Showing posts with label disaster. Show all posts
Showing posts with label disaster. Show all posts

Friday, September 1, 2017

Johnny Enlow: "Harvey, Houston, Hope and Joel's Army" - THE ELIJAH LIST

Johnny Enlow: "Harvey, Houston, Hope and Joel's Army"


THE ELIJAH LIST Sep 1, 2017

Steve ShultzFrom the desk of Steve Shultz:
This is a most eye-opening word from Johnny Enlow. I could describe it with some Ps: potent, powerful, prolific and of course prophetic...I would also add pro-active as it provides us with some much needed plans to prepare and pray for what God wants to do!
If you've been following Johnny Enlow's articles, you know that he is not one to shy away from subject matter nor sugar coat what he is speaking...and that's his style. Know that as you read through his word.
This is a bit lengthy, so I'll let you get right at it. Grab a cup of coffee and please thoroughly read through and make sure to forward on to others as well! 
(To Subscribe to the Elijah List subscribe here.)
Enjoy! And thanks for forwarding this to your friends! They can subscribe here.
Order the Download
Steve Shultz, Founder and Publisher
The Elijah List & Breaking Christian News 
http://www.elijahlist.com
P.S. – Oh, and a Quick Note to our readers: To EXPLORE our more than 2,500 Christian Prophetic books, CDs, and gifts go to: elijahshopper.com.
HR


