Destruction And Rebirth Why the Temple Was Destroyed "By the rivers of Babylon..." There is no sorrow in the life of Israel like that of the destruction and burning of the Holy Temple. On that day their national freedom was lost, and the people began to count the new era of exile and suffering. The First Temple - The Temple was destroyed because of three sins: idolatory, adultery, and the shedding of blood... The people desecrated Shabbat, kept children away from study, suspended prayers, and had no shame for each other. The Second Temple The Second Temple was destroyed through the sins of causeless hate. Men of truth ceased among the people. They did not admonish nor show forbearance with one another, they shamed scholars in public and equalized the small with the great, and were overly literal with the law. "Kamtza bar Kamtza" - from the Talmud, Gittin 56 A man wanted to throw a party for all his friends, so he drew up a guest list and instructed his servant to send out the invitations. One of the men on the guest list was named "Kamtza," but the servant made a mistake and invited "Bar Kamtza" instead. Oops — Bar Kamtza was actually a sworn enemy of the host! When Bar Kamtza received his invitation, he was very grateful thinking that the host had finally made amends. But when Bar Kamtza showed up at the party, the host took one look and told his servant to have Bar Kamtza immediately removed from the premises. When asked to leave, Bar Kamtza said: "I understand the mistake. But it's embarrassing for me to leave the party. I'll gladly pay the cost of my meal if you'll allow me to stay." The host would hear nothing of this, and reiterated his demand to have Bar Kamtza removed. Bar Kamtza appealed again: "I'd even be willing to pay HALF the cost of the entire party, if only I'd be allowed to stay." Again the request was denied. At which point, the distraught Bar Kamtza pleaded: "I'll pay for the entire party! Just please don't embarrass me in this way!" The host, however, stuck to his guns and threw Bar Kamtza out. The Talmud reports that Bar Kamtza was so hurt and upset, that he went straight to the Roman authorities and gave slanderous reports of disloyal behavior among the Jews. This fueled the Romans' anger, and they proceeded to attack and destroy the Holy Temple. We might think the Second Temple was destroyed because of a combination of complex reasons, a series of events out of our control. Not so. It is simply due to the sin of unwarranted hatred between Jews. When we desire and await the rebuilding of the Temple, the key is to focus on fixing what we have ruined. The way of repair is that everyone must make a maximum effort to love every member of the Jewish People. (see Chafetz Chaim: Maamar Ahavas Yisroel, Chapter 5) This is what we are lacking today, so this is what mourn on Tisha B'Av. Every time you get into a fight with someone and you don't work it out, think long and hard that you are personally responsible for holding back the rebuilding of the Temple. And every time you love a Jew unconditionally, we bring redemption one giant step closer. This story comes courtesy of Aish HaTorah. Click here for Legends of Rebirth!