The Obligation to Perform Keriah, When Seeing the Cities of Yehudah, Yerushalayim, and the Makom HaMikdosh
The Gemara (Mo’ed Katan 26a) states: Someone who rends his clothes because of the passing of his father, mother, his rebbe who taught him Torah, the king of Klal Yisroel, the head of the Beis Din or upon hearing other bad tidings — including hearing someone curse Hashem or he observed a sefer Torah being burned or he saw the destroyed cities of Yehudah, the Beis HaMikdosh, or Yerushalayim — may not reweave the garment afterward to mend it.
From this Gemara, the Rishonim and poskim derive the obligation to tear one’s garments upon seeing the destroyed cities of Yehudah, Yerushalayim or the Beis Hamikdosh (Rambam, Hilchos Ta’anis 5:16; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 561). As is evident from the Gemara and the Rambam, the point of tearing one’s garments over the calamity of the destruction is to express one’s sorrow over these tragic events.
The Shulchan Aruch (561:1,2) rules:הרואה ערי יהודה בחורבנן אומר "ערי קדשך היו מדבר" וקורע , הרואה את ירושלים בחרבנה אומר "ציון היתה מדבר שממה" וקורע , וכשרואה בית המקדש אומר "בית קדשנו ותפארתנו אשר הללוך בו אבותינו היתה לשרפת אש וכל מחמדינו היה לחרבה " וקורע – “One who sees the cities of Yehudah in their destructed state should say “our Holy Cities have become a desert” and tear his garment. One who sees Yerushalayim in her destruction, says “Tzion is a desert, a desolation” and tears his garment. And when one see the Beis HaMikdash he says "Our holy Temple, our pride, Where our fathers praised You, has been consumed by fire: And all that was dear to us is ruined”, and he tears his garment.” (The Shu”t Be’er Moshe Vol. 7, pg. 311 brings from Geonei Eretz Yisroel, that nowadays we don’t need to say these pasukim, however, tzorich iyun as to why not.)
The Opinion of the Poskim That We Don’t Perform Keriah on the Cities of Yehudah Nowadays
Practically nowadays, the custom is not to perform keriah upon seeing the cities of Yehudah, as is clear from the sefer Eretz Yisroel (R’ Yechiel Michal Tukachintsky, siman 22:1). The reason being: We don’t know exactly where the borders of these cities are today, and even the cities that are known today as the “cites of Yehudah” – it’s not clear if these are in the correct place. Furthermore, nowadays, we enter Yerushalayim from the Western side, and not the Southern side, and we don’t see the cities of Yehudah before we see the cities of Yerushalayim, and once keriah was already performed when seeing Yerushalayim, there is no need to perform keriah a second time on the cities of Yehudah (for a more lengthy discussion on this, see Mishnas Ya’avatz, Orach Chaim 48). The Igros Moshe (Orach Chaim, 4:70, s.k. 11) writes: Since nowadays the cities of Yehudah are under the control of Jewish authorities and not non-Jewish ones, there is no need to perform keriah.
Dispute Amongst the Poskim, If Keriah Is Performed Upon Seeing Yerushalayim Today
The more recent poskim dispute whether seeing Yerushalayim nowadays, when the city is, Boruch Hashem, rebuilt with a large Jewish population, still requires one to perform keriah. Some contend that since today there is a sizable Jewish population in Yerushalayim, one does not need to tear keriah when seeing the city (Shu”t Igros Moshe, Orach Chaim 5:37). Whereas others contend that, since there are many houses belonging to various nations of the world, and graves of non-Jews, and we are unable to remove them, Yerushalayim is still considered to be in a desolate state (Shu”t Minchas Shlomah, 1:73, pg. 437).
In Shu”t Shevet HaLevi (7:78) R’ Wosner writes: “As long as Yerushalayim is not being run by Jews who keep Torah and mitzvos, it is considered in a destroyed state, as in the end of the day: עיר האלוקים מושפלת עד שאול תחתיה – the city of G-d, is being degraded.”
In Orchos Rabbeinu (Vol. 1, pg. 318) they bring that the Steipler said in the name of R’ Dovid Yungreis zt”l: שהאמריקאים שולטים ועל פיהם ישק ה הכל , ואין זה נחשב שישראל שולטים בכדי לפטור מקריעה - “The Americans are in charge, and everything takes place through their word, therefore, it’s not considered that the Jews are in control, and it’s not enough to exempt from performing keriah.”
The above makes a big practical difference, regarding whether one must perform keriah when seeing the Old City. Although some say one should perform keriah twice, once when seeing the Old City, and a second time when seeing the Makom HaMikdosh, however, some say performing keriah once when seeing the Makom HaMikdosh is enough, and if one passed through the Old City without performing keriah, he should have intention when performing keriah by the Kosel HaMaravi that it is going on both. The Steipler said that perhaps the din of tearing twice – on Yerushalayim and the Makom HaMikdosh, is only lechatchilah, and perhaps it is permissible to wait until arriving by the Kosel HaMaravi and then one can perform keriah one time for both Yerushalayim and the Makom HaMikdosh. However, the Steipler himself, would avoid looking at the Old City, and would only look when he was by the Kosel HaMaravi, and then he performed keriah once, with a berachah (Orchos Rabbeinu Vol. 1, pg. 320, and Vol. 2, pg. 153).
