Tisha B’Av: Can Jews mourn destruction while witnessing national rebirth?

The upcoming observance of Tisha B'Av, a day of Jewish mourning, arrives at a particularly complex juncture. The author, Moshe Taragin, grapples with the perennial challenge of how to authentically mourn historical destruction while living through a period of significant Jewish national rebirth and renewal.

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Mourning Tisha B’Av in the era of the State of Israel is deeply complex. Genuine mourning must be internal rather than performative.

Taragin highlights the internal conflict of mourning Tisha B'Av in the era of the State of Israel. While traditional rituals like reciting kinot and observing the day's customs are important, he stresses that genuine mourning requires a deeper internal sense of loss. This is especially difficult when witnessing the remarkable revival of Jewish sovereignty, the return to the land, and the realization of generations-old dreams, even amidst ongoing war and uncertainty.

The article delves into the liturgical debate surrounding the prayer "Nachem," which describes Jerusalem as desolate and bereft of its children. Taragin notes that this description starkly contrasts with modern Jerusalem, now a flourishing city with a vibrant real estate market reflecting a return of its people. This discrepancy has led some to propose liturgical changes, while others advocate for maintaining the traditional wording.

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How, then, do we mourn the destruction of the Temple while also witnessing the unfolding of Jewish redemption?

While acknowledging the profound impact of recent tragedies like October 7 and the subsequent war, Taragin cautions against focusing solely on these immediate events. He argues that such a narrow focus risks reducing Tisha B'Av's millennia-spanning significance to the pain of a single generation. Instead, he suggests that the day should serve as an opportunity to revisit the long arc of Jewish history, reflect on the collective mission, and contemplate the enduring price of the Jewish journey.

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As devastating as those events have been, they cannot exhaust the meaning of Tisha B’Av. Doing so risks reducing a day that spans thousands of years of Jewish history to the pain of a single generation.