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On the
17th of Tamuz, five calamitous events occurred in our history:
1) Moshe broke the first Tablets of the Ten Commandments when he descended from Mt. Sinai and saw the worshiping of the Golden Calf
2) The Daily Sacrificial Offerings ceased in the First Temple due to lack of sheep
3) The walls of Jerusalem were breached during the siege of the Second Temple
4) Apustumos-the-Wicked burned a Sefer Torah and
5) An idol was placed in the Sanctuary of the Second Temple.
The 17th
of Tamuz is a fast day. The fast begins at dawn and continuing until twenty after sunset. The purpose of the fast is to awaken our hearts to repentance through recalling our forefathers' misdeeds which led to tragedies and our repetition of those mistakes. The fasting is a preparation for repentance -- to break the body's dominance over a person's spiritual side. One should engage in self-examination and undertake to correct mistakes in his relationship with G-d, his fellow man and with himself.
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