As we prepare to enter #TishaBav, the saddest day of the Jewish year, I'm thinking of the utter despair of people after the destruction of both Temples-- esp for those who lived through the slow march toward the sacking of the 2nd. Roman occupation, long siege, the end. (1/8)
The moment when what one has known no longer exists, of entering a new era in which basic survival-- and the survival of a people--is not guaranteed. We know that Judaism emerged transformed from this destruction, but one could not know in the moment. (2/8)
The book of Eicha (Lamentations), read tonight (& written about the first Temple), captures the desolation and loneliness of the moment-- the city of Jerusalem sitting solitary, bereft of its people. (3/8)
Not unlike how many of us feel in this moment-- our cities and towns feel transformed, the places we love are empty of people, we see our loved ones on Zoom, when the world as we knew it is no more. It's a lonely and frightening time. (4/8)
Reflected in the fact that Eicha can be revocalized as ayeka-- where are you? (word spoken by God to Adam) & appearance of eicha in last week's Torah portion, when Moses asks how he can manage the people alone. (5/8)
In all of this loneliness, I'm moved by Midrash (Rabbinic expansion of text), which imagines God learning how to mourn with the people, imitating human mourning practices. Even while we feel alone, God is with us in mourning and despair. (6/8)
But we don't wallow in despair forever. We rebuilt Judaism from the ashes, and improbably, after so many persecutions, forced conversions, expulsions, genocides-- we're still here! And per tradition, the Messiah is to be born on Tisha B'av (look out, expecting parents!) (7/8)
So we take day to mourn what we've lost & also to build a perfected future. That's why when the intense mourning of tonight & tomorrow AM ends, many of us will take action in afternoon to bring redemption. Check out @truahrabbis (& partners) #FreeThemAll us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regist…
