The 9th of Av: The Temple Falls, The Messiah Appears

According to Wikipedia, and the Jewish websites I've been able to peruse, today (July 24th), is the 9th of Av. What is the 9th of Av? Most importantly, it is the date of the Destruction of both the First and Second Jewish Temples.

According to the Mishnah (Taanit, 4:6), five specific events occurred on the ninth of Av that warrant fasting:

1. On this day, the twelve scouts sent by Moses to observe the land of Canaan returned from their mission. Two of the scouts, Joshua and Caleb, brought a positive report, but the others spoke disparagingly about the land which caused the Children of Israel to cry, panic and despair of ever entering the "Promised Land". For this, they were punished by God that their generation would not enter the land and when their descendants would do so under Joshua’s leadership, they would have to wage wars in order to possess it. Because of the Israelites' lack of faith, God decreed that for all generations this date would become one of crying and misfortune for their descendants, the Jewish people. (See Numbers Ch. 13–14)
2. The First Temple built by King Solomon and the Kingdom of Judah were destroyed by the Babylonians led by Nebuchadnezzar in 586 BCE and the Judeans were sent into the Babylonian exile.
3. The Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE scattering the people of Judea and commencing a two thousand year Jewish exile.
4. Bar Kokhba's revolt against Rome failed, and Bar Kokhba was killed, and the city of Betar was destroyed.
5. Following the Siege of Jerusalem, the subsequent razing of Jerusalem occurred one year later.

According to the Talmud in tractate Taanit, the destruction of the Second Temple began on the ninth and was finally consumed by the flames the next day on the Tenth of Av.

(source: Wikipedia)

The significance of this date is interesting. As I recall from reading Josephus, he too attached great meaning to the fact that both temples fell on the 9th of Av. This was indication that the nature of both destructions was the same: judgment from God.

Now, to me, the events of 70 CE (and events 3-5 above) are the most interesting, because I see these events as the DIRECT fulfillment of the prophecies of Jesus' Parousia, or Appearing, commonly known as the Second Coming.

The Jews unfortunately see this day as a day of mourning; but Christians can see it as the day on which Jesus removed all physical barriers to the Presence of God, and brought all humanity out of the shadow of death into the grace of God.

Contrary to their assumptions, Jews are not in any kind of 2000-year exile. Instead, ALL of humanity has been made whole before God. Any kind of attempt to re-separate humanity from God by re-instituting animal sacrifices or temples or tabernacles will ultimately fail.

And that's true whether the person striving to re-institute these things is Christian, Jewish, or Muslim.

Orthodox Jews believe that until the arrival of the Jewish Messiah, this day will continue to be observed as a fast; when the Messiah comes, it will become a great celebration. This notion is asserted on the basis of a passage in the Book of Zechariah (8:19) that foretells of the transformation of four fast days into joyous holidays. (source: Wikipedia)

They look for a time when all fast days will become days of celebration. I think that's beautiful. I also think it's current reality. The time has come. Humanity has moved past the time of fasting and weeping and days of mourning. Any religious belief which postpones humanity's hope to a future date ultimately leaves us unsatisfied and wanting.

There is another thread of Jewish thought that is particularly interesting here: the belief that the 9th 0f Av is the birthday of the Jewish Messiah.

We are told that Tisha b'Av is the Messiah's birthday, but this may not be his physical birthday. Instead, we can understand this statement in allegoric fashion:

The concepts of Moshiach and Redemption were "born" on Tisha b'Av; as soon as the Holy Temple was destroyed, redemption became a possibility. For if the Jews would have properly repented immediately, Moshiach would have been revealed at that moment.

In the teachings of Chassidut it is explained that the inner purpose of the destruction was so that we should be able to reach much higher spiritual levels with the coming of Moshiach - and this only became possible on Tisha b'Av.

So while today we view Tisha b'Av as a sad and tragic day, in the Messianic Era we will celebrate this day as the "birthday" of the ultimate salvation.

(source: AskMoses.com)

This is a beautiful point of view: from the ashes comes even greater glory. We Christians agree that the inner purpose of this destruction was to enable us ALL to reach much higher spiritual levels; indeed, the destruction symbolized that God was through with physical barriers between himself and humanity, at last God and man had become one. The waiting was over, the wedding had come.

Here's hoping more people come to recognize this (and every day) as a day of celebration, instead of a day of mourning.

-micah

WHAT is God?

For me to think your faith holds any credibility, you need to have read and digested something like this:
Why Does God Hate Amputees?

It's a scathing critique of theism, and as crass as it sounds, it makes some extremely good points.

God apparently does not answer our prayers. At least, not ones that involve healing amputees. Not ones that involve big obvious moves on his part. And yet we claim that he did these very things in the past. Always in the past.

We hold up thousands of examples of "answered prayers", and yet all of these "answers" occur only when they are non-impossible things. Only when they are things that could happen without our prayers.

The author of the linked website poses a "Standard Model of God", and proceeds to show that this model of God cannot represent something that really exists.

Prayer is extremely important. People believe that we can pray to God (or Jesus) (sometimes even Mary and certain saints) and God hears our prayers. People believe that God reaches down into our world and uses his infinite power and love to answer our prayers. God will intervene to cure diseases. God can save our lives in emergency situations. God will protect us from danger. God can solve a wide range of personal problems and make our lives better through prayer. Hundreds of millions of people pray to God daily, and they believe that God hears their prayers. According to many people, God is answering millions of prayers on earth every day.

I agree with the author that the above-described God does not exist, cannot exist. An all-loving, infinitely powerful God that can (and does) intervene any time he wants, yet chooses to ignore amputees, September 11th, millions of victims of various sorts, etc...does not make sense. Something is wrong in that equation.

If you don't understand why, read the above-mentioned website. Now, I have addressed The Problem of Evil already. But my answer points the way to a different understanding of what God is. The conventional answers to The Problem of Evil typically hold up a view of God which is notably dated, to - say - the 19th century. Much of modern Christianity labors under a view of God which is neither current nor ancient - which derives neither from modern insights to the universe, nor from biblical revelation.

Such a viewpoint may be great for establishing churches and such, but it is not great for coming to a better understanding of our place in the universe, or for making sense out of our religious teachings.

So WHAT is God?

Is he an alien being in space? A deistic watchmaker outside of space and time? A force pervading the universe and binding us all together? A being living in a parallel dimensionality? A cartoonish old man in the clouds?

You tell me.

-micah