"As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, 'Lord, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!' Then Jesus asked him, 'Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down'" (Mk 13:1-2; Mt 24:1-2; Lk 21:5-6).

The above-mentioned words were uttered by Jesus as he stood looking at the temple that reared its head like a caste mark on the brow of the holy city of Jerusalem. This magnificent temple was built on the mountain top with incomparable grandeur, glory, beauty and charm. Jesus' words indicated the destruction that was about to befall the city and the temple. The picture of the history of the Jewish temple of Jerusalem, presents on the one hand great glory and eminence, but punishment and destruction on the other. In 70 AD occurred a total destruction of this sacred building believed to be filled with God's presence and glory. For all these twenty centuries it has not been possible to re-construct it. Even today pilgrims visiting the city of Jerusalem, can witness the lamentation over its demolition and the keen thirst and urgent prayer for its re-construction arising from the hearts of the Jewish people. When we see the Jews standing with their heads leaning against the huge stones of the wall to the south of the specious grounds where the temple was once situated, we get an idea of their great expectations till now unrealised.

The destruction of the city and the temple of Jerusalem was a turning point in the history of the Jewish people. The story of their exile starting from those days and extending over the last 20 centuries has been a tale of pain and woe. Though several countries tried to wipe them away from the face of the earth, no one has succeeded in totally eliminating them. Relief from the sufferings and exile of a nation God had chosen as his own, to a certain extent, came only with the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. Are we not witnesses to the fact of history that whatever they lost is being restored to them one by one by God? "I give this land to you and your descendants," God had promised Abraham. Accordingly God had given this land to the Israelite nation. Though the land was lost to them in 70AD, it is now theirs and they have re-captured the holy city of Jerusalem and made it their own. There is only one thing that remains without being re-constructed -the temple of Jerusalem. Is its reconstruction possible? If so, when ? Where? How? These are questions that remain unanswered in the minds of several people.

Our pilgrimage in this issue is through the history of the temple of Jerusalem right from its origin. The temple of Jerusalem is closely connected with the life of Jesus. The infant Jesus is presented in this temple (cf Lk 2:22-35). Mary and Joseph find the boy Jesus who was lost for three days here in this temple (cf Lk 2:41-52). Jesus refers to the temple thus: the "House of God" (Mt 12:4); "My father's house"(Jn 2:16), "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations" (Mk 11:17). He reproves very severely those who desecrated the temple with commercial activities. He tells Peter how to procure the money to pay the temple tax though he was not obliged to do so (Mt 16:24-27). Jesus took part in the prayer services and the sacrifices offered in the temple. He sat in the temple and taught the disciples and healed several sick people. He came to the temple for every festival. Thus Jesus' life was closely associated with the temple. After getting a glimpse of the history of the temple, we shall study its structure, the animals offerings made there etc.

We can say that the history of the Jewish temple began at the foot of the mountain of Sinai. The temple took shape against the background of the Covenant God made with the Jewish people, under the leadership of Moses, their deliverer. The descendants of Jacob were freed from the slavery of Egypt and began their journeying to the Promised Land. They crossed the Red Sea, journeyed through the Sinai desert and pitched their tents at the foot of Mt Sinai God appeared on Mt. Sinai and made known his holy will to the Israelite nation through Moses. He chose them as his own people, called them a kingly nation, a holy nation, a priestly nation and made a Covenant with them. After sealing that Covenant with the blood of the sacrificial animal, God said for the first time to Moses, "Have them make me a sanctuary" (Ex 25:8). God's plan to dwell amidst the people God had made his own - that was the first temple. God himself gave them the directions about how to build it, its measurements and all its requirements. Thus the first temple rose among the Israelite people in a tent. God blessed that tent and through it the people with his presence. It had its own premises, its holy places, the holy of holies, all enclosed within the temple. It was so planned and constructed that it could be demolished and borne away. During the 40 years of sojourn through the desert the temple accompanied the people. This tent of God was the centre of their religion - centered life and their rituals and regulations of worship all through their journey across the desert.

