I'm not sure what Arabs have to do with the Talmud but anyways, Orthodox is still the dominant religious order within Judaism:
I thought it was common knowledge the Talmud and oral tradition take precedence over Torah-
According to whom? Is exile a good, or even an authentic tradition? Exile or defeat is a consequence (at least, according to the OT) of following other gods or leadership God did not endorse-- and He lifted His hand from them.
I'm not familiar with 'Schlomo' but typically, it is the Orthodox / Hasidic (Haredi) Jews who believe the Talmud is holy (it isn't).
ORTHODOX (HAREDI)
Different sects of Judaism have different views on the Talmud. The Orthodox sect holds that the Oral Law or Talmud is just as inspired as the Bible, but Conservative and Reform Jewish sects do not.
Reform and Conservative sects believe they can interpret the Talmud as written by rabbis but are not necessarily required to follow it. Karaite Jews do not follow the Talmud or rabbinic teachings at all but only the Hebrew Bible. LINK
The Orthodox are a minority, and regard for the Talmud as the final authority is actually a minority opinion. The Arabs are typically very quick to demonize the Talmud-- unless, of course, as in this case, it serves their own purposes.
"The strictly observant and theologically aware Orthodox are a definite minority among all Jews, but there are also numerous semi- and non-practicing persons who are officially affiliated or personally identifying with the movement. In total, Orthodox Judaism is the largest Jewish religious group, estimated to have over 2 million practicing adherents and at least an equal number of nominal members or self-identifying supporters."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthodox_Judaism
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reform_Judaism
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_Judaism
What's striking about the religion is 1)how fractured their many sects are and 2)how totally modern the 3 main divisions are. Conservative and Reform denominations didn't even exist before the 19th century. It's hard to know what Judaism is when they don't know themselves, and their core beliefs so newly created. Even Orthodox Judaism underwent sweeping changes in the 19th century:
"While adhering to traditional beliefs, the movement is a modern phenomenon. It arose as a result of the breakdown of the autonomous Jewish community since the 18th century, and was much shaped by a conscious struggle against the pressures of secularization and rival alternatives."
To stay on the topic of the 3rd temple, and information related to the religious/spiritual significance to VC members I think these facts are important:
"Orthodox scholars and rabbinic authorities generally believe that rebuilding should occur in the era of the Jewish messiah at the hand of divine providence, although a minority position, following the opinion of Maimonides, holds that Jews should endeavour to rebuild the temple themselves, whenever possible."
"The Chief Rabbis of Israel, Isser Yehuda Unterman and Yitzhak Nissim, together with other leading rabbis, asserted that "For generations we have warned against and refrained from entering any part of the Temple Mount."
"Rabbinical consensus in the Religious Zionist stream of Orthodox Judaism continues to hold that it is forbidden for Jews to enter any part of the Temple Mount and in January 2005 a declaration was signed confirming the 1967 decision."
"Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism do not believe in the rebuilding of a central Temple or a restoration of Temple sacrifices or worship. They regard the Temple and sacrificial era as a period of a more primitive form of ritual from which Judaism has evolved and should not return. They also believe a special role for Kohanim and Levites represents a caste system incompatible with modern principles of egalitarianism, and do not preserve these roles. Furthermore, there is a Reform view that the shul or synagogue is a modern Temple; hence, "Temple" appears in numerous congregation names in Reform Judaism. Indeed, the re-designation of the synagogue as "temple" was one of the hallmarks of early Reform in 19th-century Germany, when Berlin was declared the new Jerusalem, and Reform Jewry sought to demonstrate their staunch German nationalism. The Anti-Zionism that characterized Reform Judaism throughout much of its history subsided somewhat with the Holocaust in Europe and the later successes of the modern state of Israel. The belief in the return of the Jews to the Temple in Jerusalem is not part of mainstream Reform Judaism."
"Although in mainstream Orthodox Judaism the rebuilding of the Temple is generally left to the coming of the Jewish Messiah and to Divine Providence, a number of organizations, generally representing a small minority of Orthodox Jews, have been formed with the objective of realizing the immediate construction of a Third Temple in present times."
"Today the potential of spiritual tourism would support the growth goals of the Mayor of Jerusalem for 10 million tourists annually. This would provide a significant boost to the economy and would benefit people locally and regionally, many of whom live in poverty. Since the rebuilding of the Temple can come only through a process of peace, it must be preceded by numerous efforts, including the financial and project infrastructures to support such a large increase in tourism, local and regional co-operation agreements to enable its construction and the success of modern attempts to revive the Sanhedrin, the authority which must be empowered for such an event to occur."
Ahha, this makes sense why the Israeli military is so concerned about world opinion, hiding the realities of life in Occupied Palestine from tourists or in discussions online, etc. Also the Sanhedrin plays a central role if the temple was to be built.
From a quick 1 hour search a few things are obvious. The Jewish religion/ethnic group(?) is totally divided on the 3rd temple. The leaders of the movement are extremists and a minority of the population, religious or secular. The hilarious thing is that the most vocal advocates of a temple are poorly studied right-wing US Evangelical Christians. They want a Jewish temple to be built because it will be ruled by the Anti-Christ in the Book of Revelation(?) which will then usher in the return of Jesus.
As is said, truth is stranger than fiction. You couldn't make this stuff up.
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