Tisha B'Av - Day of Mourning

I realize that the fast about to be described is not a Scripturally mandated fast, such as the Day of Atonement. However, given that we are called to pray for the peace of Jerusalem; and that it is declared that those who bless Israel will be blessed I thought it only proper to offer to my grafted-in brethren information pertaining to this 25 hour day of mourning. May we stand in solidarity with our Yuhidim family and "mourn with those who mourn."

We also "rejoice with those that rejoice" in that through Yahweh's provision of Yahshua Ha Mashiach, we know that we who have come to this faith are the temple of Yah. By Yahshua's sacrifice as the Lamb of Yahweh, we have access to the throne of heaven as we continue to walk in the halachka of our Rabboni, Yahshua.

It is with this above in mind that we, the grafted-in members of Abraham's family stand with our firmly rooted brothers and sisters while all of us await that day when Messiah is revealed on earth and Yahweh's will is fully accomplished in the tikkun olam! (the restoring of the world)

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Five misfortunes befell our fathers ... on the ninth of Av. ...On the ninth of Av it was decreed that our fathers should not enter the [Promised] Land, the Temple was destroyed the first and second time, Bethar was captured and the city [Jerusalem] was ploughed up. -Mishnah Ta'anit 4:6

...Should I weep in the fifth month [Av], separating myself, as I have done these so many years? -Zechariah 7:3

In the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month ...came Nebuzaradan ... and he burnt the house of Yahweh... -II Kings 25:8-9

In the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month... came Nebuzaradan ... and he burnt the house of Yahweh... - Jeremiah 52:12-13

How then are these dates to be reconciled? On the seventh the heathens entered the Temple and ate therein and desecrated it throughout the seventh and eighth and towards dusk of the ninth they set fire to it and it continued to burn the whole of that day. ... How will the Rabbis then [explain the choice of the 9th as the date]? The beginning of any misfortune [when the fire was set] is of greater moment. -Talmud Ta'anit 29a

Tisha B'Av, the Fast of the Ninth of Av, is a day of mourning to commemorate the many tragedies that have befallen the Jewish people, many of which coincidentally have occurred on the ninth of Av.

Tisha B'Av means "the ninth (day) of Av." It usually occurs during August. The date for 2008 is 9 August beginning at sunset through 10 August ending one hour after sunset.

Tisha B'Av primarily commemorates the destruction of the first and second Temples, both of which were destroyed on the ninth of Av (the first by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.E.; the second by the Romans in 70 C.E.).

Although this holiday is primarily meant to commemorate the destruction of the Temple, it is appropriate to consider on this day the many other tragedies of the Jewish people, many of which occurred on this day, most notably the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492. [1]

Tisha B'Av is the culmination of a three week period of increasing mourning, beginning with the fast of the 17th of Tammuz, which commemorates the first breach in the walls of Jerusalem, before the First Temple was destroyed. During this three week period, weddings and other parties are not permitted, and people refrain from cutting their hair. From the first to the ninth of Av, it is customary to refrain from eating meat or drinking wine (except on the Shabbat) and from wearing new clothing.

The restrictions on Tisha B'Av are similar to those on Yom Kippur: to refrain from eating and drinking (even water); washing, bathing, shaving or wearing cosmetics; wearing leather shoes; engaging in sexual relations; and studying Torah. Work in the ordinary sense of the word [rather than the Shabbat sense] is also restricted. People who are ill need not fast on this day. Many of the traditional mourning practices are observed: people refrain from smiles, laughter and idle conversation, and sit on low stools.

In synagogue, the book of Lamentations is read and mourning prayers are recited. The ark (cabinet where the Torah is kept) is draped in black.

List of Dates
Tisha B'Av will occur on the following days of the Gregorian calendar:

Jewish Year 5768: sunset August 9, 2008 - nightfall August 10, 2008
Jewish Year 5769: sunset July 29, 2009 - nightfall July 30, 2009
Jewish Year 5770: sunset July 19, 2010 - nightfall July 20, 2010
Jewish Year 5771: sunset August 8, 2011 - nightfall August 9, 2011
Jewish Year 5772: sunset July 27, 2012 - nightfall July 28, 2012
For additional holiday dates, see Links to Jewish Calendars.



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[1.] The Alhambra Decree, issued March 31, 1492, ordered all Jews to leave Spain by the end of July 1492. July 31, 1492 was Tisha B'Av. Note that if you use a Jewish calendar converter to check this, it may show July 31 as the 27th of Tammuz. If so, the converter has failed to take into account the Gregorian Reformation, which skipped 11 days on the calendar. If you add the 11 missing days and convert August 11 instead of July 31, you will see that "August 11" 1492 is 9 Av.

courtesy: Tracey R Rich