Al Naharot Babel

Al Naharot Babel,
Sham yashavnu, V'gam B'Chinu
V'Zochreinu Et Tzion

On the Rivers of Babylon
There we sat, and there we cried
And we remembered Zion

As I learn more about Tisha B'av, I feel a lot of conflict with the commemoration, and what it represents. For those of you who do not know much about the Holiday, I urge you to learn more- http://www.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/Jewish_Holidays/Tisha_BAv.shtml , http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tisha_B. The Reform Movement does not officially recognize the commemoration of Tisha B'av, as it is the mourning of the destruction of the Second Temple- and We as a movement do not Mourn that destruction. Interestingly, the "Mishkan T'filah", the Reform Movement's new prayer book, does not include any prayers or readings for Tisha B'av. But that does not mean that people in the Reform Movement do not recognize this day as an important one in our people's history. I have recently begun to understand Tisha B'av in a new and more personal way. First of all: for me, fasting is not always about mourning, or recreating the experiencce of death, or causing myself pain. Instead, it is a way for me to heighten my awareness of a certain situation or subject. By fasting, I take away the distraction of food, and allow myself to focus on a higher level. On Tisha B'av, I do not mourn the destruction of the Second Temple. I do not desire for the Third Temple to be built- and not just because it would put me out of a job :) On Tisha B'av I remember the numberless acts of Baseless Hatred in our history. Historically, the Rabbis saw Baseless Hatred (sinat chinam in Hebrew) as the reason for the destruction of the Temple. Baseless Hatred is a difficult concept, but very basically speaking is hatred or pre-judgment with no reason. The destruction of the Temple, the Holocaust, the Modern Day anti-semitism. I also recognize the acts of Baseless Hatred against other peoples: Genocide, War, Harmful Dictators, and so much more.

For the last two years, I have been in Jerusalem on Tisha B'av. Last year, while sitting on the Tayyelet with my Birthright group, it was difficult for me to mourn the destruction of Jerusalem, while I looked out on the lights and heard the noise of the thriving modern city of Jerusalem. This year, I had a similar reaction. There is no better way to see the strength of the Jewish people, than to see thousands gathering together to commemorate the times when people have tried to destroy us. We gathered at HUC for a special service. Josh Breitzer, an HUC Cantorial student and one of our summer interns, brought students together to sing and play music during the service. It was a very non-traditional yet absolutely beautiful way to commemorate the day. We had students singing the mournful songs of Tisha B'av, chanting from Eicha-the book of Lamentations, and playing songs remembering Zion and Old Jerusalem. All the while, we were watching the sun set on the remnants of the Old City of Jerusalem and the Tower of David, and seeing the golden glow of the Modern walls of Jerusalem. It was quite the site to behold.

After services, Rabbi David Wilfond took us on an educational walk to the Old City, ending at the Kotel. We stopped once again at the same spot that he took us to during Orientation. Har Tzion. Mount Zion. We sat and learned with Rabbi Wilfond, and he taught us a new Niggun with the words of "Al Nahalot Babel". I always get very excited (nerd alert) when we are singing niggunim and studying texts about the places where we are actually sitting, and this instance was no different. I took a short video of our group singing- the lighting was very bad but you can still hear it and it was a very moving experience which I hope is captured on film. The wall that you see to the left is one of the outside walls of the Old City. Behind me was the Jaffa Gate, an entrance to the Old City. We are about a 5 minute walk to the Kotel itself.

I would like to say that once we got to the Kotel it was a very meaningful and life-changing experience. Some of you may know that I have some issues with the Kotel (I won't post my opinions on the blog quite yet, but maybe another day) and I tried very hard to go into this evening with an open mind. But as I stood in the very long security line to enter the Women's section, I started growing more and more frustrated. We finally entered the Kotel plaza, which was filled with thousands and thousands of Jews commemorating Tisha B'av. Before arriving, Gingy had told us that usually there are groups of people gathering and singing songs from their traditions and chanting Eicha with different styles. I was looking forward to seeing and hearing that. However, what I did not realize that "people" do not do that. Men do that. Instead, we were approached on countless occasions by the "modest police" commenting on our dress (fyi we were all decked out in head to toe frum attire) and also asking the men who were standing near us to please go to the men's side. The Modest Police go around making sure that everyone is dressed appropriately to be at the holy site of the Western Wall. And they were out in full force this evening. On this special evening, the Mechitzah (or barrier that divides men from women in prayer) was extended all the way up the Plaza. Men and women were not allowed even on the same side in the back of the plaza. This did not make me very happy. I tried to snap a picture of the extended Mehitzah but it was difficult because of the lighting and the swarms of people. Most of us stayed at the Kotel for only a few minutes, and for me it was difficult to have a meaningful experience. However, I will admit that it was pretty cool to see so many people gathering together in this powerful and historical place. I mean how many of us can say that we were at the Kotel on Tisha B'Av?

On this Tisha B'av, I focused on the destructive power of Baseless Hatred- while seeing the Hopefulness that is so difficult to ignore in this city. We are hopeful that the day will come when people will no longer pass judgment on other people, will no longer hate without reason, and will no longer wish for the destruction of any people. May we have the resilience to rise up from the destructions that we have faced, to rise above Baseless Hatred, and to be hopeful for a more promising future.