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Coliseum or Temple? \ Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu
The Shiur was given in 5764
Coliseum or Temple?
Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu
Written by the rabbi
Dedicated to the memory of
Yaakov Ben Behora
1. The “Dangerous Culture”
2. Unfounded Hatred
3. The Results
4. The New World Order
5. The Coliseum
6. The Impact of the New Education
7. Imperialism
8. A Culture War
9. The Destruction of the Temple
The “Dangerous Culture”
Those responsible for destroying our Holy Temple invested great efforts in order to achieve
this goal: a three-year siege; hundreds of thousands of soldiers. Tens of thousands of these
solders were killed or injured in the unrelenting struggle to destroy God's Sanctuary. It was
not simple hunger that drove the Roman leaders to breach their covenant of peace with
Judah. The Jews had actually proved themselves to be most loyal allies to the growing
Roman Empire. What drove the Romans against the Jews was the Jews' “dangerous
culture” - a culture which had begun to penetrate the Roman Empire.
Judaism was educating the masses to behave according to the principle that says “man is
created in God's image.” It spread a gospel which posed a threat to the powers-that-be. The
Roman regime was based upon extortion, conquest, murder and bondage. The Romans,
whose goal it was to conquer the entire world (and who almost succeeded!), foresaw great
danger to their plans if the masses were to begin to believe that all people are created in
God's image and deserving of dignity. Ideas like “Love your fellow as you do yourself,” if they
managed to catch on, were bound to be poisonously destructive. “Their culture,” wrote a
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Roman senator to his superiors, “poses a threat to us. They free their slaves every seven
years. Even a Canaanite slave is released if his master mistreats him. If Jewish values
manage to infect Roman culture we will be finished. Such values will destroy our entire
slavery-, cheap labor-based regime.” It was therefore important for the Romans to embark
on such a long and demanding confrontation.
The Romans suffered very painful losses in this conflict, both during the course of the siege
and as a result of the Bar-Kochba insurgency. It was an accepted practice for legion
commanders to add the following closing sentence to every regular report they sent back to
Rome: “I and my soldiers are well.” We find, however, that in their war with the adamant
Jewish fighters this sentence is omitted. These Jewish fighters were known for their ability to
develop and employ new military strategies on a daily (and, even more so, nightly) basis.
Unfounded Hatred
The painful depictions of these fierce battles have reached us via the works of ancient
historians who show no reluctance in expressing the leanings of their heart. Such Romanemployed chroniclers were unable to hide the painful defeats. Most notable among them
was a Jewish traitor who had originally served as chief commander of the northern forces of
the “IDF” of then: Yosef ben Matityahu, who traded in his unfashionable Jewish name for the
more modern and prestigious “Josephus Flavius.” An army commander whose responsibility
it was to protect the Jewish people, Flavius defected and handed over himself and all of his
knowledge to the Roman cause.
The sages of Israel saw in this phenomenon the tragedy of the destruction. They, like
everybody else, understood that the Roman army would be incapable of subduing
Jerusalem were it not for the aid of such traitors. Yet, in truth, even the help of such people
would not have been the determining factor had it not been for the divisiveness within the
ranks of the Jewish fighters. “The kings of the earth and all of the inhabitants of the world
would not have believed that the adversary and the enemy would enter the gates of
Jerusalem” (Lamentations 4:12). The collapse began from within. Inner discord caused the
Jews to weaken each other and to bring their claims before the Romans; and it was this
discord which led to the final destruction. Jewish factions called upon the Romans time and
again to come to their aid in the struggle against their fellow Jews. The Romans indeed
came. They came and wiped out everybody, friend and foe alike.
The fact that Jews themselves burned down each others' food store-houses to the point
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where the soldiers on the front line were forced to wage war while in a state of near
starvation was a decisive factor in the struggle, and the painful results were not slow in
coming. “It was for the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests who shed the
blood of the just in the midst of her” (ibid. 13). The sages viewed this as the underlying
reason for the destruction. Groundless hatred, they were to teach, is what led to the demise
of the Second Temple. In our own times rabbis teach that groundless love is what is needed
if we desire the Temple's reconstruction.
The Results
The occupation of Jerusalem and its destruction involved the spilling of much blood. The
slaughter of hundreds of thousands of women, children, and elderly men, not to mention
soldiers and war hostages, was a routine matter for the Romans. When it came to
Jerusalem, Titus himself gave his honorable royal word that whoever handed himself over to
the Romans would be protected. Historians, however, relate that the Romans would tear
open the stomach of any Jew, man or woman, who was foolish enough to take them up on
this offer. The Roman soldiers justified their behavior by explaining that they were merely
looking for silver and gold which the fleeing Jews no doubt swallowed in an attempt to
smuggle out of the sieged city. They would violently poke and prod their subjects - men,
women and, children - in an attempt to uncover gold and diamonds. The captives surely
cried out from the extreme pain and sheer horror before finally returning their souls to the
Almighty. They were killed in such a cruel manner by people who had given their honored
word that they would be left in peace.
