Tenth of Tevet

The 10th of Tevet (Hebrew: עשרה בטבת, Assara beTevet ) is a "small" fast day in Judaism. He falls either on the seventh or eighth day after the end of Hanukkah, depending on whether Rosh Chodesh ( the beginning of the month ) of the month Tevet includes one or two days.

The 10th of Tevet commemorates the beginning of the siege of Jerusalem by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon in 597 BCE He put a ring around Jerusalem, which ultimately lead to the destruction of Solomon's Temple ( the first temple ) and the Babylonian conquest of the Kingdom of Judah and the exile of the Jewish people led.

Fasting begins at dawn and ends at nightfall. In addition to the prohibition of eating and drinking, there are no further restrictions. If the 10 Tevet on a Friday will be fasting on the same day, you can not mislaid it, for it is said: " on this day " ( Ez 24.2 EU).

In the morning prayers ( Shacharit ) and afternoon ( Mincha ) made ​​special insertions for the fast day, the so-called Slichot and the " Anenu ", an additional blessing in the Amidah. In some communities the prayer Avinu Malkeinu is also recited. In addition, from the Torah, a special section for the fast day will be read in the afternoon in addition a passage from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.

The 10th of Tevet is set as the " day of the general Kaddish " in memory of the victims of mass exterminations during the Shoah, whose date of death is unknown. On this day, one lights a memory of light, says the Kaddish and studied sections on the collection of souls.