The Kosher Bookworm: An African American Convert’s Take on Tisha B’Av

In a rare observation concerning the saddest day on the Jewish liturgical calendar, Ahuva Gray, Chicago born granddaughter of sharecroppers from Mississippi, and an adult convert to the Jewish faith, wrote about Tisha B’Av in her exquisite autobiography entitled, “Journey to the Land of My Soul.” There is much to be learned from these wise words, a sample of which I choose to share with you this week:

“Four years had elapsed since I had first observed the fast of Tisha B’Av. The meaning of the portentous event of Tisha B’Av of 1994, still plagued me….

I could better comprehend the pain I associated with the fast of Tisha B’Av by remembering the pain I associated with the pain of losing my mother. The loss of my mother exemplifies for me why the Jewish people mourn the loss of our Temple. Although I feel the pain of a great loss, it’s a pain that dissipates when I think about the glory of G-d that was revealed through her life.

Through the eyes of a convert, I now know what it means to be comforted. Each of us, so to speak, had his own personal exile. Each exile carries with it a unique sin. Just as the Jewish people are in exile, so is a Jewish neshamah that resides inside a Ger, just as the Jewish people long for their homeland, so does the Jewish neshamah. Once a potential convert has been exposed to Judaism and the Jewish people, that neshamah starts to crave for the Jewish life. My neshamah found its home in Bayit Vegan.”

Further on, Gray makes note of the following:

“Tisha B’Av is a time of remembrance as well as a time of anticipation. During the fast of Tisha B’Av, we, the Jewish people, mourn the loss of the First and Second Temples.

During this fast, our souls long for a future hope of the rebuilding of the Third Temple and the coming of Mashiach.”

These heartfelt words confirm the truth and wisdom of the adage that is reflected by the following: that words that come from the heart of the speaker, go to the heart of the listener.

This fascinating book details the spiritual journey of a spiritually intoxicated human being that is so eloquently expressed in words, that it will truly reinforce your appreciation of the faith of Judaism, the faith of your birth.