(Courtesy: Rab Mark Ankcorn)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In making sense of Tisha B\u2019Av and Shabbat Hazon, let\u2019s turn to the teachings of the Kedushas Levi, Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev, z\u201dl, 1740-1810. A student of the Maggid of Mezrich, he was a pivotal figure in early Hassidic thought. He was renown for never saying a bad word about a fellow Jew or the Jewish people. Call \u201cthe defense attorney for Am Israel,\u201d stories are legion about his constant intercession with God on behalf of communities and individuals.There is an interesting parable about this subject, Tisha B\u2019Av and Shabbat Hazon: A father had a precious garment sewn for his son, who promptly tore it to shreds. The father then had a second garment sewn, which the child once again tore up.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The father had yet a third garment sewn; this time, however, he didn\u2019t permit his son to wear it. Rather, he only allowed his son to gaze at it at appointed times, telling him that when he began to conduct himself properly, he would allow him to wear it. In this way, the father trained his son to act in a manner that ultimately became his second nature. Once he did, the father gave him the garment and allowed him to wear it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The garment, obviously, is the Temple and the Kedushas Levi is arguing (consistent with the traditional reading of the Prophets and some of rabbinic thought) that we are at fault for the destruction. Because of our spiritual immaturity, our incomprehension, our errors of judgment, we caused both Temples to be destroyed and our People to be sent into exile.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m not sure I buy it as a matter of theology or history, especially as it takes away any responsibility on the part of those doing the burning, raping, pillaging, murdering. The Assyrians and Romans were bloodthirsty, violent regimes responsible for sickening atrocities. I simply cannot place the blame on the victims.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n But as a psychological perspective, the Kedushas Levi is saying we weren\u2019t really ready, spiritually, for the great gift that was the Temple. We didn\u2019t know what it truly meant to have immediate, direct access to God, to bask in His presence and feel intimate and loved. To see God, and most of all be seen by Him.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n However, the Kadosh Baruch Hu is like a patient father who repeats the lesson over and over. God always finds a way to teach that breaks through our barriers of mind and heart.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Each and every shabbat is shabbat Hazon. Each and every shabbat, we receive a second soul that stays with us for twenty-five blissful hours. Each and every shabbat we taste and touch true rest, wholeness, peace. We experience, however briefly, the world to come.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Let us use this shabbat to truly see our vision of the Best World. Not a \u201cbetter world\u201d because any idiot can imagine some improvement to whatever situation he\u2019s in. What is radical, transformative, is a vision of perfection and that is the precious gift we are given each week.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n See the Best that we can be, the ideal, the glorious, the perfect \u2026 and have the courage to work to make it happen.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" (Courtesy: Rab Mark Ankcorn) In making sense of Tisha B\u2019Av and Shabbat Hazon, let\u2019s turn to the teachings of the Kedushas Levi, Rabbi Levi Yitzhak […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/650"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=650"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/650\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":651,"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/650\/revisions\/651"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=650"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=650"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/berdichev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=650"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}