Shabbat Nachamu

Tonight begins Shabbat Nachamu, my favorite Shabbat, as you might guess from the name of my blog. The first Shabbat after Tisha b'Av, it is named after the Haftarah portion, which begins with the words nachamu, nachamu ami (take comfort my people). These words were offered after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 586 BCE, but they are still needed today. We are faced with many devastating realities, and we need to remember that we can take comfort in what we have.