Tradition encourages our memories to be jogged as we enter into the new month of Av, laden with historic calamities, particularly the ones most pivotal and strikingly cataclysmic: The destruction of the holy temples, the first in 586 BCE and the second in 70 CE. The rabbis’ integration of a formal grief tradition helps us to prepare both mentally and spiritually for the High Holy Days. More importantly, it enables us to acknowledge and honor our grief over the contemporary losses, such as those due to excessive violence, COVID, and losses of freedom. To read this article, please follow the link below:

https://jewishjournal.com/commentary/opinion/350337/a-time-of-grieving/