In less than a year, after the following Tishrei holidays, the National Library will move to its new and elegant residence in Kiryat HaLeum, at the foot of the Knesset and next to the Israel Museum.
This will be the culmination of a process of renewal that the institution has been going through for a decade - physically and program-wise.
The move was seen as a historic move, the most significant since the library's inception in 1892.
Currently, the celebration is in doubt.
What's more, it could become a farce.
With Shai Nitzan's dubious appointment as rector of the library - after an even more dubious process, as the necessity of the new position is unclear - and with David Bloomberg's resignation this week as head of the institution's board, the shadow of the National Library in recent months may turn out to be a double-edged sword.
The National Library is a state and national treasure, and there is a law about it - a rather rare matter.
It feeds on a lot of public money.
It is not a private business, nor is it a business of the State of Israel alone;
The library brings together important collections concerning the history of the Jewish people, and is without a doubt one of the only cultural institutions in Israel whose role goes far beyond the borders of the state.
David Bloomberg, Photo: Yoav Ari Dodkevitz
The spirit of the National Library staff - dozens of researchers, librarians and dedicated and professional content people - is dwindling these days.
In the corridors the workers, one in front of his friend, wonder why the library should have stepped on this mine.
These are book and text people whose library is their whole world and is down to warm.
These are not familiar or active figures who will come out as a public buffer against management or the board of directors.
But the spirit of mourning is already wandering on, outside the walls of the building in Givat Ram.
"Israel Today" has learned that donors from the National Library have expressed concern that the institution has fallen into a controversial position in the public discourse in Israel, and that the consensus around the library has been damaged.
If those donors stop or reduce their donations - it will be a fatal blow to the library.
40 percent of the total budget of the National Library (which stands at about NIS 100 million a year) comes from donations.
The earthquake that the library is experiencing these days, centered on Bloomberg's resignation - including after publications regarding the silence agreement he signed with an employee who allegedly sexually harassed her - is not currently affecting board members and the board.
They broadcast business as usual, and in the notice to employees nothing was written about the reasons that caused the crisis.
Members of the library board - all academics and intellectuals - fill their mouths with water in the face of the chairman's reason for resignation. The board, it should be remembered, is supposed to safeguard the public interest in the library. It does not do so, to say the least.
In order for the National Library to arrive at the inauguration of the new Mishkan next fall when it is unharmed and bruised, and in order to regain its consensual status, its leaders must make difficult and quick decisions.
Dissolution of the current board of directors, formation of a new board of directors and examination of the appointment of Shai Nitzan in light of purely professional criteria - these are the first necessary steps.
Were we wrong?
Fixed!
If you found an error in the article, we'll be happy for you to share it with us