Today is the Eve of the Tisha B’Av Fast, the saddest day on the Jewish Calendar and the most difficult fast day, at least on the Northern Hemisphere. To prepare for the fast, experts advise that we drink a lot of water all day long. But shouldn’t we also do everything in our power to facilitate the end of Tisha B’Av as a fast day, day of mourning? It is said that when Tisha B’Av will no longer be a fast day, it will be a day of great festivities and joy.
Our sages tell us that the destruction of the Holy Temple and the dispersion of the Jewish People are punishments for sins bein adam v’chareiro, between man and his fellow man. The recipe, the method, way to have the fast and mourning on Tisha B’Av canceled is to greatly increase chessed, generosity, good acts bein adam vichareiro, between man and his fellow man.
Unfortunately, we’re terribly far from that time in history. Not only don’t we see all Jews united to fight for our rights as a Nation and People on our and governing/protecting our own Land, but there are Jews who claim to be Torah observant who actually attack other Jewish IDF soldiers.
In the second assault of its kind in three weeks, police say several ultra-Orthodox youth attacked a haredi conscript Sunday night as he drove through a religious neighborhood in the capital.
According to police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld, the attack took place in the Bukharan Quarter, where the unidentified victim’s car was converged upon by several religious youth who obstructed the vehicle, dragged him outside and proceeded to beat him.
There has been a perversion of Judaism in the name of the Torah which is very frightening. All of our questions can be answered from the Torah including whether or not all Jews are required to fight together for our People and Land.
Numbers Chapter 32 בְּמִדְבַּר
ו וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה, לִבְנֵי-גָד וְלִבְנֵי רְאוּבֵן: הַאַחֵיכֶם, יָבֹאוּ לַמִּלְחָמָה, וְאַתֶּם, תֵּשְׁבוּ פֹה. 6 And Moses said unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben: ‘Shall your brethren go to the war, and shall ye sit here?
It’s very clear. G-d demands, commands that all Jews are required to unite to fight together for the Land and People. It doesn’t matter if they live in New Jersey, Paris, Montreal or Meah She’arim. We are all responsible for each other’s safety, security and future.
God gave us many, many mitzvoth, six hundred and thirteen 613. Only God knows the “accounting rules,” the weight of all for when He calculates our success and failures. One thing we do know is that although it is possible to repent the sins in the bein adam liMakom, between man and G-d, it’s much, much more difficult to properly repent those sins we did to other people.
So simply put it means that living a mehadrin, extra stringent Torah life would mean making our kind, generous actions towards other Jews as top priority and looking for the most stringently supervised kosher food would be less important.It also means that every Jew must find ways to actively serve and support the IDF, which is the present method to protect the State of Israel, which protects Jewish rights and sovereignty in the Land of Israel. Granted, the IDF and the State of Israel are not yet perfect, but they will only get more perfect, more Jewish if more truly Torah observant Jews become fully engaged, involved. Standing back and yelling “traif,” (not kosher) will not improve things at all.
So, let us all take on something new to make things better, bring the Moshiach and turn Tisha B’Av into a day of joy and feasting.