Come Out of Your Hiding Place

A full three weeks of our year-the three weeks “between the strictures” of Tammuz 17 (July 4) and Av 9 (July 26)- are designated as a time of mourning over the destruction of the Holy Temple and the resultant galut-physical exile and spiritual displacement-in which we still find ourselves.

We all yearn and pine for our parents approval, their love and validation. Ask anybody who was born and they’ll tell you about some issue they have with their mother or father. “My mother didn’t express her love to me enough, my father was always criticizing me, my mother was preoccupied with herself, my father was always working.” This is the stuff that life is made of.

Collectively it has been almost 2000 years since we have received any real affection from our father and 3327 years since we last saw Him. It’s is quite understandable that we pine for His attention. (In fact it is a miracle that we still do.)

It is approval, love and validation that we yearn for. Indeed, we believe that G-d expresses these every day. No different then the child who believes that their father and mother really love them despite their preoccupation with other things. But, belief and experiencing this are two very different realities.

Once many years ago our relationship was strong and visual. We stood in the Temple and saw open miracles, open love and we reciprocated. The Temple was destroyed and we were exiled to places where the love is hidden.

During the three week period we find ourselves in we mourn the loss of this love, the loss of the Heavenly embrace.

Sometimes, parents can get preoccupied with their ‘stuff’ and sometimes they hide behind their stuff intentionally. Sometimes to run away from their problems and sometimes to awaken something in their children.

Chasidic thought tells us that the destruction of the Temple and subsequent exile is G-d’s way of hiding to awaken a recognition of our true essential bond with G-d that transcends approval and validation.

This period of time is ours, to call out to G-d and tell Him that we know He loves us and that He can come out of His hiding place.

—
Rabbi Eliyahu Schusterman

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