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What if the Second Temple Hadn’t Been Destroyed?
Tisha B’Av — the ninth day of the Jewish month of Av — is referred to as the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. It marks the destruction of both the First and Second Temples, the first in 586 BCE and the latter in 70 CE.
This Tisha B’Av — 10 months after the October 7 atrocity and the resulting war — finds many Jews worried about our Jewish future. This is true both with respect to the survival of Israel, a country beset by determined enemies, as well as in the context of Jewish life in the Diaspora, with the outburst of antisemitism that has occurred in Europe and North America.
The online Chabad description of Tisha B’Av makes a curious point about the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans. According to the contemporary Jewish-Roman historian Josephus, the Romans would have preferred to leave the Temple standing to reflect on the glory of Rome. Apparently, its destruction was an accident — a rogue act by a Roman soldier, who threw a firebrand into the Temple. Titus, the Roman commander, tried to put out the fire, but was unsuccessful.
The question of how the Jewish world would have evolved if the Temple had not been destroyed has intrigued René Bloch, Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Bern.
To my mind, the destruction of the Temple meant the end of Temple Judaism and the ascendancy of rabbinic Judaism, the rabbis being the successors of the Pharisees. Bloch points to a more nuanced history between the Temple and synagogue ritual and services.
For one thing, the Temple was not a central fixture for Jews in the Diaspora, which existed even then. Moreover, synagogues were an established feature in much of the Jewish world, even in Jerusalem. He adds that Temple practices were changing in any case. For example, animal sacrifices would likely have ended if the temple had continued to exist. Bloch quotes the prophet Isaiah saying, “I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats … learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.”
Moreover, scriptural interpretations and commentary, and the idea of using scripture in religious services, were common before the destruction of the Temple. However, much of the Mishna, written after the destruction, deals with details of Temple service as a means of keeping the memory of the Temple alive.
Without the destruction of the Temple, there would be no Mishna or Gemara and no Talmud, at least not in the form that we are familiar with today. Bloch writes, “If rabbinic Judaism had not emerged or had manifested itself in a much less consequential form, Judaism’s long-term development would have been profoundly affected.”
Bloch also points out that if the Temple was not destroyed, Christianity today would be very different as well, because the destruction of the Temple is central to the Christian concept of supersession, wherein Christianity is seen as the successor to Judaism. To early Christians, the Temple’s destruction confirmed God’s displeasure with the Jewish people for their rejection of Jesus Christ. Without its destruction, the theological underpinnings of Christianity and Judaism might have been more difficult to separate.
The Jewish defeat by the Romans took place irrespective of whether or not the Temple survived. Josephus’ writings point a finger at Jewish disunity and infighting. We do not know if a unified Jewish front would have made a difference. We do know that by the time of the The Bar-Kochba Revolt just 65 years later (132-136 CE), the Jews had learned their lesson. Nevertheless, even though the Jews fought as a united force, this war also resulted in defeat. The only difference was that the Roman victory cost them more.
There are those who worry that history will repeat itself, and that disunity and internal disputes will jeopardize Jewish survival. Perhaps. However, at this point, the important lesson from Jewish history is that a small Jewish State needs the backing of a great power.
Jacob Sivak, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, is a retired professor, University of Waterloo.
The post What if the Second Temple Hadn’t Been Destroyed? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Netflix Premieres Adult Animated Comedy Series About Jewish Family
A scene from “Long Story Short.” Photo: Screenshot
Netflix premiered on Friday an adult animated comedy series from “BoJack Horseman” creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg that follows a Jewish family over the course of several decades.
“Long Story Short” revolves around Naomi Schwartz (Lisa Edelstein), Elliot Cooper (Paul Reiser), and their three children – Avi (Ben Feldman), Shira (Abbi Jacobson), and Yoshi (Max Greenfield). The series jumps between time, and viewers follow the Schwooper siblings “from childhood to adulthood and back again, chronicling their triumphs, disappointments, joys, and compromises,” according to a synopsis provided by Netflix.
The extended cast includes Nicole Byer as Shira’s partner and Angelique Cabral. Dave Franco and Michaela Dietz are recurring guest stars. The first episode starts in 1996 and focuses on Avi bringing his girlfriend home to meet his family the same weekend as Yoshi’s bar mitzvah celebration. The episode also addresses Jewish-related topics such as the laws of kosher and the Holocaust.
