If I forget thee O’Jerusalem
Our Next Jewish Holiday: Tisha B’Av
As you read these words thirty-four TBT members will be winging our way to Israel, as part of our TBT 30th anniversary celebration. While a few of us are frequent visitors, for most of our group, this journey is a long awaited pilgrimage; the first sacred journey home to Jerusalem and Eretz Yisrael. What wonders and heart-opening opportunities await!
Excerpt from What’s in It for Me? Finding Ourselves in Biblical Narratives, S.L.Fuchs The Ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av, Tisha B’Av is a day when traditional Jews fast in memory of the magnificent Temples of Jerusalem which were each destroyed in their turn first by the Babylonians in 586 BCE and then again by the Romans in 70 CE. The day also is a solemn one in memory of other historical tragedies associated with that date. For example, it is said that the beginning of the first Crusade in 1095, a time of persecution and slaughter of the Jews of Europe and in 1290 the expulsion of Jews from England both took place on that date. Tisha B’Av also coincides with the expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492 and the outbreak of World War I in 1914. The meaning of this day of tragedies does not rank high in the consciousness of most Reform Jews, and that raises the question of what might we make of Tisha B’Av today.
Our journey will take us to the Western Wall, where Kaitlin Otto will be called to Torah as a Bat Mitzvah; we will share in a mitzvah project feeding the poor and down trodden in memory of Scott Monat z”l, and participate in the dedication of a beautiful new garden at Lotem. We will celebrate Shabbat in two different environments; first with the well-established Reform community of Kol HaNeshmah and later with a newly created secular kibbutz. Of course we will climb Masada, float in the Dead Sea and explore the artist colony of Tzfat. This June marks the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem following the Six-Day War. What a profound opportunity for reflection and dreaming forward.
All of these events were occasions of death and suffering, and sorrow is appropriate. Certainly all the other historical tragedies associated with that date are important to remember too.
The anticipation of it all brings to mind one of the poems found in our siddur, Mishkan Tefilah, To Jerusalem, by the Yiddish poet Yitzhak Yasinowitz
On the other hand, the centrality of the Temple in Jewish life ended abruptly with its final destruction and there seems to be little merit in reviving its traditions anew. Much of the Temple’s centrality revolved around its role as a place for animal sacrifice as a sign of repentance, thanksgiving or celebration. After the destruction and dispersion, though, the Jewish people found other ways to worship and built them around their synagogues and homes. Rabbis, teachers, rose up from the community instead of priests and much of this has served us well as we wandered through the world.
One does not travel to Jerusalem, one returns one ascends the road taken by generations the path of longing on the way to redemption. One brings rucksacks Stuffed with memories To each mountain And each hill. In the cobbled white alleyways One offers a blessing For memories of the past Which have been renewed. One does not travel to Jerusalem One returns.
While a tragedy of the time, the destruction of the Temple liberated Judaism to become what we treasure today, a religion based on the study of Torah, of prayer and of acts of kindness and compassion: a religion and a way of life that reaches deeply into everything we do. The very vibrancy and strength of the Jewish people over the centuries attests to the wisdom on what we have become and not what we once were. It may sound odd, but in that sense Tisha B’Av, in the age of a renewed Jewish Nation in Israel, can be seen as both an occasion of hope and optimism as well as one of remembrance and sorrow.
As we all return to that place of our dreams, I hope that you will keep good thoughts for us all, for a safe and deeply meaningful journey.
It is left to us to reconcile the remembrance of genuine tragedy with the possibilities for the growth and development of the Judaism that has been passed down to us. A Judaism we can all access and immerse ourselves in while we absorb the lessons our people gleaned over the centuries of wandering and before our return: that each of us should use our individual talents in our own way to make the world a better place.
Follow us on the TBT Facebook page for pictures, and reflections along our way. Finally, while we are celebrating in Israel, for those of you here in Atlanta who wish to participate in a special commemorative event marking the 50th anniversary of the Six-Day War, a powerful moment in Israel’s history, the Atlanta chapter of Friends of the IDF will be holding a ceremony on Monday, June 12 at The Temple, 1589 Peachtree Street. To register, or for more information, call 678-250-9030 or http://fidfse.wixsite.com/ sixdaywar/registration
Tisha B’Av begins on Monday, July 31st. This year, Congregation Etz Chaim and Temple Beth Tikvah will come together for a Tisha B’Av commemoration and learning evening: Monday, July 31st at 8 pm at TBT
L’hitraot!
(see page 3 for more info)
Rabbi Shuval-Weiner
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