Article: Israel And The Last Days
 

The Holy Temple Conferences by the Movement for Temple Renewal, with the participation of leading temple-oriented organizations, took place in the Great Synagogue in Jerusalem on Sunday. The conference included lectures on different matters connected to the Temple Mount and to the rebuilding of the Temple. Following the lectures, a general meeting was held inside the Great Synagogue, where participants heard more lectures and music related to the Temple. They then ate what is called the Seudat Hamikdash – the Temple Repast. “This is all in order to raise awareness of the Holy Temple, the Temple Mount, and its significance to the Jewish people,” explained Ben Yosef. He said that it is no coincidence that the conference took place this week, as the Palestinian Authority prepares to present its unilateral statehood bid to the UN. “It’s obvious that the vacuum caused by there being no Temple and a lack of Jewish presence on the Temple Mount led the Arabs to call the creation of a new state,” said Ben Yosef. “Jewish presence on the Temple Mount is a natural part of the view,” he said. “We’re here trying to gather our energy and work together towards this goal.” From whatever point on the globe they are, Jews pray facing the Temple Mount and have done so since the first Holy Temple was built during King Solomon's reign. Their prayers included the hope to rebuild the Temple and ascend the Temple Mount to worship there. Seeing mosques standing on the site from the 7th century on due to the Muslim conquest of Jerusalem was a difficult pill for the Jewish people to swallow, in addition to mourning the Second Temple's destruction by the Roman legion in the 1st century.