This gives us a bit of an idea as to the devaluation of human life which went hand in hand
with the destruction of the Holy Temple. It also tells us something about the ethical depravity
of the Roman soldier; he was not even aware of the fact that he had done something wrong
by violating the hallowed promise of the Emperor himself. We can see to just what extent
international law and justice - the then honored possession of the Roman nation - had fallen.
From that time forth it was the Romans who were considered the authoritative measuringrod of all law justice in the world. Yet they themselves are responsible for the above account!
The justification which they offer for such behavior gives us an idea as to the meaning of the
“destruction of the Holy Temple”; it was, in effect, the “destruction of world justice.”
What is human life worth when compared to the possibility of finding some pieced of silver
on a man's body? What is a promise worth. What is man worth? The Romans, who also in
the Carthage war did not keep promises and agreements signed and certified by the Roman
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senate, attempted all the while to put up a noble front and an air of propriety. This was not a
one-time occurrence. The Bar-Kochba uprising, which was a continuation of the war of the
Temple's destruction, was lost on the Ninth of Av. It ended with the slaughter of hundreds of
thousands, and possibly millions of Jews at the hands of the new “knights of justice.”
Accounts of this bloodbath are so shocking that it sometimes appears as if somebody
exaggerated a bit. The plane facts, however, are beyond all comprehension. Roman cruelty
did not pass over young children and babies; their heads were smashed ruthlessly upon
stones. “The blood of the victims reached the Great Sea.”
The disciples of the destruction saw as their personal obligation the murder of as many Jews
as possible and the plowing over of the remnants of the Temple. To destroy all memory of
the city. To change the name of Jerusalem to “Aelia Capitolina.” To erase, murder, and
subdue the nation which refused to step off of the stage of history. In the end, the noblehearted Romans even forbade the burial or covering over of the blood of the hundreds of
their hundreds of thousands of victims. Their bodies lay out in the open for all to see in order
to teach everybody that a new world order was taking effect.
The New World Order
The Emperors of Rome, Titus, Vespasian, and Hadrian, understood that in order to obliterate
the influence of the Jew it was not enough to wipe out members of the Jewish nation alone.
The spirit of Judaism too had to be erased. They took upon themselves to carry out this
monumental task which called for the deployment of hundreds of thousands of war captives
and slaves of all colors, shapes, and nationalities from all corners of the globe. The
operation of a lifetime. A national endeavor. A monumental task which Titus saw as second
in importance only to the destruction of the Temple itself.
The Coliseum
This was a huge structure which, in its time, was considered one of the seven wonders of
the world. It was designed by the world's greatest architects. A gigantic edifice; even today it
is not easy to construct such buildings. Combining a variety of building styles and composed
of building materials which had been brought from great distances, it was meant to serve as
a cultural center for the entire world.
This elegant structure had to play the part of a substitute to the spiritual focal point which the
Sanctuary represented before its demise. If, in its heyday, the Temple acted as a “House of
prayer for all of the nations,” there was now to be a new center: excitement; Competition;
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massive public gatherings; the emperor himself takes part; a new spiritualism is here.
Entertainment is not the most important factor. The main thing is the content. What was it
that the millions of spectators viewed in this coliseum? What was the true magnificence of
Rome's architectural creativity? What were millions of people to view therein for hundreds of
years? Answer: They were to view men fighting with one another to the death. Day after day,
members of the Roman kingdom would sit and watch people being devoured and burned
alive. Day after day, the children of the kingdom would see human beings being drowned.
Nightly, they would watch people with flaming cotton sponges tied to their bodies running
and screaming hysterically across the floor of the magnificent stadium. Slowly, this
“education” would sink in to the hearts of the spectators and take the form of a replacement
to the dangerous Jewish education. Titus and Vespasian understood that it was not enough
to destroy the Temple. The Jewish spirit had to be destroyed. If the foundation of Judaism is
to “love thy fellow as you do yourself,” they must set upon disseminating the opposite.
The Impact of the New Education
All of Europe felt the influence of the coliseum and the tens of stadiums which sprang up in
its wake throughout Europe and in every place where the nail-studded sandals of Roman
soldiers trampled. Each of the nations of Europe saw itself as the true inheritor of the “Holy
Roman Empire.” All of Europe came of age with an admiration for Rome and its culture. It is
no surprise, then, that for years upon years we find a social order wherein a thin upper
echelon of clergy and nobility take advantage of millions of peasant farmers. Hunger,
ignorance, and disease. Indescribable physical and sexual exploitation were the fate of the
overwhelming majority of the population. Farmers were deprived of all rights. They were
exploited without an ounce of remorse on the part of the leaders. Such leaders were
convinced that they were fulfilling the will of God when they were chosen to rule over
hundreds of thousands of workers and their children.
“The Holy Covenant” - this was the name that the leaders of Europe chose for themselves
when the poverty-stricken destitute masses attempted to free themselves of this evil during
the struggles which precipitated the French Revolution. The “Holy Covenant” between
Europe's leaders was a “covenant” whose purpose was to halt all insurgence by popular
movements in the wake of the French Revolution. They banded together in sending military
aid to any state whose citizens dared to rebel against the established system of exploitation.
Suppression of all insurgence was termed “the Holy Covenant,” and not sarcastically. It was
given this name out of a conviction that it had been chosen by God to rule and despoil.
