Rebuilding the Temle

Several small organizations intent on rebuilding the temple received additional publicity, and perhaps credibility, in October when Israel's Religious Affairs Ministry sponsored the first conference of Temple Research. One of the most zealous groups is the Temple Institute, which has reconstructed 38 of the 103 ritual implements required for sacrifices. "Our task is to advance the cause of the temple and to prepare for its establishment, not just talk about it," says director Zev Golan. "No one can say how, and no one wants to do it by force. But sooner or later, in a week or in a century, it will be done." Two Talmudic schools near the Western (Wailing) Wall are teaching students details of temple service. Other scholars are researching genealogies to identify members of the priestly line. Plans call for an organizing convention of priestly descendants next year. One group of Jewish activists, the Temple Mount Faithful, dedicated a three-ton "cornerstone" two kilometers from the temple site. Police prevented them from staging the ceremony in the Western Wall Plaza.