The Meaning of Tisha BeAv Today
by Sari
Glowing ruby red watermelon with juice oozing out of it's many pores is the only thing my parched brain can think about on Tisha BeAv, the anniversary of the destruction of both the first and the second temples. How does one remember and respect the day? It is hard to feel sad over something that happened almost two thousand years ago.
I try to remind myself of the destruction's traumatic effects. For two thousand years a wandering, persecuted people with the flames of the temple still burning in their memory would gather once a year in their grand synagogues, or their small wooden shuls, or their secret basements, or in the barracks of concentration camps. They would sit on the floor and read the scroll of "Aychah" (lamentations) in a beautiful mournful melody to the light of flickering candles, remember the cause of all their sorrow and pray to return to their land.
I understand their mourning. Yet how can I, who am so blessed to witness the "Atchalata Degeula"- the beginning of our redemption- how can I mourn over the conquest of Yehuda and the dispersion of the Jews? How can I be sad when before my very eyes the wilderness has become like Eden, and the desert like the garden of the Lord? I have never felt the absence of the temple.
In some ways, I think it is good that the temple was destroyed. Looking back, the days of the temple were no utopia. The priests and levites were often corrupt. Several high priests obtained their post through bribery. In addition, at times the worship in the temple was magic. In order to be pardoned, purified, or thank Hashem, one had to bring a sacrifice.
Rambam (Maimonides) says that the sacrificial system was a primitive, pagan form of worship that was negative from the start. However, it would have been impossible to make Israel give up such a widespread custom completely. Therefore, Hashem sought to legitimize this common form of worship by directing it away from idolatry. The Torah dictates clearly how the sacrifices are to be performed. These rules help direct the action of sacrificing toward Hashem.* Of course, the sacrifice itself is worthless without Kavana (spiritual intention and devotion). Yet during the temple period it was not always so.
The prophets spoke several times against sacrifice without Kavana: "To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to me? Says the Lord: I am sated with the burnt offerings of lambs, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of goats."-Isaiah 1:11-12
Now that the temple doesn't exist, prayer has taken the place of sacrifices. Now any person, anywhere, anytime can have a direct spiritual connection with Hashem. In my opinion, prayer offers a deeper, more spiritual and more personal way to communicate with Hashem.
No, I do not weep for the sacrifices that have been cancelled. I do not weep for the Kodesh HaKodashim (Holy of Holies) that was burnt to the ground. What then, do I weep for? I weep for the lack of unity in our people. I weep because we are so preoccupied with the differences that we fail to raise our eyes and recognize the mission we are meant to fulfill- to be a light unto the nations, to lead the way in constructing a healthy, moral world. I weep because the blind hatred that lead to the destruction of the temple still exists among the descendants of that generation, and prevents them from working together to achieve a common goal. The temple was meant to be a uniting factor. People were meant to put aside their differences and meet as brothers in the place that served to remind them of their common mission. I weep for want of such a uniting factor today.
However, will denying myself basic needs improve today's situation? Will fasting and crying unite us all and rebuild the third Beit HaMikdash? All a fast does is make me more irritable and lethargic than usual. Mourning and fasting will not do anything to change the past, and these actions alone have no power to change the future. We must not remember past tragedies just so we can feel sad for a day. We must remember them so that we can learn from the past, and be motivated to do things differently in the future. The destruction of the temple should awaken in us both a desire to mend our ways and improve on a personal level, and a desire to take action to improve society.
Were it in my power to decide how Tisha BeAv should be observed, I would designate it a day of social action. On that day we would learn about current social problems, possible solutions, and would take time for volunteering. It is easy to talk about taking action, yet we are so preoccupied with our own busy, everyday lives, that we put it off for tomorrow, thus hardly doing anything in the end. On Tisha BeAv we should take the focus off our own desire for advancement, and direct our concern towards helping society.
Should we fast on Tisha BeAv? Though it is quite bothersome, I would say yes. There are three reasons for this. The first is simply an issue of respect. I, who am only sixteen years old, do not feel I have the authority the cancel an age-old tradition that was established by people much greater than me in years and wisdom. When we fast we find that our basic needs, food and water- things that we take for granted- are suddenly gone. This is a humbling realization. We like the feeling of security that stems from the knowledge that we will never go hungry. When we fast, we realize what lowly, needy creatures we are, and how much we depend on Hashem's never-ceasing graciousness. The fast reminds us of how small and weak we really are.
I always end a fast with a certain amount of pride in the fact that I survived twenty five hours without vittles. After I've successfully withstood the challenge of going without food, I know I can overcome other challenges. The fast reminds us that despite the fact that we are small, weak creatures, we still have the ability to overcome physical cravings, to undergo changes, and to overcome life's challenges.
I will end here, in the hope that Tisha BeAv will continue to have meaning for us and for the following generations, and that soon, in our days we will all take part in building a temple of tolerance, unity, kindness and morality.
Let's start now.
Write to Sari at write@ttt.org.il
The views expressed in the articles and posts are those of the writer and not of
the Teen-To-Teen management and editorial board. To find out more about our organization or to make a contribution, please send email to Sarale at write@ttt.org.il
Support our sponsor David's Consultants RGA Ltd. All Rights reserved©, 1997-2008