Tonight starts the fast of Tisha b'Av, the saddest day of the Jewish calendar. It includes mourning for both Holy Temples, both destroyed on this day. It also includes mourning for all the horrible things that have happened to the Jewish People over the course of history. And yet, while we sit low to the ground, we believe that whoever the Moshiach will be, the one who will bring us all back to Torah, mitzvot and HaShem, is also born on this day. There is always light, even at the darkest of the night. Let us all strive to be candles in the darkness we find ourselves in.
Please strive to say a kind word to someone every day - especially a family member. It's always easier to be nicer to a complete stranger than to our own flesh and blood. Remember we want to build and not tear down.
* To hear/watch Eicha (Book of Lamentations) chanted in its entirety *
Remembering Jerusalem - Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz
A Day of Mourning - A Day of Hope (Chabad)
The Holy Temple (Chabad)
The Pain of Distance (Aish)
More Tisha b'Av articles (Aish)