In the holy of holies was placed the Ark of the Covenant (the Ark of the Covenant will be dealt with in detail in the next issue). Once they reached the Promised Land, the tent of meeting and the Ark of the Covenant were established in different places. In 1000 BC when David became King, he conquered the city of Jerusalem, and made it the capital of his extensive kingdom, gave it the name David's city and built a magnificent palace for the king. Subsequently, the Ark of the Covenant was taken amidst great rejoicing with trumpet calls, singing and dancing with a great concourse of people accompanying it. It was then placed in a tent specially built for this purpose (2 Sam 6). David, who had built a splendid palace for himself, desired keenly to have a temple built for the Lord. For this purpose, he purchased a suitable piece of land from Onan the Jebusite. This was situated on the Moria Mountain where Abraham had taken his son Isaac to sacrifice him to God (2 Chr 3:1). David stored up all the material and money necessary for the construction of the temple.However, according to the message given by God through prophet Nathan, he left its construction to his son (2 Sam 7).

When Solomon, the son of David, ascended the throne in 960 BC, he began the construction of the temple according to the desires of his father. It was a magnificent temple built with costly marble, timber, gold and silver and with excellent artistic taste and splendid ornamental engravings. All the preparations were ready.The Ark of the Covenant was placed in the holy of holies in the temple. The beautiful prayer that Solomon said while he consecrated the temple, is given in the eighth chapter of the first book of Kings.

In the subsequent history of the Israelite people, we see that God's anger and punishment fell on them because they were unfaithful to the conditions of the Covenant. They did not give heed to the exhortations of the prophets or their warnings. The Israelite nation received from God the consequences of their sin. In 586 BC Nabuchednezzer, the King of Babylon, attacked Jerusalem. They entered the temple and looted it, carrying away to Babylon the money, gold, silver and other precious things. They razed the city and the temple to the ground. The destruction of Jerusalem, was vast indeed. 2 Kings chapter 25 describes it vividly. All the warnings of the prophets were fulfilled word for word. The able- bodied people who remained in the city were taken as slaves to Babylon.

In the fourteenth year after the destruction of the city, the prophet Ezekiel was given a vision regarding the re-construction of the temple (Ez 40:48). In 536 BC the Persian King Cyrus conquered Babylon. He permitted the Israelites to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. He also gave them back the precious things, gold and silver that Nabuched nezzar had looted from the temple and brought to Babylon. The Israelites who returned under the leadership of Jerubabel began the reconstruction of the temple. The work was completed in 515. But the people lamented that it could not stand comparison with Solomon's temple.

However, this renovated temple became in due course the centre of the religious observances, rituals of worship and festival celebrations. And this state of affairs continued to exist till in 33 BC Alexander the Great conquered Palestine and brought the Israelites under Greek rule. The Greek rulers maintained respect and reverence towards the temple of Jerusalem and its liturgical regulations. But King Antiochus Epiphanus IV, King of Salukis, unleashed persecution against the Jews. he consecrated the temple to the gods. He brought into vogue activities that desecrated the sanctify of the temple and banned their religious observances. It was in response to all this that the Maccabees' rebellion and the purification of the temple took place. All this history is recorded in the 1st and 2nd book of the Maccabees.

In 63 BC Judea and Jerusalem came under the Romans. With the blessings of the Roman emperor, King Herod became king of all Palestine. Herod laid plans to re-construct the same temple built by those who had returned from the Babylonian captivity. He decided it must be the most magnificent and artistic architectural product in the whole of the Roman empire. The Pharisees and the priests at first objected but later gave their consent. The temple premises were extended. Thus the temple came to be situated in the midst of a 43- acre levelled ground enclosed on all sides. It was a magnificent one. Its beauty was enhanced by the porticoes made of white marble pillars with gold ornamental engravings and decorations. The white temple enclosing the holy places, the holy of holies, and the huge altar of sacrifice, built in front of the temple were expressions of the beauty, charm and the architectural expertise and finesse that were brought to bear in the construction of the temple. The temple and its premises were made splendid with decorations made out of white marble, gold and silver. The entire edifice and its precincts used to shine brilliantly in the sunlight.

Jesus gazed at this marvel of beauty and art and predicted its fall, "Not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down." Jesus' words were fulfilled word for word. In 70 AD the Roman army captured the city razed it to the ground, looted the temple and burnt it down. It was reduced to a heap of ashes. Innumerable Jews were killed. The survivors were carried off as slaves.

Today we cannot see there a single stone upon a stone. In the course of time Muslims captured the place and built a splendid mosque instead of the temple. The Muslims consider it as their most sacred house of worship, because they associate Muhamad Nabi with the city of Jerusalem. The destruction of the temple still continues as a big loss for the Jews.

The structure of the temple and the animal sacrifices that were offered there will be dealt with in the next issue.