Rabbi Roodyn

Tzom Gedalya is the final fast commemorating the destruction of Yerushalayim. A few years after the destruction of the first Beis Hamikdash, the Jews were granted a limited degree of autonomy under Gedalya. The Rambam (Hilchos Taaniyos 2:2) says that as a result of this the ember of Israel that remained was extinguished, causing their exile to become complete. This is the conclusion of the tragic story of the churban, leaving the land of Israel desolate and bereft until the time of Ezra and Nechemya.

Being that it appears to be an intruder in time and not really connected to the rest of Tishrei, Tzom Gedalya is somewhat of an enigma. People have different ways of relating to the fast, some ignore it, some begrudgingly try and get through it and some welcome it as a break from the heavy Yom Tov meals!

They key to making the most of the fast is to take a step back to understand why we fast in general. The Rambam in the previous halacha writes as follows:

“There are days when the entire Jewish people fast because of the calamities that occurred to them then, to arouse [their] hearts and initiate [them in] the paths of repentance. This will serve as a reminder of our wicked conduct and that of our ancestors, which resembles our present conduct and therefore brought these calamities upon them and upon us. By reminding ourselves of these matters, we will repent and improve [our conduct], as [Leviticus 26:40] states: “And they will confess their sin and the sin of their ancestors.” “

The key to appreciating the value of Tzom Gedalya is to realise what fasting is meant to achieve. The purpose of abstaining from food and drink is to arouse our hearts and initiate the paths of repentance. On Rosh Hashana we (hopefully) got our priorities straight, we crowned Hashem as King through accepting upon ourselves to do His will in the best possible way. Wonderful though that is, it’s purely theoretical and is liable to dissipate quicker than we would like unless we take some concrete steps.

Today is the first ‘proper’ day of the aseres yemei teshuva, it’s time to get personal. For the next week, Hashem is closer to us than at any other time of the year. This is the time of year when change is easiest. It is an opportunity to see if our actions are actually consistent with the values that we expressed on Rosh Hashana.

Tzom Gedalya is therefore much more than a ‘dry run’ for Yom Kippur. Rather it is the start of a week of focussed Teshuva. The purpose of today is therefore not just to avoid eating and drinking, let us make some time to open our hearts and minds to think about how we can make a change for the better.