in my notes i found 2 reasons why leviim don't currently stand guard duty
at Har Habayit. one, jews don't control the area. two, maybe that family of
leviim wasn't assigned to that job. i suppose three, who says you're a
levi. any more data?
in my notes i found 2 reasons why leviim don't currently stand
guard duty at Har Habayit. one, jews don't control the area.
I thought that they did their shmirah outside of the Temple Mount.
No, outside the Mount what is there to guard? The first mishnos of
Tamid and Middos say that "Kohanim guard in three places, and Leviyim
in twenty-one", and all those places are on the Mount.
Plus, who exactly are they going to tell not go up? The goyim or
secular? The Dati Jews who do go prepare themselves?
The guards are not supposed to tell anyone anything. They're supposed
to stand there, just like those men with the funny hats outside Buck House.
(Though not with such tough discipline; the gemara makes it clear that
they're allowed to sit, and to talk to each other.)
I thought that they did their shmirah outside of the Temple Mount.
Plus, who exactly are they going to tell not go up? The goyim or secular? The Dati Jews who do go prepare themselves?
Ben
: Plus, who exactly are they going to tell not go up? The goyim or
: secular? The Dati Jews who do go prepare themselves?
The beefeaters in full dress outside Buckingham Palace are not really
the ones keeping the royal family safe. Their guard duty is part of the
honor one shows royalty.
The Mechilta, the Rambam (Beis haBachirach 8:1), the Chinukh and others
explain shemiras hamiqdash (Rambam asei #22, lav #67) similarly. Quoting
Seifar haMitzvos quoting the Mechilta, "ve'ino domeh palterin sheyeish
alav shomerim, lepalterei she'ein alav shomeim".
Tir'u baTov!
-Micha
RZS was correct, that my original post I mistakenly stated where they were and what they're job is. I looked at the Mishna and the Rambam and it is clear why no one does it today. Number one, they would have to go to Har Habayit and who says that this mitzva is docheh the possible karet issue? Secondly, according to the Rambam they are there to give kavod to the Beit Hamikdash. Is that what Levi'im would doing to today, when the Beit Hamiqdash isn't there and that mosque is? If there is no Beit HaMiqdash, why are they needed?
Ben
: RZS was correct, that my original post I mistakenly stated where
: they were and what they're job is. I looked at the Mishna and the
: Rambam and it is clear why no one does it today. Number one, they
: would have to go to Har Habayit and who says that this mitzva is
: docheh the possible karet issue? Secondly, according to the Rambam
: they are there to give kavod to the Beit Hamikdash. Is that what
: Levi'im would doing to today, when the Beit Hamiqdash isn't there
: and that mosque is? If there is no Beit HaMiqdash, why are they
: needed?
1- The kohanim guarded in the 3 locations mentioned in the mishnah. But
the gemara (Tamid 27a) lists the 21 places the leviim guarded. 3 of them
were below where the kohanim were. So a kohein was at Beis haNitzotz,
and a levi stood at Sha'ar haNitzotz. In addition 5 guarded the gates
(some gates were not guarded -- see machloqes there), 2 guarded the west
causeway, and another 2 guarded the the area at the end of the causway.
I count 11 shemiros that could be done today without risking kareis.
(About 5 years ago I encountered two Temple Mount Faithful types in
uniform -- complete with a beret emblem depicting bayis sheini, standing
shemirah in an attempt to fulfill this mitzvah. And driving the chayalim
protecting the southern archeological garden crazy.)
2- There is a BHMQ today -- qudeshah lesha'ata, qudesha lae'asid lavo. In
bayis sheini they even did the avodah before actually building the
building. (They were meqadesh the building, then the Kusim slandered us
to the gov't and permission to build was temporarily rescinded.)
After all, shemirah is for the kavod of the Borei, not to keep the
valuables or the structure safe. So actually having a physical bilding
should not be relevant.
Tir'u baTov!
-Micha