As I write this post the rain is still falling in Houston. What reportedly is the worst rainstorm in US history continues to drench Texas and now Louisiana before it heads north to perhaps flood other states. In a matter of a few days, more than 50 inches of rain have fallen. Surely no city on the earth could take that much water in such a short time without dire consequences. As of this moment, the low loss of life has to be considered miraculous. Yet, a preliminary estimate has the damages of this disaster exceeding 50 billion dollars with a timetable of years before "normality" will ever come back to Houston, if at all. Even early in this process I believe that the Lord has something to say: Houston will rise again and be famed as a City of Hope—but I will get to that in a moment.
First, I will address some relevant questions being asked:
Was it Judgment from God?
Suddenly prophecies of "judgment" have surfaced everywhere attaching Houston's flooding to the large abortion center they have there or the fact that they had a gay mayor. As I ponder on that, I wonder why the city would not be flooded WHILE the gay mayor was still in office, and not sure why God couldn't figure out how to isolate the abortion center with the flooding. If He is into saving innocent lives, why is He allowing so much harm to thousands of innocents (with some deaths) in order to teach that lesson? Could He not have just hit the abortion clinic with lightning bolts and made the message a little clearer?
Why does God destroy the livelihood of thousands of innocents to judge the sin of a few? Even the "Old Testament God" wouldn't destroy Sodom and Gomorrah "if there were but 10 righteous." Yet, here He is wiping out a city of millions in order to get to the evil minority? Tragically this type of thinking represents the status quo thinking for so many Believers today. Sadly, it reveals our own broken perception of our Father, which we then confidently/defiantly pass on to others. For the record, I don't believe that this represents judgment from God. As Jesus told His own "judgment expectant" disciples in Luke 9:56 when they wanted to call down fire from Heaven on those who resisted God in the flesh (could there a greater offense?): "the Son of Man came not to destroy lives but to save lives."
Was it the Devil?
Steve ShultzWell, one thing we know is that the devil has a very reduced vision and mission statement and that is "to steal, kill and destroy." Any time there is anything stolen, anyone killed or anything destroyed, it is good to suspect his involvement. Furthermore, if people misbehaving (sin) gives him a legal right to destroy a city or nation, surely there is no city or nation in the world that is safe. However, though under substantial satanic duress, the world continues to expand its population, cities continue to grow, and even nations advance. Why is not every city with "abominable sinners" under water? If the answer to that question is that intercessors stem the judgment, then why were they ignored in Houston? I happen to know there are some good ones there. Now, I am not necessarily going to give a lot of neat and tidy answers to matters that there aren't neat and tidy answers for, but let me just tell you what I am hearing from the Lord: "Creation too has a voice."
When Creation Groans and Travails
Romans 8:22 says that "...creation groans and travails for the revealing of the sons of God." What it doesn't tell us is HOW creation groans and travails and what that looks like. I will suggest to you that many so-called natural disasters are neither God, satan or chance, but an expression of creation crying out for the children of God to be who they are supposed to be—so that creation itself can be what it is called to be. Romans 8:21 says that "...creation itself, will be brought into the glorious liberty of the sons of God."
I suppose in some way it could be considered "judgment" that we are not yet there, but it is not intended as judgment but rather a cry for freedomWe know that when Jesus died the earth shook and went dark, and that neither of these were connected to either an order from God or an involvement of satan. Added to this mystery of creation having a voice, is the fact that certain angels are given latitudes we don't fully know the limits to even if we have neat and tidy "angel doctrines".
In Exodus 23:20-21, the Lord told Moses to tell the people to "not provoke" the angel that He was sending among them because if not he would not "pardon their transgressions." This angel was presumably Michael, and we are not told exactly what his "not pardoning" would look like. I do know that I was told by the Spirit some time back that territorial angels were being given orders to do what was necessary to bring their cities, regions and nations into alignment with their destiny. Ultimately, I believe we are going to see a lot more partnering between great angels and creation towards the reformation of cities and nations.
If it strikes you as bizarre that creation would have intelligence, remember that at the quantum, subatomic particle level everything has its own distinct frequency and sound. That frequency and sound represents some level of communicating intelligence even if it is operationally different than those made directly in His image.
Hurricane Harvey
I don't think there is any coincidence in the name that this storm was given. Harvey means "battle worthy" or "ready for war". The name stood out to me because last year I was shown by the Spirit a very great angel of "Harvest Glory" nicknamed Harvey. I talked about it in a word I released right before the AzusaNow event in Los Angeles ("AzusaNow: The Convergence of the Ages and the Harvest Glory Angel" posted on the Elijah List)—that I was shown that he was a great angel that had wide parameters of operation and that he was being released at another level at the stadium event.
I had a couple people later contact me saying they saw this great angel there and described him similarly to how I described him, with one person even drawing what they saw. He is huge and glorious and carries a sickle that operates as an extension of himself. He is all about harvesting people and nations, and is always associated with bringing great economic help and releasing great anointing and spiritual mantles. His initial activation, as it were, in the United States was at the 1906 Azusa Street Revival.
All the shifts and changes of the last year are very connected to the breakthrough of the AzusaNow event and Hurricane Harvey is now taking it to the next level. I believe this angel is being activated as a "heavenly hurricane" at this time and extremely anointed and change/reform is what he is bringing. (More explanation coming.)
Coming through Corpus Christi
"There is an opportunity for the Body of Christ to recognize that God, the Redeemer, is up to something big as it relates to the restoration of Houston."
Of no coincidence either is that the hurricane came through Corpus Christi. Corpus Christi means "the Body of Christ" and this is where the spiritual hurricane is now going to come through as we are thrust into the harvest glory of revival AND reformation. The nations are the reward HE is due for the suffering He went through. Corpus Christi was deeply affected by the powerful winds and over 20 inches of rain, but they were not devastated. Likewise, the Church is about to experience powerful and non-ignorable winds of the Holy Spirit, and a flooding of new manifestations and levels of His glory. There is definitely correction involved in this powerful visitation, but it is all to serve the greater glory. Expect to see an increase of strong winds of reformation for the Body of Christ.
A 500-Year Flood/500 Year Anniversary of Protestant Reformation
It has been reported multiple times already that the flooding from Harvey is a one-in-500-year event (some say perhaps even one-in-1000-year event). It has already been confirmed as the greatest rainfall in our nation's history. We have also been pointing out that this year we celebrate the 500-year anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, with the understanding that we are now going into Reformation 2.0—the reformation of nations.
Harvey coming on the heels of a most rare total solar eclipse further confirms to us that we have entered into unprecedented days of Kingdom advance. 
Jesus is not now coming FOR us as many are mistakenly perceiving, but He is now coming TO us. It is a "coming" of sorts—but after coming TO us, He is going to come THROUGH us before it will be time to come FOR us.
Before that stage 3 "coming" we will be a spotless Bride worthy of her majestic Bridegroom, but we are far from that at this time. Whatever plan you make, let it be at least 100 years.
September 23, 2017 Coming of Jesus?
As a side, the September 23 constellation alignment date that many are believing matches Revelation 12 is not as rare as being reported. About 90% of the "rare" alignments happen every year and the Jupiter quotient happens every 12 years. It is somewhat rare, but less so than the eclipse. The heavens ARE speaking and declaring the glory of God, but is all about Him coming TO us and THROUGH us and not about Him coming FOR us. He would be the Author of failure with a miscarried master plan if He returned now.
