If you’re like many Reform Jews, your primary reference point for Tisha B’Av might be watching bunkmates knock over building blocks at summer camp—or that epic (and hilariously over-the-top) scene from the Berkshires in “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” It’s fair to say that for most of us, Tisha B’Av hasn’t exactly been top of mind in our Jewish calendar. But this year feels different.
Tisha B’Av, which we mark this coming Saturday evening, invites us to pause and reflect on the brokenness of the world—the pain our people have carried for generations, and the suffering we continue to witness today. Traditionally, it commemorates the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem. But in our time, Tisha B’Av invites us to confront not only the sorrows of our past, but the enduring weight we carry as a People—our pride in Jewish resilience alongside the persistent ache of grief and the quiet, sometimes overwhelming anxiety that still shapes our present, especially in the wake of October 7 and the ongoing wars that Israel finds itself enmeshed in on multiple fronts.
Tisha B’Av teaches us that grief has a place in our spiritual lives—not to weigh us down, but to open our hearts. This day is a reminder that resilience is often born in sorrow and shaped by the choice to keep moving forward together.
While we no longer have a central Temple, we are blessed to gather in beautiful, sacred spaces of our own. This summer has felt especially meaningful at Wise. We are singing and celebrating Shabbat with our campers in the Fishman Amphitheatre, welcoming Shabbat on warm Friday evenings in Cayton Plaza, and coming together for Torah study and shiva minyanim in our prayerful new Beit Midrash. Nothing will ever replace the sacred memory of the ancient Temples, but these moments of connection remind us to cherish what we have now—our sixty-year home on this mountaintop, our community, our tradition, and the enduring hope that guides us toward a better future. And even in the midst of conflict and uncertainty, we hold tight to the blessing of the State of Israel, to the promise of Jewish Peoplehood, and to the possibility of healing and peace.
As we approach Tisha B’Av, may we allow ourselves to feel deeply and to hope boldly. Please join us this Saturday evening, August 2 at 7:30pm at Valley Beth Shalom for a Los Angeles community Tisha B’Av study session and service.
With strength and hope, shavuah tov,
Cantor Emma