Tisha B'Av: Are we still victims

There's a holy day coming this Monday evening which you may have heard of.

Some of your "observant" friends and relatives may be fasting.

Here at CTI, at sundown, we will sit in the dark, flashlights in hand, and read the ancient Book of Lamentations.  Yet aside from the historical value of this ancient and moving text, more and more, every year I ask myself "why?"

And at the end of this column, I'm going to ask you to do the same.

The holy day which begins on Monday evening is Tisha B'Av, the ninth day of the eleventh Jewish month.  In Israel, Av is a hot, stifling month, where little grows, and an entire region swelters under an oppressive dry heat.

The ninth day of Av also marks the day when both Jerusalem Temples were destroyed - the first by the Babylonians in 586 BCE, and the other by the Romans in 70 CE.  What remains of that Temple is a retaining wall which is known today as the Kotel. Throughout history many other tragic events occurred on that day. 

• The First Crusade officially began in 1096 killing 10,000 Jews in its first month.
• The Jews were expelled from England on that day in 1290.
• The Jews were expelled from France in 1306.
• The Jews were expelled from Spain in 1492.
• In 1941, Heinrich Himmler formally received approval from the Nazi Party for "The Final Solution."
• In 1942, the mass deportation began of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto.

And the list goes on.

Yet for many contemporary Jews, the question remains - what is the purpose, or more exactly, what message does Tisha B'Av convey?

One of my fondest memories of Tisha B'Av dates back to 2008 when along with hundreds of colleagues, friends and Jerusalem residents I stood at a viewpoint overlooking the ancient city and listened to the reading of the Book of Lamentations.  It brought the text to life.

But later, as the group disbursed, I wandered into the heart of Jerusalem.  Although the mood of the city was somewhat somber, I passed by cafes bustling with young people engaged in lively conversation.

Many of Jerusalem's 800,000 residents were walking the streets; couples holding hands, teenagers laughing.  I saw a Jerusalem connected with the rest of humanity.

In 2007, the $150 million Mamilla Mall opened in Jerusalem.  Care to buy a Rolex watch, designer clothes or a Mac computer?  Join the crowds shopping in this bustling place of commerce.

At night, Jerusalem discos attract youth from around the world.  There are concerts in the main parks, first class restaurants, and perhaps most importantly, people from all religions and backgrounds living, visiting and worshiping in what is today one of the world's most relevant and exciting cities.

Yet, this Monday night we will sit.  We will remember the past, as we should.  Yet, many will add on to this remembrance a secondary message; that even today, many in the world hate Jews and that Arab extremists are waiting in the wings to kill us. And this I believe contributes to a dangerous message; that Jewish people are still victims.

Some will point to the destruction of the ancient temples as evidence.  They will summon memories of Jewish expulsions.  They will continue to hide under their beds and offer the sour opinion that the world is still out "out to get us."

Yet, I prefer to point to Jerusalem, and for that matter to Tel Aviv, and towards the cluster of high tech companies located in an area to the north known as Silicon Wadi and say, "Israel has been rebuilt beyond anyone's dreams."

Take a look at your cell phone.  Chances are there is a component which was either made or conceived in Israel.  There is hardly a computer on the planet which does not have a module which was not developed in Israel.  So many of the world's medical breakthroughs originated in Israel.

Here in the United States, Jewish people walk the streets freely.   We are involved in commerce, in the arts, within the heart of political life, within journalism, equal rights movements, education, and all other aspects of a progressive society.

So, I ask myself, why should I be praying and fasting? For as much as we bemoan the destruction of the Temples and many other catastrophes which occurred on Tisha B'Av, the Jewish people have endured similar events on virtually every other day of the calendar.

So, on Tisha B'Av, I will grieve for those perished.  I am connected to them.  But I will also thank God for the privilege of living in this precious time in Jewish history.

We are victims no more. Tevya is gone.  Oppression in the villages of Poland and Russia has ended.  And the Holocaust, however embedded in our souls, is in our past and not in our future.

On Monday night, we will gather to remember.  But perhaps most important, we will pause to appreciate the present and the future.

I don't claim that Israel nor world Jewry is free of challenges, but I do believe that if we continue to act like victims - to claim that we are universally hated, then we will advance a self defeating prophesy.

Let us mark Tisha B'Av with reverence.  Let us study the ancient message that these events occurred because we disobeyed God.  

But let us also remember the sacred words from the last pages of the Torah.  U'Becharta B'Chayim.  Choose life.

Rabbi Yehudah Ha'Nasi suggested eighteen hundred years ago that Tisha B'Av should be abolished, or at least softened.  Maimonides favored easing some of its restrictions.

Yet, during the past thousand years, Tisha B'Av has become more popular within certain segments of Jewry. It supports a common belief that Jews will be victimized until the end of time.

But I see if differently.  We are victims no more.

Jerusalem is rebuilt.  It is alive and thriving.  A miracle has occurred in our lifetime.

Yes, Tisha B'Av is a time to remember.

But let us be careful not to mourn the future.

For as sure as Jerusalem is alive, so are we.  And our future will be determined by how we choose life.

How do you see it?

How does Tisha B'Av contribute today to our lives, and to the future of the Jewish people?

Should we delete it, or is there a lesson to be learned?

Shabbat shalom, v'kol tuv (with all goodness)

Rabbi Irwin Huberman