Torah Portion Devarim, the ‘Sabbath of Vision’ (5761)

By the grace of God, on the eve of the holy Sabbath of the Devarim portion, the ‘Sabbath of Vision,’ 5761

An Endless Encounter

This coming Sunday is the Ninth of Av, the day commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples. On this day we fast

and observe practices of mourning for the destruction. This fast is more stringent than all the other fasts, and in practice its laws

parallel the laws that apply on the Day of Atonement. Beyond the prohibition of eating and drinking, it is also forbidden

to bathe and to wear shoes (= leather shoes), exactly as on the Day of Atonement, and it also begins

in the evening, like the Day of Atonement. It is interesting to note that in Sefer Ha-Hinnukh the laws of the Ninth of Av appear

within the framework of the commandment of fasting on the Day of Atonement.

At first glance, there seems to be no connection whatsoever between the meanings of these two days. The Day of Atonement is a day

of repentance and solemnity, yet it is not a day of mourning, and it even possesses a certain festivity. The Ninth of Av

is a day of mourning over the destruction, and it seems to contain not even the slightest trace of festivity. Nevertheless,

we find in the Scroll of Lamentations the verse: ‘He has proclaimed an appointed time against me to crush my young men’ (Lamentations 1:15), meaning that the Ninth

of Av is called an ‘appointed time.’ As a result, the halakhic authorities wrote that some customs of a festival are observed on it,

even though there is no source for this at all in the Talmud (in the Talmud, the above verse is interpreted as referring to the New Moon,

and from there it is derived that the New Moon is an appointed time).

Perhaps the root of this puzzling attitude lies in how we understand the concept of an ‘appointed time.’ In the sacred tongue,

the meaning of this term is a meeting. As Scripture says: ‘Can two walk together unless they have agreed to meet?’ (Amos 3:3).

A gathering is a meeting between people. The ‘appointed house for all the living’ (Job 30:23) is the place where all

the living meet at the end of their journey.

The appointed times are our points of encounter with God along the axis of time. The festivity that we observe

on the appointed times is only a result of these encounters, and not their very essence. The encounter with God on each

of these festivals is an encounter with a point that has passed in history. We try to relive, in every

generation, the events that occurred in the past on that appointed time. Our sages taught us that every appointed time

of this sort contains the special quality of that time, as it was expressed in its original occurrence.

For example, Passover is the festival of freedom, and every year we are obligated ‘to see ourselves as though

we ourselves had gone out from Egypt’ (Passover Haggadah; cf. Mishnah Pesahim 10:5). Every year the quality of freedom present in that

time is reawakened. Even so, the appointed times are encounters with history. We only try, with greater or lesser

success, to renew them each year.

The Ninth of Av, however, is different. When the people of Israel wept in response to the report of the spies who had returned

from the land, and sought to return to Egypt, God promises them: ‘You wept a needless weeping, and I will make for you

weeping for generations’ (Ta’anit 29a). That is, God in effect sets an appointment with us. He promises us

that throughout all the generations we will meet on this date, in memory of that failed encounter that we had

with Him in the wilderness.

And indeed, throughout history God has fulfilled this promise. He continues to meet us,

through the five calamities that befell our ancestors on the Ninth of Av (Mishnah Ta’anit 4:6), including the two destructions of the

First and Second Temples, and through many other calamities that befell us in the years that followed (it is commonly accepted

that the expulsion from Spain, like many other events, occurred to us in this month, and sometimes on this very date).

In these respects, this is a far more significant encounter than any of the other appointed times.

First, it was set explicitly in advance. Second, it actually takes place throughout the course of

history, unlike the other appointed times, where we merely try to revive the historical events

that occurred in the past. If so, the Ninth of Av is the ‘appointed time’ in the fullest sense. Admittedly, the encounters are mostly not

successful, nor are they joyous, but these are nonetheless encounters of ours with God.

The very encounter with God is a joyful event. Even if we suffer as a result, regarding this Rabbi Akiva said:

‘Fortunate are you, Israel: before whom you are purified’ (Mishnah Yoma 8:9). It is better to be in constant encounter with

God, even if because of our sins these encounters take on the character of troubles, than to live in tranquil

ease at a distance from God. The Ninth of Av, by virtue of being an ‘appointed time,’ that is, an encounter with God,

contains dimensions of joy. This is apparently the meaning of the customs mentioned above, which relate to it

as to an appointed time.

What characterizes all the appointed times is cessation. On festival days we are commanded to be passive, and not

to engage in creative activity. On the Sabbath, we are restricted even more, both in the scope of the prohibitions and

in their severity. Cessation from human activity is a condition for encountering God. Maimonides

defines the Day of Atonement as a double cessation: cessation from labor, and cessation from eating and physical enjoyments. According to

this definition, the fast is not only in order that we repent; it is an obligation of cessation. The reason is

that the Day of Atonement, on which the High Priest entered the Holy of Holies, constitutes a more direct encounter with

God. Such a direct encounter requires double cessation.

There is only one day in the year on which we cease more than on the Day of Atonement: the Ninth of Av. On this day, apart

from cessation from pleasures, as on the Day of Atonement, and from labor as well, we cease from the study of Torah. The only

human activity that must never cease even for a moment comes to a halt on the Ninth of Av. It is hard not to continue here

Maimonides’ line of thought and say that there is here an added layer of cessation. On this day all planes of

life cease, down to the last one. A direct and actual encounter with God is the most definitive appointed time, and therefore

it requires the most intensive cessation.

When we merit it, God willing, the fifth fast (Zechariah 8:19) will become for us a day of feasting and joy. The special quality of

this day is the possibility of meeting God directly, and its realization will take the form of joy and spiritual delight.

Speedily in our days, Amen!

Have a peaceful Sabbath

This may be placed in a sacred-text repository in any synagogue or house of study. Comments and responses are welcome.

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