When it comes to the day the walls were breached we commemorate only the date for the second Beit HaMikdash (17 Tammuz). When it comes to the siege, why do we only commemorate when it occurred during the time of the first Beit HaMikdash? Why does the Navi call the fasts not by the day […]

Ptolemy ordered the sages to translate the Torah into Greek. The day it was translated is considered by a Chazal to be a dark day. Why? Chazal say some fast on the 9th of Tevet but they wouldn’t give a reason why. Machzor Vitry provides a reason. Unlike 17 Tammuz and 9 Av, the 10th […]

When commemorating loss, we use the halachic system of aveilut, mourning. Fasting is not part of that system, yet when it comes to the four days associated with the loss of the Beit HaMikdash, we don’t only mourn, we fast! Why? We also see, from Zechariah that in the future, when the Beit HaMikdash is […]

Besides the siege of Yerushalayim, two other events occurred in Tevet – the translation of the Torah into Greek and the death of Ezra HaSofer. Why do we fast for Ezra and nobody else and what was the tragedy of the translation of the Torah – Yehoshua translated the Torah into 70 languages? Is there […]

There is no break between Vayigash and Vayechi, Rashi describes it as a closed Parsha, because of the “closure” (emotional/spiritual) Bnei Yisrael felt when Yaakov died. Why describe the feeling as “closed”? The three reasons we fast on Asara B’Tevet are 1) because the Torah was translated into Greek, Ezra passed away, and because siege […]

The Avudraham says that were Asarah B’Tevet to fall on Shabbos we would fast on Shabbos. Why does it warrant fasting even on Shabbos? Shiur provided courtesy of Torah Anytime

Chanukah occurs during the 8 darkest days (the last days of the month) of the darkest month of the year. Why do they break ground on the Second Temple on the last week of Kislev, the darkest time of the year? Recorded at OU Israel’s L’Ayla Rosh Chodesh Women’s Event

In Zechariah the fast days are not connected to specific days but to specific months. Unlike the other fast days connected to the Churban, were Asara B’Tevet to fall on Shabbos we would fast on Shabbos. The purpose of a fast is to do teshuva for the events that occured on that day. If Asara […]

The Gemara in Maseches Rosh HaShana (18b) says that there are three categories regarding the four fasts (of Asarah b’Teves, Shiva Asar b’Tamuz, Tisha b’Av, and Tzom Gedaliah) : 1) when there is gezeiras malchus (persecution) all four fasts are obligatory as fasts, 2) when there is no gezeiras malchus but also not shalom only Tisha b’Av is obligatory, and the rest are optional, 3) when there is shalom all four are Yamim Tovim.  […]

Why do we fast on Tisha B’av?  The primary answer, of course, is to remember the destruction of the Bet HaMikdash and Yerushalayim. Yet, according to the Navi Zechariah, not only Tisha B’av, but all four of the fast days (in which we remember Yerushalayim) will one day take on an added dimension. In the […]