Show the World What a Jew Looks Like

At first glance, Tu B’av, the Festival of Love, seems to be the Jewish equivalent of Valentine’s Day.  But, a deeper look at the strange origins of this holiday reveals the transformative possibilities of this day.  It all begins with an ax. 

Tisha B’Av is the day we devote to contemplating destruction and ruin.  How should we observe it, this year, when we are already carrying so much grief?  And how can our tradition, and the story of one London rabbinical student, spur us to action?

Right now we are in the period of the most concentrated grief in the Jewish calendar leading up to Tisha b’Av next week. This year, in Los Angeles, we are in an extended period of the same. From the fires through the ICE raids beginning last month, we have gotten no reprieve. What insight does our parsha lend us about how to live in this valley of grief and also let our grief be a catalyst for action?

This war must end. I am begging those with power to look themselves in the mirror, and at last, prioritize human life. Bring the hostages home. Allow extensive humanitarian aid into Gaza and the fighting reopen, the channels of dialogue that will make it possible for Israeli and Palestinian children to one day break bread together on the land they both call hope.