In America, it seems half the Church "hated" Obama during the last presidency (and they let me know that when I informed how God was using him), and now the other half "hates" Trump (and they let me know that when I tell how God is using him). We are primarily an undiscerning, bickering, powerless, low-grade-love, Church at this time (yikes, sorry), and not really something that our doting Father is proud to present to Jesus as His Bride.
The good news is He loves us passionately anyway, and He is going to pour out His liquid love on us until we abandon our old "homes" and find higher ground. All we need is LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. He is going to flood us until it is the only real story in town.
ElijahList Prophetic Resources
Why Houston?
I believe we do a tremendous misreading of events and reality if we look at Houston as deserving this flooding in any way. Yes, there have been abortionists and homosexuals prominently displayed in this city, but that in no wise sums up who this city is. Houston has been the oil capital of the United States and it has also been known as "Space City" because of the presence of NASA and the Houston Command Center that saw us land on the moon among other significant space accomplishments. It is also a major "Bible Belt" city with many great churches, as well as has the largest church in America, Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church. While a religious spirit has been a significant detriment to the Kingdom of God in Houston, it is still a city with many friends of God. 
A yet more amazing destiny awaits Houston.
Hope and Joel Osteen
Here, I might surprise many of you and tell you that Joel Osteen is very popular—in Heaven. He has been bashed by much of the Church for being "an inch deep and a mile wide" but that is not Heaven's perspective at all. The rarest commodity on planet earth for some time has been HOPE. Even people who will champion love are often very challenged in their hope levels. True hope is something you have to intentionally cultivate, and though it can look like shallow "positive-thinking", when it is real, it is almost the greatest force on earth.
Steve ShultzJoel Osteen has built his life and ministry on developing and releasing hope. If you ever just feel discouraged, turn on the TV and find Joel Osteen somewhere. You will immediately feel encouraged. Beyond his words there is an anointing he carries that is tied into multi-generational blessings that are on him. He has a church of over 50,000, millions of followers on social media, through TV he reaches over 20 million a month in over 100 nations, he has 7 NY Times best-seller books, there are radio stations that play his messages around the clock, and in every ministry expression you will find yourself exposed to and infected by hope.
He is widely followed by "unbelievers" because they are starving for the hope he dishes out. Somehow he has figured out that a minister of the "good news" has to carry a spirit of Good News. Joel Osteen is the world's greatest exporter of this rarest resource on the planet—hope. Furthermore, he has had to defend his hopeful perspective on God and life in setting after setting, both secular or religious.
If you look up his name, he has been labeled a "prosperity preacher" and that is somehow in today's Christian environment a no-no. Do we really want "poverty preachers" or "despair preachers"? Is that really what we think is the true essence of the Gospel (which means "good news")? Did Jesus really come and promote abundant poverty and challenge? Or did He say I come that you might have abundant life (John 10:10)? If poverty were a virtue would it not exist in Heaven? Does anyone believe that's the case?
Yes, I know there are and have been "prosperity preachers" who use it to manipulate for great offerings. Joel is not one of those. Oh, that the Christian world would embrace the God that is presented by Joel Osteen. If being hopeful and joyful is "shallow", then Heaven must also be shallow.
Joel's Army?
I have been shown that something about this whole Houston flooding has to do with God promoting Joel Osteen. Perhaps, that is why there was a quick and unfair cheap shot taken at him and his church by the press after Hurricane Harvey. 
Believe me, God is promoting him. Joel will now be invited to spiritually spearhead the rebuilding of Houston. While many are thinking and saying that the city needs to be given up on, God has other things in mind. Houston will rise again and be known as a City of Hope.
"Houston will rise again and be famed as a City of Hope—but I will get to that in a moment."
There is an opportunity for the Body of Christ to recognize that God, the Redeemer, is up to something big as it relates to the restoration of Houston. The spirit of death and the spirit of religion is being flooded out of town, and it is going to allow for this city to arise as a model of reformation. Houston was named after Samuel Houston and the Samuel anointing is going to rise in the city. Samuel was the prophet who carried oil. Houston has been known for natural oil, but will now be known for spiritual oil. The Hope Reformation oil from what God does in the city will spread and "anoint" cities that will arise like David and kill their Goliaths.
The "Joel's Army" for today will be those that arise in the same spirit as the appropriately named Joel Osteen. Joel Osteen is being commissioned and empowered to raise a "Joel's Army" and they will be victorious as the name of his life and ministry partner, Victoria Osteen would tell us. Corpus of Christi—get behind this man and couple and pick up of his spirit, even for yourself. You need what he carries to thrive in the coming days.
Healing the Gulf with Mexico
Hurricane Harvey did not cross the Atlantic as the eventual category 4 storm it became. That dynamic happened as it came into the Gulf of Mexico, where the water was described as "unusually hot". Overheated waters in the Gulf of Mexico caused the hurricane to build up. This whole hurricane phenomenon has many pieces of the puzzle, but one of them is that an undesirable "heating of the waters" existed that played out. This is a time for healing of the gulf WITH Mexico. Part of the incendiary national discourse taking place has to do with a need to repair thoughts and dialogue regarding Hispanic immigrants. Now is a really good time for that.
250,000 Immigrants will be Needed to Rebuild
After the initial multi-billion dollar damages pay out, there will be a major boom in the building industry caused by the flooded region (add Louisiana to that mix). While many in America are operating to the distorted narrative that Hispanic immigrants are "taking our jobs", the reality is that even BEFORE Harvey the national building industry was in great need of workers. Overall, the nation has over 6 million jobs available that are not being filled. We already have an almost record low unemployment level and this is only going to go down. Our nation is presently more in need of workers than jobs.
President Trump is also about to embark on a major rebuilding of America infrastructure initiative that might cost above a trillion, and demand hundreds of thousands of workers willing to do that type of work. Who are the workers willing to do that kind of work? As you know, it is primarily the Hispanic immigrant population (legal or otherwise) that is famed for their work ethic and that has been building America for some time. We must end our misconception of their role in America, as they have been very key for us and will now be extremely key for us. Watch as the real numbers come out and you will see that we will need a force of around 250,000 to rebuild Houston, and we will either have to allow for special work permits to abound or re-think our immigration policies.
There is nothing wrong with making our borders more secure but there is attached dialogue that has created an unnecessary rift/gulf with Mexico and Latin America, and with the immigrant populace in general. Telling and retelling anecdotal violent exceptions from the Latino immigrant pool only "heats up the waters" in an unnecessary way.
Body of Christ, let's get back to the assignment of being "ministers of reconciliation" as we are Biblically charged to do (2 Cor. 5:18-21). Furthermore, Jesus is still saying "Blessed are the peacemakers..." (Matthew 5:9).
It is of no coincidence that the 67-mile-wide "path of totality" for the recent total eclipse essentially began in Salem, Oregon and that a total of 7 Salem's were in that path. The word Salem means "peace" or "peaceful" and God has a Psalm 67 "face shining on us" reality as we embrace that. I will tell you that "creation itself" is going to continue to "act up" in ways that look like "judgment" until we abandon the hostile, polarized thinking and talking that we have been deeply engaged in.
The Corpus of Christ (Body of Christ) must take the lead in this, and in doing so you might have to abandon some of your present "talking points". There has been an expanded "gulf" along racial lines FOR CHRISTIANS since the election and we all have opportunities to tone down the rhetoric and become the blessed "Salem/Shalom makers". May we quickly respond as we ought. I believe that we will. 
(To Subscribe to the Elijah List subscribe here.)
Johnny Enlow
Johnny and Elizabeth

