The Amshinov hasidic newspaper Yirah Vesimcha, published a conversation between the Amshinover Rebbe and his son, regarding the issue of ascending the Temple Mount during the current period.
During the conversation, the Rebbe was asked whether it is forbidden today to ascend the Temple Mount, and he replied, "A person who is impure from contact with the dead is permitted to enter the Temple Mount itself. Only the cheil, which is beyond the Temple Mount, is forbidden."
"Can someone who immerses in a regular mikveh (ritual bath) enter the Temple Mount?" his son asked. The Rebbe answered: "Yes, but again, only the beginning of the Temple Mount."
The Rebbe’s son pressed further: "Where is the beginning - where today’s Temple Mount is?" The Rebbe replied: "Not deep inside. Deeper inside is already the cheil."
When asked whether the Western Wall is connected to the Temple, the Rebbe answered that "the Western Wall is connected to the wall of the Temple Mount," as brought in Kaftor Vaferach, chapter 6.
To the question of whether "behind the wall of the Kotel is already the Temple Mount," the Rebbe said, "Apparently, yes. But the Temple Mount is not the Temple courtyard. The Temple Mount is the Camp of the Levites," the Rebbe explained. Therefore, it is permitted to enter the area at the beginning of the Temple Mount after proper immersion for purification according to Jewish law.
The conversation also dealt with the issue of waving the Two Loaves on the Temple Mount, as they said was done on the Shavuot (Feast of Weeks) holiday.
"Seemingly, there is a mitzvah (Torah commandment)," the Rebbe replied. However, he noted that "it must be baked inside," adding, "I do not understand how they take it out" after the waving. Seemingly, he said, "there is a problem that it becomes invalid by being taken out." The Rebbe also raised additional questions such as priestly lineage, various colors mentioned on the subject, and the location of the altar.
The Rebbe’s son asked whether "this is like the Passover sacrifice," and his father responded, "The Passover sacrifice is required of each and every individual; the Two Loaves are a communal meal-offering." He also stressed that "for the Passover sacrifice, an altar is needed."
"Are they carrying an altar with them too?" he asked with a smile, referring to Temple service activists who entered the Mount, 13 of whom were arrested after waving the Two Loaves.
Temple Mount Administration director Rabbi Shimshon Elboim welcomed the publication of the Amshinover Rebbe's remarks, saying, "This is a major step forward in the Jewish progress of Israel’s return to the Temple Mount, which will significantly advance the renewal of the Temple service there, and even the building of the Temple."
The Administration noted that police currently also allow a short route for those who wish to enter only the area near the entrance to the Mount from the gate at the wooden bridge by the Kotel, walking close to the Western Wall from the inside and immediately exiting through the exit gate used by all those leaving the Temple Mount, without completing the full circuit around the Mount.
They also mentioned additional recent statements by haredi rabbis who discussed the possibility of ascending the Temple Mount. Last week, Rabbi Dr. Yitzchak Breitowitz also published his position on the issue.
The Administration expects that following the publication of the Amshinov Rebbe’s remarks in the community newspaper, there will be a growing wave in the number of Jews ascending the Temple Mount according to Jewish law, after the number already crossed 35,000 since the start of the year.
The Temple Mount is open this week for Jewish ascents during days following Shavuot only from Sunday to Tuesday. This is due to the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which begins on Wednesday this week.
The Administration still hopes the closure will be canceled, and hopes for a repeat of the opening during Eid al-Adha, as occurred during the tenure of Minister Gilad Erdan when it coincided with the Jewish date of Tisha B’Av.