Yesterday was the observance of the fast of Tisha b'Av, pushed off to the 10th of Av because the 9th of Av fell on a Shabbos this year. In Chicago this year, we had no need for Tisha b'Av programming. We got two hours of programming that nobody asked for -- the levaya of R' Yaakov Rajchenbach, may the memory of this righteous person be a blessing.
It was a personal tragedy for me; I counted him as a friend and neighbor. I honestly cannot remember him in any way but with that big, sincere, and heartfelt smile. It was a tragedy for Chicago, as there was not a Jewish organization of any importance that did not look to him for counsel. (Counsel first, money second.) For the entire Jewish world for all the reasons discussed in the speeches from his children; and more. I will not try to summarize words that are already only a brief insight into the life of a giant of a human being; though I do encourage you to seek and absorb the recordings if you were not zoche to be there. I will just add a single point that speaks volumes -- With all that R' Yaakov Rajchenbach, ztzl, did and with everyone who had contact with him over the last many decades; not a single person -- not one -- has anything but positive memories and stories.
R' Fuerst, shlita, spoke first; he noted that it even though Tisha b'Av is a day for crying (according Rashi on Koheles, in fact, it is the day for crying), it is still called a מוֹעֵד/festival/appointed time, and therefore halacha does not allow for הספדים/eulogies (that is, words whose intent is to evoke tears), but stories and words of inspiration.
R' Dovid Zucker spoke next and delivered in a few short sentences one of the most powerful messages I have heard on any Tisha b'Av. This year, 5782 -- we started the three weeks with the untimely and wholly unexpected death of R' Shmuel Levin, ztz'l, one of the Telshe roshei yeshiva and an emerging force in our g'dolei yisrael. We finished the three weeks with the death -- in this case, eight years since his original diagnosis with metastatic cancer, yet living and thriving against all odds -- R' Yaakov Rajchenbach, a "regular" ba'al ha'bayis who was a fundamental and key driver of the development of the Chicago Jewish community and also the greater worldwide Jewish community. In the middle -- בין המיצרים/between the straits -- was the death of one of our children learning Torah in our schools; seven years old physically, but be all accounts a very exalted soul.
What is our response? What can be our response? Do tshuva, stop saying lashon hara, love every Jew simply because he is Jewish. Is there more? I heard just a bit of a talk from R' Shais Taub yesterday on one of the main Tisha b'Av livestreams. He started by saying he was very uncomfortable with speaking on Tisha b'Av. In fact, he was very uncomfortable with the whole day. In fact, he is very uncomfortable with trying to live as a Torah Jew in this long, bitter diaspora. So what do we do?
He told a crazy story about some chasidim in Europe who were playing pranks on Tisha b'Av to "prevent themselves from falling into depression." They set up some crazy ropes and pulleys to prank whoever walked under the skylight by pulling him up to the ceiling. Wildly inappropriate, of course. The rebbe had said that you needed to be sad, but not chas v'shalom depressed. They thought this was a good idea. It wasn't, obviously. At some point during the day, the rebbe himself was caught in the trap. The chasidim were aghast and frozen in fear. The rebbi looked around, then looked up:
Ribono Shel Olam! Look what your children are doing! If they don't know how to properly use and commemorate Tisha b'Av -- then, please Ribono Shel Olam, please -- take it away from them.
Please, Ribono Shel Olam, take it away.
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