Climbing Sinai

This entry is cross-posted at the JPS Blog.

Today is Tisha B’Av, the ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av, and it is considered to be the saddest and most serious day in the Jewish calendar.  Tisha B’Av was the day when it was decreed that the Jews would wander in the desert for 40 years before they could enter the Land of Israel.  In 586 BCE, on Tisha B’Av, the Babylonian army destroyed the First Temple.  In 70 CE, on the ninth of Av, the Second Temple was destroyed – an act which forever altered Judaism and almost marked the downfall of the religion.

After the destruction of the Second Temple, the Rabbis began to notice a pattern, that the month of Av – and especially the ninth day of that month – was a herald for many disastrous events to befall the Jewish people.  Both the expulsion from England in 1290 and the expulsion from Spain in 1492 occurred on Tisha B’Av.  The emptying of the Warsaw Ghetto – 9 Av, 1942.  The bombing of the JCC in Buenos Aries, in which 90 people were killed and 300 injured – 9 Av, 1994.

Of course, not every calamitous event in Jewish history has occurred during the month of Av, and many a Tisha B’Av has passed with nary a bother.  But because of the deep significance of the Temple’s destruction to the Jewish psyche, Tisha B’Av has become the representative day of mourning for all the sufferings of the Jewish people.  And when an event like the 1994 Buenos Aires bombing occurs, its sting is just a little sharper, because it happened on Tisha B’Av.

Tisha B’Av is observed with ritual mourning practices, as if mourning the passing of a loved one.  In addition to a 25-hour fast, Jewish tradition mandates refraining from wearing leather, washing one’s body, and using perfume.  Active mourning rituals include the reading of Eicha (Lamentations) and Kinot (Hebrew elegies written at different periods in Jewish history).  And while regular Torah study is discouraged (because the study of Torah is meant to be joyful), the study of Job and Jeremiah, as well as the portions of Talmud and Midrash that discuss the destruction of Jerusalem, is encouraged.

My suggestion?  If you can, set aside a little time today to do just that.  Read through the book of Lamentations, or, with a friend, read and discuss the many probing questions posed by the book of Job.  Reflect a little.  Think about humanity’s capacity for cruelty, and where that has led us over the centuries.  And think about what we can all do to offset that, and to make our world just a little bit kinder.

-Naomi

This entry is cross-posted at the JPS Blog.

After five years of determined city living, this week I’m going back to my roots: the suburbs.  That’s right.  Quiet, uncrowded streets, picket fences, and Donna Reed look-alikes everywhere!  Now, this is only a two-week stint of house (and dog and teenager)-sitting, but it’s already had a dramatic impact on my daily routine.  There’s the dog-walking and the much, much longer walk to the nearest coffee shop.  There’s also the longer morning commute – no more walking to work, or hopping on a bus.  But therein lies something truly wonderful.  In my five years of living a city life, I had almost completely forgotten something integral to my personality: I. Love. Driving.  I love it!  The freedom to go wherever I like, whenever I like – bus schedules be darned.  There’s the thrill of doing 60mph on the expressway, singing along to the radio…

… Wait.  Problem. This week isn’t just any old week.  Thursday marks what is perhaps one of the most somber days in the Jewish calendar: Tisha B’Av.  It’s a day of fasting and mourning, a day that marks not only the destruction of the First and Second Temples, but also the many other major disasters that have befallen the Jewish people.  It’s such a serious day that a tradition has arisen to extend the mourning period for the three weeks (or nine days) prior to the holiday.  For many people, that means three weeks of no weddings or parties, no new clothes… and no music.

So what’s a driver to do?  I can’t just drive in silence!  That’s when it hit me: Hey!  I work for a Jewish Publisher!  What about Jewish books – audio books?!  I can simply combine two of my favorite things – driving and Jewish learning – into one super-awesome activity!

JPS, in cooperation with the Jewish Braille Institute, has an audio Bible in the works.  In the meantime, here are some great Jewish audio book resources for you to enjoy during the Three Weeks and beyond:

● Audible.com offers about 60 Jewish-content audio books, ranging from “Maimonides and Medieval Jewish Philosophy” to “Yenta Unplugged (Excuse Me, I’m Talking).”
● ClassicSinai.com has 26 fascinating (and free!) mp3 downloads on topics like “Genesis and the Big Bang,” “The Matrix and Jewish Reality,” and “Crash Course in Jewish Holidays.”
● Want to learn about Judaism from the best the academic world has to offer?  The Teaching Company offers entire audio courses by renowned professors on subjects such as “Beginnings of Judaism,” “Jewish Civilization from Mohammad to Spinoza,” and “Jewish Intellectual History: 16th to 20th Century.”

Happy driving!
-Naomi