This fateful reaction to the negative report of the spies took place on the eve of the ninth of Av. Rabbi Yochanan reveals that when G-d observed this expression of emotion he exclaimed, “You have wept without cause, therefore I will set [this day] aside for a weeping throughout the generations to come.” (תענית כט.)

As a result of this unjustified 'בכיה של חנם', baseless crying, the Temple was destroyed, we were exiled from our land and we are destined to endure and cry over the countless difficulties we must face in our long and difficult galus.

Although we accept this as an absolute truth, yet nowhere is this ‘decree’ evident in any of the verses in the Torah that recount this episode. Where did Rabbi Yochanan derive this notion from?

This being held accountable for the fatal sin of ‘crying without cause’, that we are still suffering from, seems secondary to the greater sin of their having lacked faith after all the miracles G-d had wrought for them and their more grievous accusation that G-d hated and had abandoned them. The crying is merely a symptom of a much deeper flaw.

Why the focus on the ‘crying’?

Why do people cry? When faced with frustration, hopelessness, or when feeling helpless we cry. We often cry after facing a fearful situation that ended happily. It seems to be an expression of  release from built up tension. In these situations our cries give a ‘voice’ to our personal grief or our individual happiness.

But there is another element to crying. It is our releasing a flood of emotion to connect with another that we so pine for. That unabashed expression of love is the greatest testament to the exquisite joy the one we yearn and cry for brings to our life.

Rav Nachman of Breslov teaches that the verse where King David extols how G-d’s beloved nation rejoices in His Name even in the most difficult of circumstances, בשמך יגילון כל היום (תהלים פט יז), In Your Name they rejoice all day long, is embedded with the word בְכִיָה, crying.

When one cries out to G-d for His closeness it is not a cry of despair but of longing; of eternal hope, and ultimate joy.

Perhaps our original verse alludes to this contrast in cries.

The verse first stated: The entire assembly raised up and issued their voice. Perhaps this is precisely the ‘baseless’ crying Rabbi Yochanan referred to, for it wasn’t a crying of purpose but merely of self-expression, ‘issuing their voice’.

The second part of the verse: the people wept that night, is not reflecting on that night’s crying but rather of the warm tears of future generations. The tikkun, the cure for their weeping without cause; crying in frustration, would be remedied during their long sojourn in exile and its many challenges, where they would have ample opportunity to ‘connect’ to, and ‘rejoice’ in, their Father in Heaven who they knew would hear their cries of longing and pining, as they faithfully await His response.

•

Boruch Radikovich, a member of one of the Jewish ghettos who had suffered  much abuse along with so many others at the hands of their Nazi oppressors, was instructed together with all the able bodied men to report to one of the notorious ‘arbeitslagers’, work camps.

Naively, he packed some ‘necessities’; clothing and some personal items, as well as his most cherished possession,  a small volume from the Talmud that he slipped into the folds of his shirt.

After he alighted the train at his destination he lined up behind those who preceded him awaiting the directions from the cruel Nazi soldier in charge. With his heart pounding, his turn arrived and the soldier angrily asked him “Jude, what is in the bag?” Grabbing the bag, the Nazi spilled out all its contents onto the floor quickly discovering the ‘hidden’ book of Talmud. With venom in his eyes he bent down, picked it up and began to violently rip its pages into shreds, tossing it to the ground. Noticing Boruch’s paling in face of this derision he diabolically instructed Boruch to trample with his feet upon the holy pages.

Boruch dragged his feet to fulfill the devil’s wishes as tears streamed  down his cheeks as he faced with what was in his eye’s a fate worse than death.

Boruch was directed to work in a cement factory that produced large sewage pipes where he toiled under the worst of conditions barely able to endure the back breaking load, subsisting on the measly rations of food and water. His mind was more preoccupied however with how he would survive without his treasured tome of Talmud in this nightmarish place.

During the most difficult moments he would find solace by reviewing the sections of Talmud he had committed to memory, clinging to his absolute faith in his beloved Father in Heaven who he so longed for.

Boruch scanned the camp that was filled with his fellow Jews for some remnant of Torah if even just a few letters of its holy letters.

One day Boruch observed how one of the local Polish peasants, a young boy who was enlisted to join the work detail together with the Jewish inmates, would arrive each day bringing along a wrapped sandwich which he would carefully remove, discarding its wrapping on the floor, and begin eating while the Jews would be tossed their meager daily rations, scrounging for every morsel.

On one occasion Boruch noticed that the paper it was wrapped in had what from the distance appeared to be Hebrew lettering on it. After the lad finished his lunch and left, Boruch stealthily made his way over to that spot to pick it up, hopefully unnoticed.

To his utter astonishment and joy he realized that the ‘sandwich wrapper’ was none other than a full daf, page, carefully ripped from a volume of Talmud, in its entirety with all the commentaries on the page intact!

He hugged the page and hung onto it with his life, begging one of his friends to cover for him while he wedged himself into one of the large pipes, hidden from the Satan’s eyes, and immersed himself in G-d’s loving embrace, poring over the words of the Talmud.

To his surprise the next day Boruch noticed that once again his fellow worker’s sandwich was enveloped in what was more delicious than food, a page of Talmud. Evidently this boy’s mother must have come upon a large discarded volume of Talmud, figuring she would make use of this unique wrapping paper. Once again Boruch would quietly secure his ‘daily ration’ of Torah. Little did this ‘sheigitz’ realize he was G-d’s agent sent to hand deliver a daily hug and kiss to His beloved Boruch.

This went on for many days as Boruch was able to receive the vital ‘nourishment’ he would need to be able to survive the war.

Each day tears of joy would stream from his face as he reaped the rewards from his earlier cries of yearning!

•

This past week I was privileged to attend a Siyum HaShas that my beloved son in law Rabbi Yaakov Frand and his lovely wife, my daughter Shuli, celebrated.

As he began the Hadran he expressed those marvelous words:

הדרן עלך תלמוד בבלי והדרך עלן, We will return to you all of Talmud Bavli and you will return to us

דעתן עלך תלמוד בבלי ודעתך עלן, Our mind is on you all of Talmud Bavli and your mind is on us

As he uttered the words his voice cracked as tears streamed down his and his wife’s faces. They recalled the longing, the yearning, the stolen moments dedicated to finishing the daily quotas, the years of toil, and they realized how true the words of King David, ‘In Your Name they rejoice all day long’, resonated in their lives. And they cried tears of joy.

Surrounded by their children, they came to that touching sentiment and prayer:

שלא תמוש התורה מפי ומפי זרעי וזרע זרעי עד עולם, May the Torah never depart from my mouth, my offspring’s mouth nor from my offspring’s offspring

Once again the tears of longing and hope for that beautiful closeness to G-d to be felt throughout all of one’s descendants brought tears to their eyes and to all in attendance.

•

Whether in the darkness of Nazi Germany or in the challenges we face daily amidst the freedom we are privileged to live with, what guarantees our spiritual success and happiness in life is the level by which we express our longing for His closeness with cries of yearning.

We much each ask ourselves: What are the things we cry over? Are we merely crying out of frustrated despair or are we tearfully pining for closeness. The difference between the two is whether we are simply complaining out loud, giving ‘voice’ to our hopelessness, or are we avowing our love, basking in the the warmth of our relationship to G-d, expressing our faith and hope that He will respond to our deepest wishes.

באהבה,

צבי טייכמאן