Dear NILI Community,
The month of Av is indelibly tied to our time of national mourning for the loss of both the First and Second Temples. The Mishna in Taanit states that משנכנס אב ממעטין בשמחה - "From when the month of Av begins, one decreases rejoicing." The month of Av has come to characterize calamity for the Jewish people, and the Mishna in Taanit enumerates further examples of tragedy in our Jewish history.
The historical associations with the month of Av, however, seem at odds with the literal meaning of the Hebrew word "Av," father. In times of national catastrophe, we often feel alone and sometimes even abandoned by God, a sentiment which is reminiscent in the opening verse of Megillat Eicha: ״אֵיכָ֣ה יָשְׁבָ֣ה בָדָ֗ד הָעִיר֙״- "Alas, how lonely sits the city [of Jerusalem]." Yet, the word "Av," father, calls to mind a sense of closeness, protection, and compassion.
In the aftermath of the destruction, captured by the haunting words of Megillat Eicha, אבינו שבשמים, our compassionate Father in Heaven, is elusive. In the second to last verse of Eicha, the voice of the people cry out: ״,הֲשִׁיבֵ֨נוּ ה׳׀ אֵלֶ֙יךָ֙ [וְֽנָשׁ֔וּבָה] חַדֵּ֥שׁ יָמֵ֖ינוּ כְּקֶֽדֶם״ we hope and long to be returned to Hashem and to our days of old. But the pleas at the end of Megillat Eicha go unanswered, a silence that seems to echo until today.
In the seven weeks following Tisha B'Av, known as the שבע דנחמתא, the seven weeks of comfort, we read words of comfort in the Haftarot from Sefer Yeshayahu. But it is the words of Yeshayahu that we read on the 17th of Tammuz that perhaps prepare us best for the long road ahead: ״דִּרְשׁ֥וּ ה׳ בְּהִמָּֽצְא֑וֹ קְרָאֻ֖הוּ בִּֽהְיוֹת֥וֹ קָרֽוֹב״ - Seek Hashem where he may be found, call upon him where he is near (Yeshayahu 55:6). But where can Hashem be found? The Kotzker Rebbe responds that "God is where we let Him in." Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz explains that "as the redemption approaches, God is more present in the world. [Yeshayahu] urges the people: Do not suffice with passive endurance of the current situation; rather, take advantage of God's accessibility, search for Him and actively pursue a closeness to Him."
Despite nearly 660 days of war and sometimes overwhelming feelings of despair, the powerful words of Yeshayahu remind us to continue to seek out Hashem in our daily lives, for He is always near.
With prayers for אבינו האב הרחמן, our God of compassion and comfort, to bring the redemption speedily in our days.
Chodesh Menachem Av Tov,
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