“I think the show in some ways is about Jewish joy, and I think a lot of Jews will enjoy having a place for the Jews, and I think a lot of antisemites might learn a thing or two,” Bob-Waksberg told Variety on Monday at the show’s premiere at the Tudum Theater in Hollywood, California.
“Long Story Short” – which is Bob-Waksberg’s fourth animated show (“BoJack Horseman,” “Undone,” and “Tuca & Bertie”) and his third with Netflix – was renewed for a second season ahead of its season one premiere. The showrunner told The Hollywood Reporter that “Long Story Short” is “absolutely the most explicitly Jewish thing by a wide margin.”
The show is already facing antisemitic criticism.
“We’ve never not had antisemitism,” he told Variety. “The harassment is already there. I don’t think there’s a Jew in Hollywood, a public, a visible person that doesn’t get constantly harassed on Instagram all day long. An article came out this morning, it was a profile of the show, and I stupidly skimmed the first few comments and they were all … just nothing I want to repeat. But it’s just a buzzkill.”
“People are going to want to talk about the greater global geopolitical issues that are happening around this show, but this show is not about that,” he added.
“Long Story Short” is also from “Samurai Jack” creator Genndy Tartakovsky and “Rick and Morty” writer Matt Roller. Bob-Waksberg is an executive producer alongside Noel Bright and Steven A. Cohen. Corey Campodonico and Alex Bulkley are co-executive producers.
Watch the trailer for “Long Story Short” below.
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Iran, European Powers Agree to Resume Nuclear, Sanctions Talks Next Week
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi speaks during a meeting with foreign ambassadors in Tehran, Iran, July 12, 2025. Photo: Hamid Forootan/Iranian Foreign Ministry/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and his French, British, and German counterparts agreed on Friday to resume talks next week on nuclear and sanctions issues, Iranian state media reported.
The three major European powers have threatened to re-activate United Nations sanctions on Iran under a “snapback” mechanism if Tehran does not return to negotiations on a deal to curb its disputed uranium enrichment program.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul confirmed talks next week and warned Iran that sanctions would snap back into effect unless it reached a verifiable and durable deal to defuse concerns about its nuclear ambitions. He reiterated that time was very short and Iran needed to engage substantively.
Iranian state media said Araqchi and the British, French, and German foreign ministers agreed during a phone call for deputy foreign ministers to continue the talks on Tuesday.
During the call, Araqchi “emphasized the legal and moral incompetence of these countries to resort to the [snapback] mechanism, and warned of the consequences of such an action,” Iranian media reported.
The European trio, along with the US, contend that Iran is using the nuclear energy program to potentially develop weapons capability in violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran says it seeks only civilian nuclear power.
The Islamic Republic suspended nuclear negotiations with the United States, which were aimed at curbing its accelerating enrichment program, after the US and Israel bombed its nuclear sites during a 12-day war in June.
Since then, inspectors for the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, have been unable to access Iran‘s nuclear installations, despite IAEA chief Rafael Grossi stating that inspections remain essential.
Iran and the three European powers last convened in Geneva on June 20, while the war was still raging, and there were few signs of progress.
Iran‘s state broadcaster said an Iranian delegation was due to travel to Vienna on Friday to meet with IAEA officials. It gave no further details.
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German Government Calls Recognition of Palestinian State ‘Counterproductive’
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a joint press conference with Finnish Prime Minister in Turku, Finland, on May 27, 2025. Photo: Lehtikuva/Roni Rekomaa via REUTERS
A German government spokesman said on Friday that Berlin has no current plans to recognize a Palestinian state because that would undermine any efforts to reach a negotiated two-state solution with Israel.
“A negotiated two-state solution remains our goal, even if it seems a long way off today … The recognition of Palestine is more likely to come at the end of such a process, and such decisions would now be rather counterproductive,” the spokesperson said during a press conference.
Countries including Australia, United Kingdom, France, and Canada have recently said they would recognize a Palestinian state under different conditions.
Israel has responded that such recognition would be a “reward” for terrorism following the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel. During the ensuing war in Gaza, Hamas has embedded its weapons and military operation centers among civilian sites, a strategy that critics have decried as employing the use of “human shields” against Israel.