Tisha b'Av and the Three Weeks of Mourning

Tisha b’Av in the year 2010, begins at sundown on Monday, July 19 and ends at sundown on Tuesday, July 20.

Tisha b’Av (the 9th day of Av) is the saddest day in the Jewish year. It is day of communal mourning, commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem, in 586 BCE and 70 AD, respectively. Other major disasters that affect the Jewish people are also often remembered on this date.

Tisha b’Av is a major fasting holiday and is a “long fast” running from sundown to sundown. In 2010, Tisha b’Av falls on Tuesday, July 20. The fast, thus begins at sun down on Monday, July 19 and continues through sun down on Tuesday, July 20.

The period leading up to Tisha b’Av is known as “The Three Weeks”, known as bein hametzarim in Hebrew. The Three Weeks begins on the 17th day of Tammuz. The 17th day of Tammuz is a “short” fast day, when one fasts from sun up to sun down. Some Jewish communities observe the mourning customs during the entire bein hametzarim. Mourning observances and restrictions that signify mourning include :not wearing leather shoes; avoiding tending to one’s physical appearance, such as bathing, shaving or wearing cosmetics; and abstaining from sexual activities. One often sits on low-stools, or on the floor, another custom of mourning.

In addition, joyous events, such as weddings would never be scheduled during this three-week period. Some people also refrain from participating other forms of entertainment, such as listening to music or going to theater.

At the evening synagogue service on Tisha b’Av, the Book of Lamentations is read aloud. The ark is covered in black.

Other events that are said to have occurred on Tisha b’Av include:
- The edict of 1290 by King Edward I ordering the Jews of England to leave the country.
- The expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492 by order of the Spanish Inquisition under King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella.
- The beginning of World War I.
- In 1942, the deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto began.