Devarim 5770
07/16/2010Divrei Torah
Temple B’Nai Israel, Laconia NH, July 16 2010
My challenge tonight is to tie together our Torah portion with two holidays that are coming up in the next week or so. The Torah portion is Devarim, the beginning of the book of Deuteronomy, the last of the five books of Moses. Deuteronomy is written in Moses’ voice, and he begins by re-telling the story of the Israelites’ years of wandering in the wilderness. The two holidays coming up are Tisha B’Av and Tu B’Av. Tisha b’Av, the ninth day of the month of Av, is a solemn fast day that commemorates the destruction of both Temples in Jerusalem, as well as many other tragic events in Jewish history.
Tu B’Av is the 15th day of the month of Av, a little-known holiday that is referred to in the Mishnah as one of the most joyous days in the Jewish calendar. Since the Jewish calendar is lunar, the 15th day of any month will always be a full moon. Tu B’Av was the beginning of the grape harvest in ancient Israel, and the custom was for young women to dress in white and go out at night dance under the full moon. Young man would come out to choose a bride. It was a night of romance; a night to find love.
Tu B’Av was more or less forgotten for centuries. In the Diaspora there was no grape harvest, no fields to dance in. But recently, especially in Israel, the holiday has been revived as a kind of Jewish Valentine’s Day. But before we get all mushy and sentimental and pull out our Hallmark cards, let’s go back to our Torah portion. Moses has a thing or two to teach us about love. Moses understands that love is much more complex than dancing in the moonlight. Moses loves the Israelite people. He has provided for them and guided them and pleaded for them when God wanted to destroy them. But they also drive him crazy. In this week’s portion, he says, How can I bear unaided the trouble of you? The burden and the bickering?
I am pretty sure most of us can relate to this – who hasn’t occasionally felt burdened by the people we love? Who hasn’t been fed up with complaining or bickering? But we have Moses as our model to remind us that none of the people we love is perfect. They will sometimes drive us crazy. But love is loyalty; love is forgiving over and over: love is not giving up when things get hard.
So, the Torah has wisdom to teach us about Tu B’Av and the meaning of love. And what about Tisha b’Av? What about grief and mourning? A Midrash tells us that Tisha b’Av was also the day that the spies returned from scouting the Promised Land. The spies reported that it was indeed a fine land, flowing with milk and honey, but the Israelites refused to go. Moses reminds them: You sulked in your tents, saying, ‘It is because Adonai hates us that He brought us out of Egypt to hand us over to our enemies…the scouts saw people stronger and taller than us, large cities with walls sky-high and even giants!’
Because they were afraid, because they did not have faith, God decreed that the first generation to leave Egypt would wander for 40 years and never enter the land. That was a dark day indeed. And many other dark days have followed. The Destruction of the Temple was a terrible time. Not only was the Sanctuary destroyed, but over a million Jews died of starvation and at the hands of the Romans. Many more were sold into slavery. So why would we want to commemorate such a terrible time? Why would we want to be reminded of the suffering and oppression of our people?
For me, the answer is found in the Jewish response to tragedy. Rabbi Irving Greenberg, author of The Jewish Way, writes: The classic Jewish response to catastrophe is to renew life. Every major Jewish catastrophe has led to the falling away of some Jews as they lost faith, but every catastrophe has also led to revival as other Jews strove to match tragedy with hope.”
So, yes, Tisha b’Av reminds us of loss and tragedy. Our tradition recognizes that sorrow is part of human experience. There is a place for mourning, a place to cry out in despair. There are times when we lose our way and wander in the wilderness. But we do not stay there. The story continues. The Israelites are not condemned to wander in the wilderness forever. In this week’s portion, Moses speaks to the People as they are about to enter the Promised Land. Hope is renewed.
Our calendar moves from Tisha b’Av to Tu b’Av, from grief and mourning to hope and renewal. On Tisha b’Av we fast, we weep, we observe the customs of mourning, and when it is over, we pick ourselves up and go out to the fields to find love. We know it will not be easy. Love takes work. We will lose our way. But there is always the hope of renewal. You can always begin again.
On Tisha b’Av we read the Book of Lamentations, and it ends with familiar words: Hashiveinu Adonai Eleicha v’nashuva. Chadesh yameinu k’kedem.
Turn us, Oh God, and we will return. Renew our days as before.