Each year we mourn the destruction of the Holy Temple, but there is no doubt that from our vantage point in current society, where we live comfortably and enjoy religious freedom, it is difficult to mourn the loss of something that we never personally experienced.

Is the loss of our Holy Temple nothing more than a sad chapter in the annals of history that we commemorate each year? Or even now, centuries later, is it something that truly has a place in our lives?

Silver Linings, a special film produced ahead of Tisha B'Av, traces the roots of the Holy Temple starting long before the first stone was ever laid to rest in Jerusalem.

The story begins with a single rock, a unique stone that played a pivotal role in our patriarch Jacob’s journey as, divinely inspired by a vision of angels ascending and descending a ladder, he laid the foundation for the Jewish nation. That same stone became a foundation of another kind, imbued with a special holiness as it became part of the first temple and then the second. Against all odds, that single stone survives the destruction that engulfed Jerusalem’s holiest site, not once, but twice, ultimately enduring to bear testament to the eternity of the Jewish people.

Starring Adam Margules and Chaim Leibtag, Silver Linings, a Sparks Next production directed by Daniel Finkelman, and co directed by Aharon Orian, in conjunction with American Friends of Ateret Cohanim shares the journey of the rock, from biblical times through today.

This touching story testifies poignantly that even today, we remain firmly connected to the Holy Temple and our forefathers and is an emotional reminder that those who truly mourn Jerusalem will one day merit seeing the city rebuilt in all her glory with the coming of Moshiach.