Tishah B’Av (the 9th of Av) is a day that commemorates a number of tragedies in Jewish history, including the destruction of the first and second temples. It is observed as a day of mourning. Traditionally the book of Eicha (Lamentations) is studied as part of the observance. This text laments the destruction of the first Temple in Jerusalem in the 6th century BCE. We will examine this text with a contemporary lens and consider what it means to mourn the destruction of Israel in a modern context.