dis/unity in the face of chaos . . . is it “about time” — or is it about “time?”
or is it just another case of . . . “Lost in Space”
🎶 It’s about time it’s about space — it’s about strange people in the strangest place
Where will they go – what will they do
In this strange place where everything is new — will they manage to survive
Watch each week and see if they will get accustomed to the Twentieth Century.
(yes, ‘danger indeed Will Robinson!’)
Tens of thousands of people visited the Western Wall during the Tisha B’Av (the 9th Day of the Hebrew Month of Av) fast, which began on Monday evening and ended yesterday evening. Towards the end of the fast, thousands participated in prayer and a call for unity among the people of Israel at the Western Wall Plaza.
Isaiah 40: 1
נַחֲמ֥וּ נַחֲמ֖וּ עַמִּ֑י יֹאמַ֖ר אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶֽם׃
Comfort, oh comfort My people
For the Jewish People the world over, this coming Shabbat is called: “Shabbat Nachamu” — a Sabbath, more or less, of ‘comforting’ — some might even say, ‘consoling’ — this might be the better terminology, especially given what many would understand as a ‘shared history’ or . . . or as far as ‘the day after’ is concerned, a ‘shared destiny.’
‘Shabbat Nachamu’ takes its name from a prophetic reading (also known as a ‘haftara’) from the Book of Isaiah ch 40: verses 1-26 all of which speaks of “consoling” the Jewish people, especially in light of what we have endured. But it is more about ‘what comes next’ over and above ‘what has been.’
________
Let’s take a look at the day before, for our understanding. Could it simply (or solely) be a commemoration of the destruction of our holiest places, (including the land along with the Jewish community)? Perhaps it is the disarray that ‘the consolation’ is speaking to. If that is the case, then . . . . what next? Only time will tell . . . or very possibly consoling will lead to a ‘consolation.’
This was their prayer below — and in the days after the 9th of Av, it is our prayer as well:
(from the Tamari Project): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEmJxlmXFbQ&t=2s
Bringing our prayers with us — looking ahead to the day after — and to our future.
We do not simply strive to live — we strive to thrive . . . and with ‘this time’ of consolation before us, we will.
