isha BeAv. In order to identify this insight, an introduction is needed.
Tisha BeAv is a date that is reserved for tragedy. Both Sacred Temples were destroyed on this date. Many other misfortunes befell Bnai Yisrael on this date. All of these catastrophes are historical events. None is part of our recent experience. Yet, despite the passing of time, we continue our annual observance of Tisha BeAv. This creates a problem. The tragedies commemorated by Tisha BeAv do not seem very relevant to us. These misfortunes are part of the distant past. Nonetheless, every year we repeat our commemoration of these events. It is difficult on a beautiful summer day to mourn a Temple we never saw. We are expected to feel genuine sadness over events that are not part of our experience. Other nations have also experienced tragedies. At first, they bemoan these misfortunes. However, with the passage of time, the memory of the trauma recedes. The nation moves on and focuses on the present and future. Why do we not place the past behind us?
Let us consider the problem from another perspective. Assume a person looses a parent. This is a terrible experience. The bereaved son or daughter is distraught. The child mourns the parent for a period of time. Halacha requires twelve months of mourning. Slowly, the son or daughter recovers from the loss. Mourning ends and life proceeds. Imagine the child could not overcome this loss. The son or daughter remained fixated upon the misfortune. We would conclude that this person is ill. We would suggest that the child seek help in overcoming this morbid depression. Are we not this child? Why do we not overcome our sorrow? Are we morbidly fixated on the tragedies of the past?
There are various answers to this question. We will consider one response. Tisha BeAv is a day of mourning. However, there is another element expressed in our observance of the day. This element is evident in an unusual halacha – law – of the day. On the eve of Tisha BeAv, the supplication Tachanun is not recited. This supplication is also omitted on Tisha BeAv itself. The reason for the omission of Tachanun is that Tisha BeAv is referred to in the Navi as a Moed – a festival. The prophet Zecharya prophesizes that in the Messianic era, the Temple will be restored and Tisha BeAv will be celebrated as a festival. This element of festivity associated with Tisha BeAv is expressed in other laws as well.
It seems odd that in deference to Zecharya’s assurance we add these elements of festivity to Tisha BeAv. We await the Messianic era. It has not yet occurred. Now we are in exile. The Temple is destroyed. What is the relevance of Zecharya’s prophecy to our current observance of Tisha BeAv?
The answer is that the destruction of the Temple is not merely a historical event. Its destruction and our exile represent an aberrant relationship with Hashem. This is the message of our pasuk and the Haftorah. We are the Almighty’s nation. Our redemption and the restoration of the Bait HaMikdash are inevitable. The Messianic era is only delayed by our own failure to completely repent and return to the Almighty. With our wholehearted teshuva – repentance – the Messianic era will arrive.
This is the reason for the presence of a festive element in the observance of Tisha BeAv. This element reminds us that our fasting is in response to a current tragedy. We have not yet repented. Therefore, we remain in exile and the Temple remains destroyed. We can convert Tisha BeAv into a festival through changing our behaviors and attitudes!
Now we are prepared to understand the relevance of Tisha BeAv to our current generation. Other nations experience tragedies. They move forward. They forget the misfortunes of the past and enjoy the present and hope for an even better future. We too are not fixated on the past. We are not remembering an irrelevant past tragedy. We are commemorating a present misfortune. We are in exile and the Bait HaMikdash has not yet been rebuilt. We must repent in order to end our misfortune. In short, Tisha BeAv should not be regarded as a day that 