Fast of the 17th of Tammuz

On the 9th of July 2009 will be the fast of the 17th of Tammuz, the Mishnah says (my translation):

“Five things befell our fathers on the seventeenth of Tammuz, and five on the ninth of Av. On the seventeenth of Tammuz, the Tablets [10 Commandments] were destroyed, the Tamid [sacrifice] was stopped, the city [Jerusalem] was breached, Apostomus burned the Torah and an idol was erected in the Temple…” [Taanit 4:6]

Each one of these tragedies relates to a different aspect of our Jewish experience:

The 10 Commandments represents the revelation at Mount Sinai. The story of the Jewish nation does not begin with the forefathers, nor with Moses – the Jews only fully attained nationhood when we stood together as free men at the foot of Mount Sinai and heard the voice of Hashem and received the Written and Oral Law. The breaking of these Tablets symbolizes the severing of our connection to this momentous and defining event.

The Tamid offering was a daily sacrifice that ceased to be offered on the 17th of Tammuz. The significance of this represents our daily devotion to Hashem – allowing our Judaism to flow through our lives rather than compartmentalize it as a mere occasional ‘activity’. The termination of this offering indicates a termination in our dedication and continual relationship with Hashem.

Jerusalem is a walled city, and militarily, the walls were a significant defense mechanism against attackers. Once the walls were breached, this lead to the eventual destruction of the city and Temple and the exile of the Jewish people from Jerusalem. Jerusalem can also symbolize the Jewish community. Intermarriage, assimilation and conversion represent a breach in the walls of our community – allowing the unwanted in, and the wanted out.

The Torah is our way of life. It is a speech given by Hashem telling the Jews exactly how to have a strong and loving relationship with Him. While the physical Torah itself is but parchment and ink, the words embody the meaning of life and have carried and protected the Jewish nation throughout history. When the Torah was burned, it was not just the physical scroll that was destroyed – it was the burning of the very soul of our nation.

Finally, Hashem makes it very clear that there is only one G-d; you shall have no other gods. The repetition of the prohibition of idolatry becomes painfully clear that this is a grievous sin – even being compared to extra-marital affairs in the books of the Prophets. To place an idol in the Temple – the dwelling place of Hashem – is a heinous slap in the face to G-d. This deplorable event reminds us that true strength, wisdom and prosperity come only from Hashem – no other force acts independently, and no other power interacts with this world other than the One True G-d.

In the lead up, and on the 17th of Tammuz, we should pay particular attention to address these five areas of our lives. Destruction should be viewed as the prelude to rebuilding, improvement and success. In these upcoming days, I will be meditating on the revelation at Sinai, building and strengthening our community, letting Judaism flow through every part of my life and focusing on the Unity, and my devotion to Hashem.

By Yehoshua Nagel, Yeshoshua is a Be-True Rep with Be-True, Australia at The University of New South Wales in Sydney.