Tisha B'Av 5774: Very sad, but more hopeful than ever

Tonight begins the fast of Tisha B'Av, the ninth day of the month of Av.  In addition to the destruction of the two Temples in Jerusalem, many other catastrophes to the Jewish people occurred on Tisha B'Av; they are detailed elsewhere, and, quite frankly, too many in number to be pure coincidence.  Tisha B'Av is a very sad and mournful day.

Make no mistake about it:  We Jewish people now live in very dangerous times.  Our active and blatant enemies now attack us, in the face of condonation and cheering by our passive enemies.

Yet, I somehow sense a reason for hope.  Many factions of our people, factions traditionally antagonistic towards one another, have cooled down the hostilities of late.  This is not to say that there has been perfect unity, not by any means.  But still, there has been a palpable cessation in hostilities in certain quarters; in order to not pour gasoline on the embers I shall not now name particulars.  And if we come together, then nobody can destroy us.

Yes, there is increased hazard from our enemies.  And, given some activities in which I am now involved, in which I contemplate involvement in the near future, and given some travel plans for the foreseeable future, I may well take some personal hits from the violence against Jews.  But even if I personally am a victim, I just am more optimistic than ever before that the Jewish people will not only survive, but succeed and flourish

Despite the efforts of so many out there, we are not going to go away.

Am Israel Chai!

 

A Window into Prayer

My calendar schedule has suddenly become robust. There's a meeting tomorrow, I'm due in court soon, and someone wants to do lunch with me to discuss a possible gig. In another week-and-a-half, there seems to be an excursion to our Nation's Capital in my future -- I am now attempting to work in so that I can get some personal in along with the business. Accordingly, the next posting after this may be tomorrow, or in a month, or something in between.

We are now also in the first nine days of the month of Av, which have certain restrictions which my household observes. This includes no swimming (I've been doing bicycling and running for my workouts) and we don't eat meat (except for Shabbat), so my wife is now having fun with the various vegetarian and vegan recipes. Last night she made some Ma-Po Tofu, which was delicious. Not that I plan to become strictly vegetarian any time soon, but a vegetarian or vegan diet need not be dull, drab or boring.

As mentioned or alluded to in various prior postings, the insular religious Jewish community is now faced with several crises and issues, all of which somehow, directly or indirectly, tie in to the cultural effects of modern technology and communication.

Information can now be conveyed more quickly and efficiently. This has implications for politics, business and social relationships. America's economic greatness is due, in no small part, to the healthy independent press dating back to Colonial times. And I also hasten to note that the fall of the former Soviet Union had much to do with the Politburo's loss of its ability to completely control the flow of information.

Modern technology has made information far more difficult to control than in yesteryear. This has implications for the insularity which many of these social groups within the religious Jewish community have long strived to maintain. And it presents some significant cultural issues in the way the leadership of these insular groups conduct themselves. They nominally ban the use of the Internet (but make so many exceptions that the "ban" is meaningless).

The Agudath Israel of America, the leading insular community Rabbis, their social welfare organizations, their Yeshivas -- all are interconnected (though not without their differences and factions). One social welfare organization for the insular religious Jewish community in Israel is Kupat Ha'Ir, which has an American (and Canadian, for that matter) support group. They aid widows, orphans, and others in impecunious situations. I myself have occasion, from time to time, to modestly contribute to Kupat Ha'Ir.

The typical Kupat Ha'Ir solicitation brochure (from the American Friends of Kupat Ha'Ir) is usually received in multiplicate in our household, what with the various mailing lists upon which my my wife and I have, through not affirmative wishes of our own, had our names inscribed, and also as blow-ins to the various Jewish newspapers to which we subscribe. They all have the same themes: (A) G-d helps those who contribute to Kupat Ha'Ir; and (B) the great sages and Rabbis and students of Torah will beseech G-d in their prayers to confer blessings upon those who contribute to Kupat Ha'Ir (including, frequently, healing for the sick and infirm).

[For the record, I myself pray daily for the healing and recovery of various sick individuals, as does my wife, who is a physician. Taking it a step further, I have had occasion to see some of those individuals recover, and yes, I do believe that my prayers play a role in that recovery. But everyone, including and especially the physicians, must do their part; prayer, while necessary, is no substitute for skillful medical practice.].

Consistent with usual patterns and practices, the latest Kupat Ha'Ir solicitation promises contributors that, in organized shifts, various Rabbis and Torah scholars will recite the Book of Psalms ("T'hillim" in Hebrew) at the Western Wall (the "Kotel") in Jerusalem for 40 days and nights, for a total of 516 cycles culminating with the end of Yom Kippur, and that those who contribute will have their names specifically mentioned 516 times (never mind the significance of the number 516).

I certainly endorse the project, and will likely throw a few of my own dollars at it.

Against that verbose background, I note that the leatest solicitation piece from Kupat Ha'Ir contains a few paragraphs under the subheading "Complete Transparency," which tells the prospective contributor of all the meticulous preparations and precautions instituted by Kupat Ha'Ir in the project to ensure that everyone's name is included, spelled correctly, and spoken by someone who is concentrating wholeheartedly on his prayers. The solicitation brochure says, "Everything is transparent; there are no secrets and no loopholes."

