This Sunday (July 24th, 2016) is the 17th
of Tammuz. It is a fast day that commemorates five tragedies as described in
the Talmud (Tractate Ta’anit 26b). The Talmud states that the first tragedy was
the Sin of the Golden Calf. After the Children of Israel miscalculated the
time/date for Moshe’s return they built a Golden Calf. Meanwhile, Moshe was
receiving the Torah on Mount Sinai. He came down carrying the Ten Commandments, crafted and written by the Finger of God. As Moshe saw the Golden calf he
smashed the tablets. That date was the 17th of Tammuz.
Also on this day the Korban
Tamid was stopped - the daily offering of two sacrifices one in the morning
and one in the afternoon. This was because the siege of Jerusalem was so severe
that they had ran out of lambs to offer for the Korban Tamid.
The third catastrophe was the walls of Jerusalem were
breached during the Second Temple under the Romans led by Titus who later
became Emperor Titus. Jerusalem was breached on the 9th of Tammuz when the First Temple was destroyed by The Babylonians.
During the Greek oppression before the Hasmonean Victory and
the Miracles of Hanukah, a Greek General called Apostomus burned a Sefer Torah.
This was the first recorded instance of book burning and led the way for all
the book burnings throughout our history. There is a debate if Apostomus was actually a Roman in a later time period. Have a look here.
And
finally an Idol was placed in the Temple. There is a dispute whether this
was done by the evil Jewish King Menashe during the First Temple Period or
whether it was done by Apostomus during the Greek persecutions during the Second
Temple period.
These five reasons each in their own right would make for a
day of fasting for the Jewish People but together they make this day the second
saddest day in our calendar. This day is also three weeks before the 9th
of Av which is the saddest day of our calendar. I will write more about that
day in the coming weeks.
As we enter this period of the three weeks our Ashkenazic
brothers and sisters take on a number of mourning practices. The vast majority
of Sephardim (except Moroccans) don’t have mourning practices until the week of
Tisha B’Av.
Nevertheless this is a sad period in our calendar and it is time
when mitzvah observance specifically better relationships between man and his
fellow are emphasized. Wishing you all a meaningful Fast of Tammuz. May our fasting, sincere repentance and
improved mitzvah observance see an improvement in the situation in Israel.
Thank you Rabbi Hassan your articles on the 17th of Tammuz and Tisha B'Av, as always, are most helpful and welcome. Shabbat Shalom.
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