This past week, the Jewish observance of Tisha B’Av, or 9th of Av, was held in some Jewish communities. The date recalls days of destructions in Jewish history, beginning with the ruin of the Temple in Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. As history records it, subsequent times of destruction also happened on this day, from the end of the Second Temple by the Romans (70), and the expulsion of Jews from England (1290) and Spain (1492). In Reform Judaism, Tisha B’Av has been observed less than in other Jewish communities, not because we shouldn’t remember and learn from these historical moments, but because Reform Judaism, born out of the age of the Enlightenment and into an age of reason, rationality, and science, laid the groundwork for Jews to be less isolated and more acculturated where they lived. Furthermore, Reform Jews ceased praying for the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem, which would have restarted the sacrificial cult and the role of the high priests.

In its place, some Reform communities, like ours, have focused the need for memorializing our people’s suffering on Holocaust Remembrance Day. In addition, though our people prayed for a return to the Land of Israel since it was exiled some 2000 years ago, we have returned to the Land and made it a sovereign Jewish state. But since October 7th, the terrifying cycle of destruction and redemption continues while the hope for peace hangs in the balance. And though the threat of more war remains, Jewish life in Israel also remains worth honoring and sustaining.

The Sabbath following Tisha B’Av is called “Shabbat Nachamu,” or the Sabbath of Comfort. On this Shabbat, we read a passage from Isaiah 40, which provides hopefulness that flows from God’s comfort, including the promise that “Jerusalem’s suffering is over” (Isaiah 40:2). Moreover, an ancient holiday that ended with the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE emerged in modern Israel. It’s called Tu B’Av, or the 15th day of the month of Av, and it’s a day of love. The date is significant. On a Hebrew calendar, which is a lunar calendar, the 15th day is the middle of the month, and, therefore, a full moon; and the full moon, some say, awakens human desires and passions. From its ancient origins, we learn that Tu B’Av was a day when young love went seeking young love.

Though the observance of Tu B’Av fell away after the destruction of the Temple, it found a new place in modern Israel, a land bursting with prosperity and love. The celebration of Tu B’Av in modern Israel reflects the best of times in Israel. Though tensions are high in the Middle East, our 2000-year exile is over, and the celebration of Tu B’Av is a reason to find love in Israel, not loneliness in exile; hope in Israel’s potential, not despair in the Temple’s destruction; and life in the future, not death in the past. Anyone who has been to Israel, or has hoped for Israel, will agree that there’s much to learn from Israel’s past and its struggles, then and now, and no reason to delay the celebration of love when it happens.

Judaism loves love. At no time in Jewish history did the Israelites or their progeny feel only despair. Individual Jews went astray, but the Jewish people endured. Today, some might claim that our world is beyond repair or without hope, but they would be wrong. History is a great teacher and Hebrew prophets, like Isaiah, still urge us to know that whatever the source of our trouble, the future is filled with opportunity and greater peace. It won’t come through prayer, alone; it will come through faithfulness to our unique inheritance of Torah wisdom and deeds.

On this Shabbat before Tu B’Av, take time to identify a source of struggle in your life and resolve to attend to it with fresh insight and renewed hope. The Israelites never stopped hoping, the Jewish people never stop hoping, and neither should we. Let’s use our hearts and minds and able hands to make a difference for tomorrow, at home and in Israel.

L’Shalom,