לזכר נשמות לאה שושנה בת אהרן ריעדער מורינו ר׳ צבי הערש בן ר׳ ניסן חיים מורינו ר׳ ישעי בן ר׳ משה ר׳ יעקב בן ר׳ שמואל יוסף מ׳ חוה רבקה בת ר׳ שמעון ריעדער

Based on Nefesh Shimshon by Rav Shimshon Pincus, zt”l

“On Tishah B’Av on Shabbos, one may eat or drink whatever one wishes and have a table as laden as Shlomo Hamelech in his prime.”

What are Chazal telling us? Tishah B’Av is a day when we realize we have no real life without Hashem in our midst.

Unless the Shechinah dwells in our midst in the Beis Hamikdash, we may as well sit on the floor and cry.

Yet amazingly enough, if this day falls on Shabbos, we eat meat and drink wine as if nothing happened. What is the meaning of this? Where has the Churban gone when this occurs?

The answer: We have Shabbos! But the kedushah of Shabbos doesn’t divert the Churban from our minds. On the contrary, the kedushas Shabbos fills a hole left by that destruction. In a sense, on Shabbos, we have our Mikdash back!

The Beis Hamikdash is the house of Hashem and Shabbos is the day of Hashem.

House of Hashem

What exactly is the House of Hashem?

If I want to visit my neighbor, I just go to his house and knock on his door.

If I want to visit a friend who lives in a different town, I travel there and knock on his door.

I meet him there, where he lives.

So it is with the House of Hashem.

Simply speaking, the Beis Hamikdash was Hashem’s House. It was where we could meet Him. Three times a year, Jews would go visit Hashem in His great house, where the Shechinah dwelled.

Anyone, whatever their level, could go. “For My house is a house of prayer for all peoples.”

So too it is with Shabbos. When Shabbos arrives, we say “ufros aleinu sukkot shlomecha: Spread over us your shelter of peace.”

On Friday, toward evening, a shelter of kedushah is spread over us. It’s as if we’re entering the Beis Hamikdash.

When Shlomo Hamelech built the Mikdash, he placed two Keruvim in the Kodesh Kedoshim.

They resembled a boy and a girl, representing the relationship between Hashem and the Jewish People.

But Shlomo Hamelech didn’t place them facing each other, rather side by side.

In a physical world, we cannot remain in Hashem’s embrace the entire week.

Yes, we pray three times a day, but afterward and between we go to work and take care of daily needs.

But during the Shalosh Regalim, when all Jews came to the Mikdash, what would the kohanim do?

They would roll back the paroches and show the people the Keruvim hugging. They would say, “See how much Hashem loves you?”

That was the Beis Hamikdash at its most sacred: when you could openly see Hashem’s love for Am Yisrael, reflected in the Keruvim.

So too, Shabbos is our 24-hour embrace with Hashem.

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Let’s Reflect:

Now that we know the special love that exists with Hashem throughout Shabbos, how can we take advantage of that? And how can we show Hashem our love in return?

Can we go around the table and have everyone mention a time they felt Hashem’s love for them? And then share a way they feel they can show Hashem love in return?

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