Tisha B’av: A Lamentations for Today

You are invited to join Beyt Tikkun and our co-sponsors Rabbis for Ceasefire, and Shomeret Shalom on Monday, August 12th, 6:30pm Pacific Time (9:30pm ET) to commemorate Tisha B’av

Tisha B’av is traditionally a time to grieve Jewish suffering. We are taught it is the day on which the Second Temple was sacked by the Romans, and the day of the destruction of the First Temple. It is also a time to mourn the Spanish Inquisition, pogroms, and suffering of the Jewish people throughout history.

On Tisha B’av, we read the Book of Lamentations (Eicha)––a book that expresses deep sorrow, grief, and horror and includes graphic images of suffering and destruction from the past. And here we are in 2024, watching daily unimaginable suffering and destruction across the globe and in our own backyard. Our tradition provides a spiritual process for us to wail and grieve. 

Last year hundreds of us gathered together to cry, mourn, wail, and grieve the destruction of the holy temple in which we live today. We will do so again this year. Rather than read the traditional Book of Lamentations, we will once again chant Rabbi Cat’s English translation of Lamentations drawing on the cadence and Hebrew meaning, while placing it in a modern day context. 

You are welcome to join us whether this is your first Tisha B’av or your hundredth, whether you are Jewish, another faith tradition, spiritual but not religious, or undecided, whether you’re queer, straight, or unsure, whatever your gender identity, ethnicity, or race. 

Please join us on Monday, August 12th at 6:30pm PT (9:30pm ET). You can join us in person at Rabbi Cat’s home in Emeryville or online from anywhere in the world. Registration is free; if you are able to make a donation to help us offer events such as these in the future and to support our work, we’d be most grateful.

To register, please see registration below (you will then receive the Zoom link or address). 


We hope to see you there.

Rabbi Cat Zavis, Beyt Tikkun 

Accessibility & Covid Practices

The house has 5 stairs to enter. We will be sitting in a living and dining room, either on couches or the floor (cushions provided). Please feel free to bring a seat or cushion that is comfortable for you. The windows will be open and an air filter will be on. If you are able to wear a mask, we request that you do so. If you are sick, please join us on Zoom. 

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At Beyt Tikkun, we believe in a Judaism of love and transformation. We heal ourselves and our world through joyful and meaningful spiritual practice, loving relationships, social activism, and revolutionary consciousness.

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