Yeshiva
Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- The Three Weeks
- The Ninth of Av
The 3 Weeks follow the same pattern, but in reverse order: The opening 12 days, beginning on the 17th of Tamuz, introduce a general mood of sadness. Then, on Rosh Chodesh Av, that sadness intensifies, culminating finally in the saddest day of the year, Tisha B’Av.
But we might ask: Why are these two similar events – Aveilut and Churban Bet HaMikdash - not done in the same exact order? Why are they "mirror-images" of one another?
Picture inverted triangles. The top one represents aveilut. What is the progression of mourning? It begins with a very small point; that is the intense moment when a loved one dies. We are constricted, all alone with our thoughts and pain and personal feelings; we are the "Ani," the "I" of Aninut. We are even separated to some extent from G-d; we don’t perform positive Mitzvot, or even Brachot. Then, at the Shiva, we "open up" a bit more, as friends and family come to console us. As even more time goes by, we slowly return to wider society, to a more normal life. Our activities expand, and the triangle becomes wide again.
But in the Three Weeks, it’s the opposite dynamic. We had a vibrant, expansive community and unlimited spiritual opportunities in ancient Israel. But we did not appreciate what Hashem gave us. And so, on 10 Tevet, a siege was put upon Yerushalayim; it was a "wake-up" call to us to clean up our act. But we didn’t get the message, and so, 6 months later, on 17 Tamuz, the walls were breached and our fortunes shrank even further. Yet we still had the chance to do Teshuva, and to reverse the coming tragedy. Alas, as the prophet Yirmiyahu reports, we dismissed the danger, ignored the call to repent, and our fate was sealed. Jerusalem was sacked, the Bet HaMikdash burnt, and a great people became very small. Indeed, we almost disappeared completely, like that tiniest point of the bottom triangle.
But there is good news, too. When the triangle reaches it’s smallest stage, it begins to regenerate, to grow and expand. And so, while the expansion has been long and slow, we have once again become a great nation. We have reclaimed Eretz Yisrael, largely rebuilt our Holy City, gathered in our people from far and wide. In just two generations, our Jewish population has grown more than 1000%! Tziyon again brims with Jews and Torah & life.
None of this has happened by chance; it is the result of a deep and determined partnership between Hashem and His people. Our mission is not yet complete, but we are almost, almost there. The moment is close - close your eyes, and visualize Geula.
Rabbis in Midrash
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Hosha'ana Rabba FLYDUBAI & HOSHANA RABBA- ANI VAHU HOSHIA NA- I & HIM SAVE US
"Ani vaHu Hoshia Na", "I and Him, Save Us". We don't just pray to Him, but we also pray to and for ourselves that we should emulate and educate our children to have that instinctive altruism with which He created the world. President Trump seemed amused about Yaniv Hayon, our PLUMBER who confidently worked with G-d like Superman (he learned from a pilot on a TV show!) to save 174 lives on the Dubai hijacking, but we in Israel are totally accustomed already 78 years to our plumbers, teachers, garbage-men, rabbis, farmers & doctors being Hashem's shlichim! This is what Zionism is about.
Moreshet Shaul Hashem Is your Shadow – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 420 – an address from 1941
