In Megilat Eicha it says, "Boche tivche b'layla." She weeps continually in the night. What are we mourning for and why is it all pervading and never ending? The Sifsei Chaim explains that the beit hamikdash was the medium through which we felt Hashem's presence radiating throughout the world. When it was destroyed, the Shechina departed and in its place came darkness and concealment. Our feeling of connection to Hashem was severed. The Gemara writes that before the churban the angels had six wings. After the destruction, only four wings remained. The Gra explains that the two middle wings were inscribed with the words kavod malchuto (the glory of his kingship). In essence, Hashem's glory departed along with the beit hamikdash. We can no longer see the manifestation of Hashem's Presence in this world.

Perhaps the best description of what we are mourning for is reflected in an insight by Rabbi Tatz. During the period when prophecy ended, the Men of the Great Assemblyenacted the birchat hanehin, the blessings said over physical pleasures. When prophecy existed the world was alive with the glow of the Shechina. Every object radiated its source. Today the darkness is so thick, the materialism so oppressive, that we need the blessing to arouse us to identify Hashem as the source of material blessing. How many of us stop and reflect on the Divine Providence so intimately involved in every physical gift we enjoy? We not only lost the beit mikdash but the ability to see the incredible Hidden Force that runs this world. The core of baseless hatred which triggered the destruction was failing to recognize the inherent divine spark within every person. We lost that x-ray vision of being able to discern divinity behind the mask of nature.

When a Jew feels uninspired in his study and prayer and feels estranged from his immediate and life- long goals and purpose, he and the Shechina are suffering a mutual alienation. We can be praying, saying blessings, even learning, and unfortunately never once think about Hashem. The Three Weeks is about reexamining ourselves, "How am I serving Hashem? Am I involved or am I distant?" It's not just Shechinta begaluta, that Hashem has abandoned us, but that we have left Hashem. We are so far from the reality of closeness to Hashem that we are mourning over the fact that it is difficult for us to mourn.

The medium that will bring the geulah will be our yearning for Mashiach. A seed must decompose before it can grow into a flowering plant. Similarly the destruction of the beit hamikdash and our exile was intended to strip away all of Israel's superficial aspects and allow us to blossom into Messianic fulfillment. The Three Weeks is not just about weeping and mourning for what was. It is also about anticipation, desire and yearning for the House of David to flourish once more. This, says the Nesivos Sholom, is what mourning over the beit mikdash is about. It's not just about being sad over the destruction but desiring it to be rebuilt again.

The Nesivos Sholom points out that the 22 days of bein hametzorim parallel the 22 Days of Awe between Rosh Hashana and Shemini Atzeret. It's like painting a picture. First you paint a black background and then you paint the different colors. The Three Weeks is the black background meant to bring out the yearning for Hashem that comes to the fore during the Days of Awe. It's about recognizing that we are missing that divine link in our life on a national and personal level and in our relationship with others. It's sensing the lack of malchut Hashem so that we enter Rosh Hashana with a desire to crown Hashem king. It's approaching Yom Kippur with newfound sensitivity to others and celebrating Simchat Torah with Hashem in the center. When we have this recognition of what we are missing and the yearning to fill it we can approach the yomim noraim with the right perspective.