Tisha B’Av as a Day of Atonement: 10 Comforting and Uplifting Teachings

On the 7th of Av, we mark the yahrzeit of the Slonimer Rebbe, Rabbi Sholom Noach Berezovsky, who passed away on the 7th of Av, 5760 (2000). The Rebbe left behind the illustrious Slonim Chassidic dynasty and the beloved series of Torah works known as Netivot Shalom.

In honor of his yahrzeit, we have gathered a selection of inspiring teachings from Netivot Shalom, from the section devoted to the period of Bein HaMetzarim — the Three Weeks between the 17th of Tammuz and Tisha B'Av.

1. Why Were We Commanded to Mourn?

The Rebbe raises a profound question regarding the mourning observed during the Three Weeks:

"It is well known that when a Jew lives in a state of sadness, it is considered akin to idolatry. If so, how could our Sages institute mourning over the destruction of the Holy Temple?"

2. Mourning Is Not About the Past

The answer, he explains, is based on the verse: "For the Lord has afflicted her because of her many transgressions."

The mourning is not primarily about what happened in the past. Rather, it is about the sins and spiritual shortcomings of the present that continue to delay the rebuilding of the Temple.

The true purpose of mourning is to inspire repentance and spiritual growth.

3. Why There Is No Mourning on Shabbat

This also explains why mourning does not apply on Shabbat. Even mourning over one's spiritual deficiencies has no place on the holy day.

On Shabbat, a person is meant to feel as though "all your work is complete," including spiritual work. The path to redemption on Shabbat comes not through sadness or self-criticism, but through joy and closeness to God.

4. Tisha B'Av as a Day of Atonement

The Rebbe cites the teaching of Rabbi Pinchas of Koritz, who explained: "Tisha B'Av is a day of atonement, for sins are forgiven when Jews are deeply brokenhearted and mourn their transgressions."

The pain of the day itself becomes a catalyst for purification and renewal.

5. A Special Opportunity to Find God

The Rebbe also quotes Maggid of Kozhnitz, who interpreted the verse: "All who pursued her overtook her between the straits."

He taught that anyone who pursues God has a unique opportunity to find Him during these days. The Three Weeks are not only a time of loss. They are also a time of extraordinary spiritual accessibility.

6. Mourning as Longing

The Slonimer Rebbe asks how this idea can be reconciled with the fact that these days are traditionally viewed as a period of mourning and judgment.

He explains that Jewish holidays and sacred times are not merely commemorations of past events, but they are spiritual realities that reawaken each year.

Likewise, the mourning of these days is not simply grief over what once was. It is an expression of yearning and longing for the Holy Temple and for God's revealed presence in the world.

7. The Power of Yearning

Because these days are filled with longing for the Temple, they possess a unique capacity to bring a person closer to God. Even someone who feels distant from spirituality throughout the rest of the year can draw near during this period.

Through sincere yearning and heartfelt longing, one can achieve an extraordinary closeness to the Divine.

8. God's Love Revealed Through the Destruction

One of the Rebbe's most moving teachings concerns the destruction itself.

The Talmud relates that when the enemies entered the Holy Temple, they found the cherubim embracing one another.

At first glance, this seems perplexing. The destruction occurred because of Israel's sins. Why would God reveal a sign of love at that very moment?

The Rebbe explains that just as a loving father may be forced to discipline his child while his heart aches with love, so too God, when compelled to punish His children, reveals the depth of His love for them.

The destruction was not a sign of abandonment. It was accompanied by profound and enduring love.

9. A Message for Every Individual

The Rebbe extends this lesson to every person.

There are moments when someone feels distant from God, as though Heaven has turned away from them.

At such times, he writes, one must strengthen oneself with faith and remember that God's love for the Jewish people is eternal.

As the prophet declares: "I have loved you, says the Lord."

No matter how distant a person may feel, that love never disappears.

10. One Day We Will Understand

The Midrash explains the verse: "When the Lord returns the captives of Zion, we will be like dreamers."

The future redemption, it teaches, will resemble the story of Joseph.

After Joseph rose to greatness in Egypt, he was able to see that every hardship, betrayal, and suffering he had endured was part of a larger plan that ultimately led him to greatness.

So too, when the final redemption arrives, the Jewish people will come to understand that all the suffering of exile served a greater purpose. The revelations and blessings of redemption will be so immense that they will surpass even those experienced during the Exodus from Egypt.

In that moment, what once seemed like darkness will be revealed as part of a much larger and more beautiful story.