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Somebody educated them to believe this - and we know today who this was.
History teaches us that in this struggle the Romans and their inheritors scored a number of
important victories. “Pogrom victories” wherein they murdered continuously and in all sorts of
strange manners. They would employ a variety of methods and false pretexts in carrying out
their torture and killing. In the Crusades, they pillaged and burned entire communities. In the
course of the Inquisition they “victoriously” burned thousands of Jews at the stake. Through
their atrocities, the Nazis managed to score the “greatest” of all “victories.” And they made
clear that their purpose was to eradicate all influence of Jewish culture, a culture of kindness
and compassion, a culture of peace and love, a culture which ran counter to the desired
world-order as they saw it.
The new world order would be such that the strong prey upon the weak and refuse to act
kindly toward them. In this manner, they believed, the world will advance according to the
healthy laws of nature - the laws of the jungle. Hitler described his own theory in exactly
these words, and all of his spiritual apostles were brought up on these words. To do away
with all influence of Jewish culture, the “love your neighbor as yourself” culture.
Imperialism
This culture reach a special and hypocritical climax: “Imperialism.” This was a movement
that received its support from the church and the Pope. A movement that disgracefully
exploited every nation and tongue which stood in its way. This followed the slaughter of
hundreds of thousands in the pall of the cross which went before all of its conquering armies.
Only those who remained had the privilege of serving the crown and the queen.
It is incredible to think that two hundred years ago English soldiers were crossing the Atlantic
Sea prepared to give their lives for the “right” to exploit the citizens of the United States of
America, for the “right” to buy agricultural products for next-to-nothing prices and to sell them
at market rates. For this “right” many an English soldier gave his life in the war against
American independence. Neither did America succeed in cleansing itself of this evil
influence. For many years they exploited black slaves by the millions before the concept of
man being created in God's image finally managed to permeate their consciousness.
A Culture War
The fact that the Jewish people have not been erased after so many years is in itself a
miracle. The burning of so many volumes of the Talmud did not succeed in wiping out the
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Talmud altogether, though many Jews lost their life as a result. The power of the Holy
Scriptures continued to grow year by year. Today we are able to measure the impact of the
Bible in numbers. True, numbers are mere technical data, but they can teach us a lot.
Today, the Bible has been translated into nearly every language in the world. In the time of
Rome it had been translated into Greek, which was then the most important and cultured
language in the world - this, in itself, constituted a “threat.” Today the Bible is the most
translated book in the world. It exists in an astounding 1,080 languages. Most people are not
even aware that there are so many languages and dialects in the world. It has been printed
in 3,950,000,000 copies! This number is a few billion times greater than any other book in
the world. It has been translated and printed so many times because it speaks to the
Chinese, Japanese, Indians, Russians, Ethiopians, British, Austrians, Hungarians, Persians,
and a huge variety of other nations. This is exactly what Titus was worried about. So, we can
see for ourselves who got the last laugh.
Every thief eventually gets what he has coming to him. The Germans murdered millions
upon millions, but, in the end they were subdued. The “strong-shall-survive” culture shared
by the Nazis and the Romans has been forced into hiding and made nearly nonexistent.
Imperialism has even become a kind of rude word. The eternal and unavoidable fate of evil
in this world is such that it can only enjoy temporary success - tens, perhaps even hundreds
of years. In the end, however, the world learns its lesson and internalizes the message. The
message of “love your fellow as yourself” eventually penetrates world consciousness.
So much suffering on the way though.
The Destruction of the Temple
The struggle between Rome and Jerusalem, which was temporarily decided with the
Temple's destruction, has not yet come to a close. The Temple's demise was a turning point
in world history. With it, the world entered a period marked by the massive influence of
Roman culture. The sages rightfully saw the struggle between the two cultures as being
polar in nature:
“If someone should tell you that both Jerusalem and Rome have been destroyed, do not
believe him; that both are standing, do not believe him. For, if one is ruined, the other
stands, and if one stands the other is in ruin.”
The peak of the struggle was reached with the destruction of the Temple. This was such a
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pivotal point that Titus himself took active participation. He considered it a personal privilege
to be on site and do destroy the structure which he so detested. We have been mourning the
destruction of the Temple for more that 1,934 years. With the destruction we lost our
kingdom, we lost our glory, our independence, the Torah, unity, statehood, life. In order to
remind ourselves that the struggle continues, that we have scored victories in our struggle
and that we must push forward until we come out victorious, we fast on Tisha B'Av.
We will continue to fast each year on the Ninth of Av until we see the illumination of the
building of the Holy Temple whose “insides are filled with love”; the Holy Temple, upon which
no iron instrument has been raised - for such instruments are known for their ability to
shorten life; the Holy Temple, into which no person who has come into contact with the dead
may enter. The great and sacred house which bears the name of God. The house into which
only one who is attached to life may enter. The Holy Temple - “the Sanctuary of Life.”
-------Some of the translated verses in the above article were taken from The Jerusalem Bible
(Koren).
E-mail : [email protected]
For more Shiurim from the site: www.yeshiva.org.il
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