feet for the service, are both placed between the altar and the Hall towards the south, on your left as you enter the sanctuary. A table, a (smaller) altar for incense, and a Menorah [are also necessary] and all three go in the sanctuary in front of the inner sanctum." |
AP Blames Temple Mount Tensions On Jews, And Jews Alone A recent article published by the Associated Press (AP) news agency features a spectacularly one-sided explanation of the tensions surrounding the Temple Mount. The article features subtle vilification against Jews who wish to visit the Temple Mount, implying that Jews who wish to do so are the sole perpetrators of tension when it comes to the Temple Mount/Al-Aqsa mosque compound. |
'Today, Kislev 7: Death Of Herod On this day, in the year 4 CE, Judean King Herod (Hordus) died. Universally despised during his reign, which was characterized by paranoia and unbridled cruelty, he is also remembered for his monumental building projects, many, such as Masada, Herodian and Caesaria, which remain to this day. By far his most significant and beautiful building effort was the renovation of the second Holy Temple in Jerusalem. |
Maimonides' Mishneh Torah, Laws Of The Chosen House, Chapter 1, Mishneh 5 "The following are the major requirements for the Temple: It must have a sanctuary and an inner sanctum. There must be a space in front of the sanctuary called the Hall (Ulam) and the three together are called "Heichal." Another wall must be built around the Heichal away from the building itself, like the curtains around the courtyard of the tabernacle in the desert. Everything enclosed by this wall representing the yard of the tabernacle is called the Court (Azara) and the whole compound is called "Temple" (Mikdash)." |
'Temple Mount' Groups And Israeli Aggression Against Al-Aqsa Are Empowered By Normalisation (from Arab media): Israel's attempts to change the status quo at Al-Aqsa Mosque are continuous. The occupation authorities' are adding to their previous impositions to lay the groundwork for further attacks on the mosque and its compound. |
Shavua Tov From The Temple Mount! Last week, a week which included both the Sigd holiday and Rosh Chodesh (Kislev), saw 429 Jews ascend the Temple Mount in purity. May the numbers continue to grow! Shavua tov - have a good week! |
Help To Build The Holy Temple In Our Time: Donate Generously To Help The Sacred Work Of The Temple Institute! Every contribution helps to rebuild the Holy Temple in our Time! |
Blessings from the holy city of Jerusalem!
Yitzchak Reuven
The Temple Institute |
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