For centuries, the Rabbis have operated covertly, and kept their counsel on even the most minute matters. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but trying to play both sides against the middle can backfire big time (as it seems to have with the Agudath Israel and its political posturing in the New York City election contests). Transparency is not part of the culture of these insular religious communities and their leaders. But now, they speak of "transparency" (and "Complete Transparency" at that).

[It is also noted that the word "transparency" is frequently bandied about in terms of the regulation of securities, tax-exempt organizations, and government.].

Praying at the Kotel is a very moving experience, and, as emotionally-laded as my first Kotel experience thirty-something years ago was, my awe, in many respects, increases each time I return. You just know that G-d is watching you when you go to the Kotel.

But nowadays, it is not just G-d who watches you. The Aish HaTorah Yeshiva, located next to the Kotel plaza, has a camera trained on the Kotel and now, effectively, the whole world can see you there!

Transparency at the Kotel is already a fait accompli. The whole world can see you there!

And so, the Kupat Ha'Ir has implicitly conceded that it not only fears G-d, but also fears the scrutiny of mortal human beings! Whether and when they begin to conduct their affairs with true transparency remains to be seen.

Tisha B'Av 5769

Today's date per the Hebrew calendar is 9 Av 5769. The 9th day of Av (Tisha B'Av in Hebrew) commemorates the destruction of both the First Temple and the Second Temple in the Holy City of Jerusalem. Other calamities, large and small, have occurred to the Jewish people on the 9th of Av. Accordingly, it is a very sad day. I have been fasting since last evening, and will not break the fast until after sunset tonight.

From the 1st day of the month of Av, it has been no meat or wine (except Shabbat). The no wine part does not particularly affect me, inasmuch as my preferred beverage is beer, which IS permissible, and which I usually have with dinner unless I plan to drive somewhere afterward. As much as I like to eat meat, the no meat part has not particularly been difficult for me. I do well with fish or yogurt (and, when I travel to locales without much in the way of kosher restaurants, subsist quite well with such foods).

For a while I was going beyond vegetarian and into vegan (to oversimplify, the difference between a vegetarian and a vegan is that vegans don't eat fish or animal products such as milk, while some vegetarians do). For the first time in a number of years, I actually cooked some tempeh (though I ended up with a slight agita afterwards) and, all told, did without even the yogurt or eggs for a few days (N.B. I usually put tofu into my salad at least 6 days out of 7 anyway). The tempeh, tofu, nuts, fruits, and TVP and veggies did me fine. Polly over at Veggywood would be proud of me.

[Yes, I know that Polly leans quite far towards the Left. But at least she understands that veganism and vegetarianism are not for everyone, and does not attempt to impose her views on the matter upon the rest of us. And while she thinks that PETA is basically a good organization, she does admit that they wax extreme from time to time. It is reassuring that there are some rational animal rights activists out there. Having encountered plenty of spoiled rotten, irresponsible, narcissistic, far far leftist and irrational brats from Beverly Hills, Hollywood, The Hamptons, Westchester, the Main Line, Greenwich, Monte Carlo and other locales where the glitterati dwell and propagate, oblivious to the realities of the world, I have to respect Polly for her sincerity and for her grasp of reality. If her Weltanschauung differs from mine, then so be it. Maybe the next time she's back East we can do lunch or dinner at a kosher vegan dining establishment (and no, I'm not trying to score -- Twenty-something years ago I serendipitously scored with a woman, and the two of us are still playing that one out, big time, through thick and thin.).].

I, of course, did not schedule any professional activity for today. Not good to work on an empty stomach, especially when others, such as clients, depend upon your sound functioning. And, of course, my disposition is not at its best, so I have avoided major encounters with others (which is just as well, because one is not really supposed to greet others on Tisha B'Av). But who was I kidding when I thought that I might get some productive paperwork done today? It's almost 7:00 PM and I have accomplished precious little, except for a few much-need additional hours of sleep.

Oh, well! Maybe that's the way it should be. After all, I should be bothered by the destruction of the Holy Temple, and the Holy City of Jerusalem. I am adversely affected by the memory of the Holy City's destruction, then my heart aches over it. And those who mourn the destruction of the Holy City of Jerusalem will, one day, rejoice when it is rebuilt.

Tisha B'Av

It is after sundown, and accordingly, by the Hebrew Calendar it is the 9th day of the month of Av (Tisha B'Av in Hebrew), the day both the First and the Second Temples were destroyed. I, of course, will be fasting until tomorrow evening, which wouldn't be quite so bad, except that in a few hours I will be traveling out of town on an empty stomach. Fortunately, the excursion will be via train, so at least I will not be driving.

But those who mourn the destruction of the Holy City of Jerusalem will, likewise, share in the great joy when the Temple is rebuilt. Accordingly, many synagogues (my own included) are hosting study sessions, seminars, and the like about what the destruction of the Temple means, and how and why we can hasten its rebuilding by returning to our faith.

Niels Bohr reportedly said, regarding the practice of nailing horseshoes over doorways to ensure good luck, that it works whether you believe in them or not. Similarly, for those of you who doubt the power of prayer, fasting and repentance, consider that the various Muslim groups are intimidated by such study programs. If it rankles them, that is proof positive that such study programs are productive.

May you all have an easy fast, and may we see the rebuilding of Jerusalem, speedily in our day!