Fast of 17 Tammuz

Fast of 17 Tammuz, a minor Jewish observance on the 17th day of the Hebrew month of Tammuz, falling in June or July on the Gregorian calendar. The holiday inaugurates the Three Weeks, a period of mourning that culminates in the 24-hour fast of Tisha b’Av. Jews observing the Fast of 17 Tammuz keep a fast from dawn until nightfall. If the holiday falls on a Sabbath, then the fast is observed on Sunday. Although its precise origin is unclear, Jewish thought has associated the fast with several unhappy historical events, a theme that the sorrowful Tisha b’Av echoes and amplifies three weeks later. Examples of unfortunate events said to have occurred on 17 Tammuz include the breaching of the walls of Jerusalem by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II in 586 bce, the capture of Jerusalem by Titus in 70 ce, the breaking of the tablets of the Law by Moses upon seeing worship of the golden calf, the burning of the Torah by Apostomus, the suspension of whole offerings and the cessation of sacrifices in the Temple of Jerusalem, and the erection of an idol in the Temple’s sanctuary by the Romans. Subsequent events pertaining to the Inquisition and the Holocaust were later added to the litany of calamities.