06 Aug TISHA B’AV: REPRESENTING HASHEM

One of the prohibitions that
apply on Tishah B’Av is that
we do not wear normal
shoes. In the olden days,
people would walk about
barefoot on Tishah B’Av,
whereas nowadays we have
non-leather shoes or slippers that we
wear. Fundamentally, though, Tishah B’Av is
a day when we do not wear shoes. Let’s look
at the other times when shoes are not
permitted:
• Yom Kippur.
• Kohanim serving in the Bet Ha’mikdash.
• When Hashem appeared to Moshe at the
burning bush, He told him to take off his
shoes, because it was a holy site.
• When Yehoshua saw an angel, the angel
told him to remove his shoes.
If we take Tishah B’Av out of this list, we see
a pattern: removing shoes is associated with
holiness.
Moshe and Yehoshua were told to remove
their shoes when they were speaking to
Hashem, or to an angel. The kohanim remove
their shoes when they serve in the sacred site
of the Bet Ha’mikdash. On Yom Kippur, we

achieve a special level of holiness, so we
keep our shoes off.
The Rabbis explain that after the sin of Adam
and Havah in Gan Eden, Hashem cursed the
ground, and this is why we generally wear
shoes. But when we achieve kedushah, we
undo the curse, and so we remove our
shoes. (This also explains why mourners
don’t wear shoes – to show that their loved
one has left this world, and is now in the next
world, where there is no curse.)
BUT WHAT ABOUT TISHAH B’AV?
Why do we take off our shoes on Tishah
B’Av?
The answer lies in a basic understanding of
what Tishah B’Av is, why we mourn, and
why we look forward to the time
when Mashiah comes and the Bet
Ha’mikdash is rebuilt.
Most people want Mashiah because all their
problems are then going to be solved. But this
is not the most important thing that will
happen when Mashiah comes. At that time,
the whole world will recognize
Hashem. There will be a great kiddush
Hashem. Hashem’s greatness will be seen
and felt by EVERYBODY. This is what we
hope for.
On Tishah B’Av we remove our shoes like we
do on Yom Kippur and like the kohanim do in
the Bet Ha’mikdash – because we look
forward to the time when the earth with be
filled with kedushah, filled with an awareness
of Hashem.
But even while we wait for Mashiah, we can
start achieving this goal, right now. Today.
And we do this by realizing that we represent
Hashem to the world, and that we are able to
bring glory to Hashem, to make a kiddush
Hashem, by the way we conduct ourselves.
It does not matter AT ALL how religious you
look. They know we’re Jews. And they’re
watching us. Very carefully. So, the way we
conduct ourselves is the way Hashem is
represented to the world.
Making a kiddush Hashem, acting in a way
which brings respect to the Jewish Nation
and to Hashem, is not just about making sure
the non-Jews like us. It’s so much more than
that. It’s about being excited and proud about
who we are, about having a special
relationship with Hashem. If we are proud
about our distinction as Hashem’s special
nation, then of course we want to make a

good impression. Of course we want to
conduct ourselves in a dignified, respectable
manner.
If an employee goes to a meeting on behalf of
his company, then assuming his job is
important to him, he will want very much to
represent his company in a way which brings
respect. The same is true of our Jewishness. If
we are proud of who we are, then we want to
represent our “company” in a way which
brings us respect.
We don’t have to wait till Mashiah comes to
fill the world with kedushah. We can do this
right now, by acting in a manner which makes
a kiddush Hashem, in a manner which brings
glory to G-d and to His beloved nation.