It is impossible for a Jew to forget Yerushalayim. When he eats, when he prays, when he suffers, when he celebrates, when he weds, when he builds a home, and even when he dreams, he thinks of Yerushalayim. A Yid cannot forget Yerushalayim because he simply can’t live without it.
This Shabbos, it is especially fitting that we keep in mind the words of Retzei: “…she’lo te’hei tzarah v’yagon va’anacha b’yom menuchaseinu…,” that there be no distress, no grief, no pain or suffering for ourselves or for any of our fellow Yidden, “v’hareinu Hashem Elokeinu b’nechamas Tzion irecha…,” that we merit to bear witness to the ultimate comfort – the nechamas Tzion – with the immediate rebuilding of the Beis Hamikdash.
Kapittal 137: a prophetic scene that would sadly come to pass many years later. We were chased out of our homes and found ourselves weary, dragged to the very edge of the rivers of Babylonia. There we sat, inconsolable in our pain, feeling utterly bereft. Al Naharos Bavel….
This Shabbos, when we once again hear these familiar, prophetic phrases, we can be comforted with the knowledge that this arduous exile will eventually end, and that when it does, the promise of achdus and nechamah will finally be fulfilled.
It is said that there is no better way to truly appreciate what we have, than by understanding what we lack. Today, there is no need to pretend. We are all missing something substantial and significant, and Tishah B’Av is the day for us to tap into this void and actually feel it… all we have to do is listen to the music of Tishah B’Av.
My friends, there was once a time when we were all kings – when we were a nation of holy princes and priests. Yes; we have all tasted the sweetness of royalty and redemption, of purity and prosperity, but… we have fallen. We have been exiled. All the wealth that we once had has since been replaced by cheap substitutes and temporary pleasures… Today we ask ourselves, what can we do to restore what we’ve lost?
There is a particular piece of music that has become synonymous with the Holocaust. I would even suggest that if there was one tune that could capture and encapsulate the entirety of our extensive Exile – from beginning to end – this would be the one.
After people experience a loss r’l, as time passes, they eventually forget some of the pain. The hurt eases and people can eventually move on. However, just as Yaakov Avinu could not be consoled after hearing of Yosef’s demise because really Yosef was still alive, the same is true here. The fact that after nearly two thousand years we have not forgotten the Beis Hamikdash and we are still able to cry over its absence, demonstrates that the Beis Hamikdash is still alive.
This Shabbos, it is especially fitting that we keep in mind the words of Retzei: “…she’lo te’hei tzarah v’yagon va’anacha b’yom menuchaseinu…,” that there be no distress, no grief, no pain or suffering for ourselves or for any of our fellow Yidden, “v’hareinu Hashem Elokeinu b’nechamas Tzion irecha…,” that we merit to bear witness to the ultimate comfort – the nechamas Tzion – with the immediate rebuilding of the Beis Hamikdash.
The Music of Tishah B’Av – Part 1 touched upon the essence of music, and how to find relevance in its obvious absence on Tishah B’Av. This year I would like to do just the opposite, and turn our attention to the unique presence of song on this difficult day.