Tisha B’Av of light and healing

With Tisha B’Av approaching, and this year, falling on Shabbat, the fast is postponed to Sunday. Traditionally, Tisha B’Av has been associated with destruction and exile. Most conclude that it is a time of anxiety, negativity, and depression. Although, Chazal tell us that Moshiach is born on Tisha B’Av, and thus the day itself has unbelievable redemptive and healing qualities.

The Book of Lamentations read on the fast has five chapters. The first chapter follows the alef-beit in proper order. Chapters two, three, and four also follow the alphabet, but with one striking change: the letter pei (mouth) comes before the letter ayin, (eye).

Our sages teach that this reversal isn’t accidental. It points to the spiritual root of our national breakdown: we spoke before we saw. The spies who slandered the land let their words race ahead of their vision. They placed their mouths before their eyes, responding with emotion before clarity. In doing so, they misjudged a situation they didn’t fully see. That emotional panic spread to the people, and we cried that day, the day of Tisha B’Av.

This isn’t just a historical mistake. It’s a spiritual pattern. We often speak about others, ourselves, and our circumstances before we truly see. We rush to conclusions, act from fear, and add layers of complexity where simplicity and presence are needed.

Anxiety, too, works this way. It talks before it sees. It’s a voice that jumps to interpret reality before having the full picture. Tisha B’Av, then, isn’t meant to amplify anxiety, it’s meant to restore clarity. It’s not about fear; it’s about healing. Returning. Slowing down the story, and giving ourselves space to breathe and see with compassion and depth.

This year, as Tisha B’Av falls on Shabbat, the contrast is especially striking. Shabbat is a time of peace – shalom bayit. And one of the classic symbols of this peace is the Shabbat candles. Why do we light them? So we don’t stumble in the dark. When there’s light, we don’t trip over objects – or each other.

This isn’t just practical, it’s spiritual. When we bring light into our homes and minds, we create peace. When we illuminate our perspectives with patience and kindness, we stop reacting blindly and start living wisely.

The core of sinat chinam – baseless hatred – is judging without full context. But the way back is simple: realign our alef-beit. Put the ayin before the pei. Learn to see before we speak. To pause before we react. To light a candle before assuming the worst.

This isn’t a time to collapse into negativity. It’s a time to rebuild with simplicity, holding space, vision, and heart.

Let’s see more clearly. Speak more kindly. And walk in a space of illumination, not in the dark.