Fast of 17 of Tammuz

Judaism really does have a love/hate relationship with food. When we celebrate its always with food, and when we mourn its always with lack of food.

On the 17 of tammuz the Romans surrounded Jerusalem and layed siege to the city for over a year. Starving the Jews turned to eating anything they could find including dead bodies. It was a sad time in the history of the Jewish people and begins the process that exiled our people until this day. To commemorate this event and the start of the three weeks of mourning, we fast.

From sunrise to sunset we do not eat or drink. We focus on something greater than ourselves. I must state here fasting is not a healthy nor reccomnede menthod of dieting. But fast are built in to the jewish year (we have five) and I believe they are important not to loose a few pounds but to gain a better insight into food and ourselves.

Fasting is a way of detaching our physical selves from the spiritual. By fasting I am saying I choose when I eat, and what I eat, and I am greater than the food I eat. I the last few week of my diet journey I have begun to examine my relationship with food more and more closely. I definitely do not have healthy attitude toward food. I would venture to say I live to eat instead of eating to live.

And I am going to make this fast an addition to my food relationship. Sometimes, we need to not focus on ourselves but others and in doing so we become better people. When I over eat I am thinking about others and their plight no I am thinking about myself. If I thought about other before myself would I probably eat less. So I am going to take this fasting as an opportunity to better myself by focusing on others and hopefully gain a bit more clarity.

If you would like to know more about 17 of tammuz here are some links below

http://www.aish.com/h/9av/oal/48943446.html

http://www.chabad.org/holidays/3weeks/insights/article_cdo/aid/144771/jewish/Insights.htm