This week’s parashah is Devarim, the reading that always precedes Tisha B’Av.The 9th day of the Hebrew month of Av, which falls on this Saturday evening and Sunday, marks the destruction of both the first and second ancient Temples and is traditionally observed by fasting and reading from the Book of Lamentations
I did not grow up observing Tisha B’Av. Many Reform Jewish communities have passed over this observance, not relating to the desire to rebuild the Temple nor to return to the Biblical worship practiced there. But while we may not mourn the ancient Temple itself, its destruction was accompanied by tremendous displacement and loss of life among the Jewish people. In addition, for some, Tishah B’Av has become a time to remember other times of Jewish suffering and loss, from the Crusades to the Holocaust.
This year, we too live in a time of immense and intense suffering. Israelis, Palestinians, and all who care will long continue to mourn the lives so brutally taken on October 7, 2023 and in the devastating war that has followed it. And the words from Lamentations, describing Jerusalem after its destruction, are painfully resonant with the current news from Gaza:
“All her inhabitants sigh as they search for bread;
They have bartered their treasures for food,
To keep themselves alive.—
See, O Lord, and behold,
How abject I have become!
(Lamentations 1:11)
With our country and our Jewish communities both threatened by division and blame, our Judaism calls us not to allow that threat to be carried out, nor for it to prevent us from acting to save lives and show compassion for each other and for all peoples. At this moment, the complexity of this war and the long histories that have led to it must not be used to justify starvation and denial of access to medicine to the people of Gaza.
This Shabbat, the words of the prophet Isaiah are read as the haftarah: “Learn to do good, seek justice, aid the robbed, do right for the orphan, fight for the widow.”
What can we do from here to help? The New Israel Fund, a trusted funder of democratic institutions in Israel, is raising funds to provide humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza, following the lead of Israeli NGOs who are demanding safe passage of food, water, and medical supplies into Gaza. I encourage us all to give and to share this opportunity with others. You can give and learn more at this link:
NIF Humanitarian Aid to Gaza
May the coming holy day of mourning and contemplation help us to find healing and to share it. Shabbat shalom,
Rabbi Julie
Devarim, Tisha B’Av and Aid to Gaza, August 2, 2025
August 4, 2025 by tbhrich • D'var Torah
This week’s parashah is Devarim, the reading that always precedes Tisha B’Av.The 9th day of the Hebrew month of Av, which falls on this Saturday evening and Sunday, marks the destruction of both the first and second ancient Temples and is traditionally observed by fasting and reading from the Book of Lamentations
I did not grow up observing Tisha B’Av. Many Reform Jewish communities have passed over this observance, not relating to the desire to rebuild the Temple nor to return to the Biblical worship practiced there. But while we may not mourn the ancient Temple itself, its destruction was accompanied by tremendous displacement and loss of life among the Jewish people. In addition, for some, Tishah B’Av has become a time to remember other times of Jewish suffering and loss, from the Crusades to the Holocaust.
This year, we too live in a time of immense and intense suffering. Israelis, Palestinians, and all who care will long continue to mourn the lives so brutally taken on October 7, 2023 and in the devastating war that has followed it. And the words from Lamentations, describing Jerusalem after its destruction, are painfully resonant with the current news from Gaza:
“All her inhabitants sigh as they search for bread;
They have bartered their treasures for food,
To keep themselves alive.—
See, O Lord, and behold,
How abject I have become!
(Lamentations 1:11)
With our country and our Jewish communities both threatened by division and blame, our Judaism calls us not to allow that threat to be carried out, nor for it to prevent us from acting to save lives and show compassion for each other and for all peoples. At this moment, the complexity of this war and the long histories that have led to it must not be used to justify starvation and denial of access to medicine to the people of Gaza.
This Shabbat, the words of the prophet Isaiah are read as the haftarah: “Learn to do good, seek justice, aid the robbed, do right for the orphan, fight for the widow.”
What can we do from here to help? The New Israel Fund, a trusted funder of democratic institutions in Israel, is raising funds to provide humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza, following the lead of Israeli NGOs who are demanding safe passage of food, water, and medical supplies into Gaza. I encourage us all to give and to share this opportunity with others. You can give and learn more at this link:
NIF Humanitarian Aid to Gaza
May the coming holy day of mourning and contemplation help us to find healing and to share it. Shabbat shalom,
Rabbi Julie