Zahava Farbman, a PhD candidate, director of the Crisis and Trauma Center, and adjunct professor at the Wurzweiler School of Social Work, has published a piece in the most recent issue of the Benjamin and Rose Berger Torah To-Go series for Tisha B’Av titled “We All Respond Differently to Crisis.”

“On Tisha B’av,” she notes, “we have instructions and expectations that correspond to the ‘spiritual atmosphere of the day,’ emotional regulations that demonstrate our belief in our God and our desire to follow His laws.” However, she asks, what about those days when we we feel sadness and despair that do not correspond with prescribed days of mourning? What is permitted, and what signifies faith?

In her piece, she describes the various teachings that speak about this condition and concludes that “Hashem understands and validates all of our emotions and will ultimately wipe [away] all our tears.”