Still Sacred

In practice, the Chofetz Chaim said that the majority of opinions side with the Rambam. He codified this opinion in the Mishnah Berurah (561:5): “And one who enters now the place of the Mikdash is liable for kareis because we are all in a state of ritual corpse impurity, and the sanctity of the Mikdash was for its time and the future.”

So why is there any discussion about entering the Temple Mount if the halachah is clear? The answer lies in the difference between Har HaBayis, the Temple Mount, and the Beis HaMikdash, The Beis HaMikdash only took up part of Har HaBayis. Even one who is tamei meis may enter Har HaBayis. However, there are other forms of ritual impurity that impede one from entering Har HaBayis. Both men and women have forms of tumah that are unique to them. Someone who is tamei from those forms of tumah may not enter Har HaBayis.

Still, there are those who say that they will follow the purification process for the lower forms of tumah and only enter Har HaBayis when they are purified from that tumah. True, they will still be tamei meis, but someone who is tamei meis may enter Har HaBayis. However, there are still problems with this leniency. First, they may not know the exact location where the Beis HaMikdash stood and they may inadvertently walk onto a place where a tamei meis is not allowed. Second, while they may be well aware of the serious halachos involved, the onlooker may not be. Someone who sees a religious person walking on Har HaBayis may not know that the person already followed a purification process. More-over, the onlooker may not know the difference between Har HaBayis and the makom haMikdash. The onlooker may incur a penalty of kareis by following the religious person’s actions as they appear to him.

Therefore, the Steipler, Rav Shach, and Dayan Weiss, among other gedolim, ruled that no one should enter Har HaBayis.

Elliot Resnick of the Jewish Press recently conducted an interview with HaRav Herschel Schachter that touched on this subject. The following is an excerpt:

ER: There is a growing movement in Israel of frum Jews ascending Har HaBayis after going to the mikveh. What’s your opinion on this movement?

RHS: The Rabbanut said you’re not allowed to go on the Har HaBayis. Now, the majority of the Jews in Eretz Yisrael are not shomrei mitzvos and are not really interested in what the Rabbanut says. In fact, they want to do away with the Rabbanut because it gives them problems—a kohen can’t marry a grushah, he can’t marry a mamzeres, he can’t intermarry, etc. In Bnei Brak and Meah Shearim, they also couldn’t care less what the Rabbanut says. So you’re left with only the Modern Orthodox, the Dati Leumi, and now they, too, are ignoring the Rabbanut by going on Har HaBayis.

So the government will do away with the whole Rabbanut. What do you need it for? In Bnei Brak they don’t hold from them, in Meah Shearim they don’t hold from them, the overwhelming majority is secular, and the Dati Leumi are also not listening.

How do you go on the Har HaBayis? We’re going to be responsible for the demise of the Rabbanut. It will be a disaster. As bad as the situation is now, it’s going to be worse if there’s no Rabbanut.

ER: Haven’t you said in the past that one may, in theory, walk on certain parts of Har HaBayis?

RHS: Yes, but if the Rabbanut said you shouldn’t go, you have to listen to what they say. If they say a kulah and you want to be machmir, gezunterheit. But to be meikel against them I think is not right.

We should merit having the Beis HaMikdash rebuilt speedily in our days. „