Rabbi Howard Morrison

Today, the tenth of Tevet, is a Fast on the Jewish calendar. It begins at sunrise and ends with the onset of Shabbat. It is one of four Fasts which revolve around the destruction of the first Temple in Jerusalem. On the tenth of Tevet, the Babylonians besieged the city of Jerusalem. On the seventeenth of Tammuz, they breached the walls of the city. On the ninth of Av, they destroyed the holy Temple. On the second of Tishrei, the Fast of Gedaliah is also associated with the events leading to the destruction of the first Temple.

There are other associations with the Fast tomorrow. Before Yom Ha'Shoah was established, the tenth of Tevet had been delcared as a universal Fast day for commemorating the Shoah. It made sense since many Jews were already fasting. In addition, the Yahrzeit of Ezra the Scribe is observed on the tenth of Tevet.

Lastly, it is recorded in our tradition that one should fast on this particular date because it commemorates the translation of the Torah into Greek, known as the Septuagint. While early Talmudic sources actually praise the translation of the Torah into Greek, a post-Talmudic volume called Masechet Sofrim, circa. eighth century, compares the translation to the day the golden calf was built. Modern scholars understand the shift in attitude not being that the translation in itself was bad; however, by the eighth century, the early Church was using the Greek translation to undermine Judaism and the Jewish people.

I hope that each of us can find some meaning in better appreciating the significance of the tenth of Tevet.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison