Thinking about the upcoming observance of Tisha b’Av, I was struck by a bit of irony. (At least, I think it’s irony, though I’ve been a little paranoid ever since I heard a song mocking Alanis Morissette’s use of the word “ironic.” I comfort myself that I’m unlikely to make it so big that people

1. What is Tisha b’Av? Tisha b’Av – the ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av – is the saddest day in the Jewish calendar. It commemorates a number of tragedies that occurred on that date, most notably the destruction of both Temples, some five centuries apart. 2. Why did so many tragedies occur

Tisha B’Av is not everyone’s favorite day, but it is one of mine- not because it is enjoyable, but because of what it represents. I like Tisha B’Av because of what it says to me about Jews- that we are a people that remembers and knows its past leads to a future. There are so

Here are some quick tips to make your fast a bit more bearable: 1. The day before the fast begins, take frequent drinks of water. 2. Eat a balanced meal before the fast. Proteins and fats are absorbed more slowly than sugars and provide the necessary energy, but you should balance your meal with 55% complex carbohydrates,

Shavel had been the third most populous city in Lithuania–home to more than 14,000 Jews. Only 500 survived the Shoah.

The Rabbi concluded that we should no longer be fasting as the redemption is upon us. I think otherwise.

The customs we observe during the 3 weeks are strikingly similar to those of a mourner…but in reverse.

In retrospect, a lot has been said and written about enhancing the Tisha B’Av experience. For many of us the “loss” of our holy places is very abstract; we know that historically we’ve suffered national catastrophes, but feeling it on a personal level is another matter. For that reason, and for many years running, the

Grief is a fundamentally individual, transformative emotion. What can it mean to speak about “national grief, or national mourning”? Is there any calamity which a nation suffers that so alters its fundamental nature as to be truly analogous to the existential crisis the death of a loved one brings to an individual? Certainly, nations have

The following is a list of the major events leading up to the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem. First Temple 3316: Yehoyakim ben Yoshiyahu becomes King of Judea (II Kings 23:36) 3320: Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon conquers Judea. He removes part of the Temple’s holy vessels and children of the royal