Watching the Signs of the Times

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     Signs of the Times in the News:

Jewishprudence

Jewish Press (Link) - Richard Kronenfeld (December 17, 2025)

It occurred to me the other day that since the re-established state of Israel is now 77 years old – about the same as the average human lifespan – perhaps the time has come to consider re-establishing the Sanhedrin.

Think of it this way: Is it preferable to have a self-perpetuating Supreme Court comprised mainly of secular Leftists who often rule in contravention to halacha, or a rabbinical court that bases its decisions on halacha, interpreted with a measure of leniency? The time is especially ripe because prominent rabbi-writers such as Rabbi Raphael Shore and Rabbi Josh Wander have raised the possibility that recent events, especially arising from the October 7 massacre, may portend the imminent coming of Mashiach. As we shall see, sporadic efforts to restore the Sanhedrin have been made over the centuries, but none of them have lasted – at least not yet.

Full-Dress Kohen Sighted on Temple Mount

Israel 365 News (Link) - Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz (October 18, 2024)

The Temple Institute announced a remarkable development that brought Israel one step closer to the Third Temple. For the first time since the Temple stood in Jerusalem 2,000 years ago, a kohen (male descendant of Biblical Aaron the High Priest) ascended to the Temple Mount wearing the Biblically mandated Kohanic garments. While on the mount, the Kohen joined in a prayer quorum and gave the priestly blessing to those gathered.

The Temple Institute prepared the garments in preparation for the return of the Temple service.

What these red cows from Texas have to do with war and peace in the Middle East

CBS News (Link) - Chris Livesay (March 5, 2024)

Jerusalem — When Hamas spokesman Abu Ubaida began a speech marking the 100th day of the war in Gaza, one confounding yet eye-opening proclamation escaped the headlines. Listing the motives for the Palestinian militant group’s Oct. 7 massacre in Israel, he accused Jews of “bringing red cows” to the Holy Land.

The cows he was talking about are red heifers, which now graze at a secure, undisclosed location in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Some Jews and Christians believe they’re key to rebuilding the Jewish temple that once stood in Jerusalem, and to beckoning the Messiah.

To understand, you have to look back almost 2,000 years in the tumultuous history of the Middle East, when the ancient Romans destroyed the last temple in Jerusalem.

To rebuild it, fervent believers point to the Bible’s Book of Numbers, which commands the Israelites to offer “a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke.”

Only with that offering, they insist, can the temple rise again.

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Israelis Come to See Red Heifer and Discuss the Temple

Israel Today (Link) - Ryan Jones (July 16, 2023)

Again the biblical red heifer is in the news, sparking renewed discussion about a future Third Temple in Jerusalem.

Hundreds of Israelis reportedly visited the Jewish settlement of Shiloh in central Samaria last week to welcome the first of three pure red heifers to arrive from the United States. Shiloh was the first biblical capital of Israel and the place where the Tabernacle stood for hundreds of years before King David moved it to Jerusalem.

The three red heifers will be housed at the Ancient Shiloh heritage site and a center will open there dedicated to researching the phenomenon. The heifers will be kept in a fenced-off area, and visitors will not be able to touch the animals.

The mysterious red heifer, or Parah Adumah, is first mentioned in the Book of Numbers, when God instructs Moses and Aaron to take “a perfectly red unblemished cow, upon which no yoke was laid.” The ashes of a red heifer are necessary for purification prior to conducting biblical sacrificial ceremonies. 

Likud MK Amit Halevi Proposes Plan to Divide Jerusalem’s Temple Mount

Jewish Press (Link) - Hana Levi Julian (June 7, 2023)

Likud Knesset member Amit Halevi is promoting a plan to divide the Temple Mount between Jews and Muslims.

Under the plan, Muslims will receive the southern Al Aqsa Mosque and its annexes and the Jews will receive the central and northern area, including the Dome of the Rock, the place on which it is believed that the Holy of Holies stood in the Temple.

In addition, Halevi suggests removing the Kingdom of Jordan’s authority over the Temple Mount by launching a process to remove its decades-long political status achieved through agreements with Israel.

The Temple Mount is not considered to be under Israeli sovereignty due to Jordan’s political status there, Halevi noted, saying it is a “sin to history” to give status to a foreign nation on the sacred site.

“Why not give them status in the Dizengoff Center as well? This is a terrible mistake. This status should be abolished. I know it’s an agreement between countries, but we have to deal with it. It requires change even if the process that will take time.”