I wrestle with Tisha B’av. For three weeks, beginning on the 17th of the Hebrew month of Tamuz we mourn the destruction of Jerusalem and the Holy Temples more than 2000 years ago. We mark the end of the Bar Kochba Revolt in 130 CE. We mourn the exile of Jews from England in 1290 CE and we mourn the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 CE. It is the saddest day on the Jewish calendar.
We fast. We don’t wear leather. We sit on low stools. We read the Book of Lamentations. Alas! Woe is me! Oy vey! All for things that happened a long, long time ago.
There is so much grief in this world. We need a container for it. We need to mourn. But quite frankly I don’t want to go back to animal sacrifices in centralized worship in Jerusalem. The rabbis of the Talmud, had their “Yavneh” moment, in exile in Babylonia. They re-invented Judaism. They pivoted from sacrifice to a religion of study, prayer and deeds of lovingkindness. Always with the hope that one day we would return to life as we knew it.
Our traditional liturgy preserves that hope. “Accept the prayer of Your people Israel as lovingly as it is offered. Restore worship to Your sanctuary, and may the worship of your people Israel always be acceptable to You.” (page 36 Siddur Sim Shalom) “Help us turn to You, Adonai and we shall return. Renew our lives as in days of old.” (page 154 Siddur Sim Shalom) and the Musaf service for Shabbat which prays for a return to the land and to a return of our ancestors special Shabbat sacrifices. (page 158, Siddur Sim Shalom). Here in musaf there is an alternative reading that prays for the day when there shall be no more violence in the land or destruction within our borders. How relevant is that this week as once again missiles fly over Jerusalem this Tisha B’av?
Why was the Second Temple destroyed? The rabbis of the Talmud teach because of Sinat Chinam, baseless hatred. Jew against Jew. A lack of respect. A lack of lovingkindness. A lack of love. Rav Kook, the first Chief Rabbi in Palestine and then the State of Israel taught that the antidote to Sinat Chinam is Ahavat Chinam, baseless love. To quote an old song, “What the world needs now, is love, sweet love.” Lord, we need it. NOW.
Many people, because it is in the heat of summer never even have heard of Tisha B’av, let alone observe it. My first experiences were in Israel in 1977 on a summer youth trip. It was haunting. But because we have returned to the land of Israel people only fasted until noon. At summer camp, kids may have had instructional swim but not free swim. No movies. No instrumental music.
Every year we debate whether to hold a Tisha B’av service. We did again this year, totally on Zoom. It was well attended for us. We read the five chapters of the Book of Lamentations interspersed with appropriately mournful a cappella music.
We looked at some modern poems.
https://www.ritualwell.org/ritual/sackcloth-poem-tisha-b%E2%80%99av
bclid=IwAR2IsSW6qdNSapIkFAs_V0OhRTLMwQu9t5zF2fh34mWsyCSVZ2eC-VtNtAY
Eicha, a Lament for the Earth by Rabbi Tamara Cohen
We read some of Betsey Stone’s new book, Refua Shlema.
And we had a discussion. If, like the rabbis of old, we are on the cusp of something new coming out of this pandemic, what is it that you want from your community? What will Judaism look like for our children and grandchildren. How do we survive?
And how do we get there?
Then I taught about STAR goals, Thie are goals that are “specific, truly doable, active and relevant.” We added that they needed to be respectful as well.
The discussion was rich.
People mourned the loss of innocence and trust. Maybe before the pandemic we were too trusting and naïve. We can’t take everything for granted or assume that people share the same values. We need to nurture each other and take care of each other and not just look for someone to blame. We need to find ways to help everyone. We need to realize that many are stretched to the limits and that our health care system is breaking. We were a society of abundance and now we are seeing that there are shortages—not just in health care but with workers across the board. We need more patience. We need more compassion and less self-centeredness. We need to work for the common good.
This did not get me where I was trying to go in terms of our own unique community but it was meaningful for the people who participated.
There is plenty to mourn on this Tisha B’av. My STAR goal was to write to our city councilors about the possible permanent closing of a city pool. Ask me what that has to do with Tisha B’av and I will be happy to tell you. I have done that writing already. What will you do TODAY to make the world a better place?
Although many traditional Jews do not read Pirka Avot on Tisha B’av, this quote is apt. “Ours is not to finish the task, neither are we free to ignore it.” Find one thing to do. Something you are passionate about. And do it.
I wanted people to leave with a sense of hope. That the world can be better. We ended with Rabbi Menachem Creditor’s Olam Chesed Yibeneh. I must build this world with love.
I always learn something new when I read commentary from the Rabbi. It is so challenging to remain optimist about the world. The Sunday morning shows are filled with video of vile and hateful rhetoric from the very people who have pledged to do the people’s work. I am very concerned about this Christian Nationalist movement taking place in the United States. We’ve seen this ” movie” before.
Then I read the Rabbi, and I am reminded of ways to make the world a better place. I can do that.