As we get closer to the month of Av, I thought I'd share a first draft from RAV HISDA'S DAUGHTER, where my heroine, on the way to observe the fast day in Jerusalem, has the following conversation with her host:
Rabbi Avahu interrupted vehemently. "The Almighty decided to destroy Jerusalem because of Israel’s sins," he said severely. "Rome was merely the instrument He chose to inflict the punishment."
I quickly supported him. "That is what Father and the other scholars in Bavel say."
"Did your father and his students discuss why Jerusalem was destroyed?" He questioned me as though this were a test.
"Many times," I replied, relieved that I was not ignorant on the subject. "Father taught in the name of Rav that Jerusalem was destroyed because they demeaned Torah scholars there, as it is written: They mocked the messengers of Elohim and disdained His words … until the wrath of Adonai rose against His people."
He looked pleased. "Ulla says that the city was destroyed because they had no shame for each other." He then recited the verse from Jeremiah that supported this.
"Rav Hamnuna said it was because they turned children away from Torah study." I too quoted a verse from Jeremiah for proof.
"Reish Lakish told Rabbi Yehuda Nasi that any city in which children do not study Torah would be destroyed," he countered.
I wondered if I could quote more scholars in Bavel on the subject that Rabbi Avahu could from the West. "Abbaye said that Jerusalem was destroyed because they desecrated the Sabbath and Abba bar Joseph said it was because truthful men had disappeared there," I continued.
"And Rabbi Chanina said that it was because they did not admonish each other," he added.
"Rav Yitzhak said that it was because the great and small were considered equal." I was running out of sages so in desperation I asked Rabbi Avahu, “What do you say?”
"I teach that Jerusalem was destroyed because they did not recite the Shema in the morning and evening," he replied. "As it is written: Woe to those who chase old wine early in the morning and are inflamed by wine until late in the evening."
It was prudent to agree with my host. "Any Jew who is so debauched that he cannot perform even the simple mitzvah of reciting the Shema at the proper time is beyond redemption."
Rabbi Avahu must have guessed that I was finished. He looked at me keenly and asked, "Were any of these Eastern scholars your unwanted suitor?"
I nodded and named Abba.
He smiled and proceeded to dispute Abba's statement. "Even during Jerusalem's downfall truthful men did not disappear," he said, quoting a complicated text from Isaiah to prove that though the city's inhabitants were ignorant of Torah, they admitted the fact rather than lie and say they’d forgotten it.
[Note that none of these rabbis suggest that Jerusalem was destroyed because the Jews rebelled against the much stronger Roman Empire. Also note that this is merely the first draft]
I have a good excuse for neglecting this blog; I’m trying very hard to finish the first draft of RAV HISDA'S DAUGHTER. I am up to chapter 26, where in a strange case of real life intersects my character's life, my heroine Hisdadukh is observing Tisha B’Av in Jerusalem [that is, the ruins of Jerusalem], the only day of the year when the Roman authorities allowed Jews inside the city. In Los Angeles this year, we have just begun the three weeks of mourning leading up to Tisha B'Av.
That’s all I have time to post now about my writing progress, but I'm also including a link to an interview I did for a publishing blog. For those who want to know a bit more about how I became an author, here is your chance.
On the Orthodox Union website, Rabbi Ari Zivitofsky compellingly argues it is a misconception that Rashi's daughters wore tefillin, albeit a popular one. I posted a comment on his post, which you’ll find below. But please read his article first.
As part of the extensive research behind my RASHI'S DAUGHTERS novels, no subject intrigued me more than the elusive [and ubiquitous] legend that they wore tefillin. Indeed, when I first started studying Talmud and was introduced to Rashi, I was told that legends held that they were learned and wore tefillin.
I actually tracked the earliest mention of this back to the 18th century, but there was no evidence provided. Ari Zivitofsky is entirely correct that to this day there is no proof that Rashi’s daughters wore tefillin.
However, there is evidence [Machzor Vitry and others] that a few women did wear tefillin in 11th-12th century Ashkenaz. And one might argue that if any women were going to wear tefillin in that time, surely it would have been one of Rashi's daughters. As far as I’m concerned, the answer to the question "did Rashi's daughters" wear tefillin is "maybe, maybe not."
Of course including legends is permitted, and perhaps even obligatory, when writing fiction about real historical figures – which is why Rashi's daughters do wear tefillin in my novels.
A little over 5 months ago, as you may recall, I had emergency surgery for a detached retina less than a week before Ari's wedding. It's been a slow recovery, as I had to endure too not uncommon side effects, bleeding and double vision, which made it quite difficult to see.
For those of you who drove me around, especially at night, I thank you so much. One of my biggest difficulties was that the surgery changed my vision so much that my previous glasses were worse than useless [at least on the affected eye]. Thank heaven I discovered www.eyebuydirect.com , where I could enter my prescription and get new glasses for $8 + postage. Over the next 4 months, I bought 4 different pair as my vision slowly stabilized.
Today I saw my ophthalmologist, who said my surgery looked beautiful, the scar tissue was perfectly in position, and that I didn't need another appointment for 3 months. In addition, I could finally order a pair of more permanent glasses, as my vision was unlikely to change much in the future.
I just have to keep an eye out [pardon the pun] for a retinal detachment on my other eye, since having it on one eye increases the risk of having it on another. But otherwise, I'm good to go and all's well that end's well.
Thanks for all your prayers, good thoughts and support. And by the way, I'm up to Chapter 24 of RAV HISDA'S DAUGHTER.