Many girls like to run playgroups/day camps on Tisha B’Av, some girls even run them for eight to nine hours, starting early Tisha B’Av morning and finishing late on Tisha B’Av afternoon. One isn’t supposed to work on Tisha B’Av. Does running such a day camp go into this prohibition? Assuming we allow girls to run day camp’s as it’s a big chesed for the mothers as it makes it much easier for them to fast, are the girls who run such things allowed to charge? The Gemara in Ta’anis (30b) teaches: “Anyone who does work on Tisha B’Av won’t see any blessing”. Assuming running a day camp is a mitzvah and the girls are allowed to take money, would the above Gemara apply, or do we say that since it’s a mitzvah, they may take money and they will see berachah? If it is a problem, what can be done to make charging lechatchilah [ideal]?
Source and Reason for the Prohibition Against Working on Tisha B’Av
The Mishnah in Pesochim (54b) teaches: “In a place where the custom is to work on Tisha B’Av one may work, and in place where the custom is not to work on Tisha B’Av, one should not. In all places, talmiday chachomim should not work. R’ Shimon ben Gamliel says, regarding this halachah one should make himself like a talmid chocham (i.e. everyone should refrain from working).”
The Rishonim dispute the reasoning behind the above halachah. The Magen Avraham (554 s.k. 23) quotes the Bartenura in Pesochim (4:5) who explains that the reason not to work is, “so that people don’t take their minds off mourning”. However, the Shu”t Terumas HaDeshen (1:153) explains that the reason is so that one causes “affliction” (inuy) to himself, like it says in Ta’anis (30b): “R’ Shimon ben Gamliel said, ‘A person should make himself like a talmid chocham (i.e. not work), כדי שיתענה – so that he should feel afflicted’”. The Terumas HaDeshen quotes Rashi (we don’t have it in our Gemaras): כדי שיתענה כלומר עינוי הוא להם שהיו בטלים מהמלאכה – “In order to feel afflicted, meaning, it’s an affliction for one not to be working.”
The Terumas HaDeshen explains: According to this reason, if one is doing a job which takes time and there will be an amount of time where one is missing out on feeling afflicted (as he is busy with work), he should refrain from doing it, even if it’s an easy job. However, when it comes to activities such as lighting candles or tying things together, where no effort or time is involved, then it’s obvious that such acts may be carried out on Tisha B’Av.
If this is not the intention of the girls running the day camps, it would be better for them not to do it, as one shouldn’t take his mind off mourning over the destruction of the Beis HaMikdosh. The Tur (559) writes: “We should translate the kinnos so that women and children can understand them”, consequently, if the purpose of the playgroup isn’t to make it easier for the mothers, then it would seem that it’s wrong to run one. If the girls running the camps tell stories about the churban and draw pictures of it, it would make things easier, as they aren’t taking their minds off mourning over the churban.