Email: Contact@JohnnyandElizabeth.com
Website: www.JohnnyandElizabeth.com
Johnny Enlow is a social reformer, international speaker, spiritual mentor, and author of The Seven Mountain Prophecy, The Seven Mountain Mantle, and Rainbow God. He and his wife Elizabeth are focused on awakening individuals to their call to provide practical solutions from the heart of God for every problem in society – until the real God of all of life is displayed in the seven primary areas of culture in all nations: Media, Arts and Entertainment, Government, Family, Religion, Economy, and Education.
To receive more words like this in YOUR inbox, subscribe FREE to the Elijah List at this link http://elijahlist.com/subscribe.

Monday, July 31, 2017

Tisha B'Av - We join in prayer for our friends the Jewish people.


July 31-Aug 1, 2017

We pray for our friends the Jews around the world, as they fast and pray on the 9th of Av. May they see the One whom they seek, their Messiah, HaMashiach.

He has a name, Yeshua HaMashiach, and He is coming back again, as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, to save His people Y'Israel. 

Steve Martin
Founder/President
Love For His People, Inc.
Charlotte, North Carolina
USA

Zechariah 12
1 A prophecy, the word of ADONAI concerning Isra'el - here is the message from ADONAI, who stretched out the heavens, laid the foundation of the earth and formed the spirit inside human beings:2"I will make Yerushalayim a cup that will stagger the surrounding peoples. Even Y'hudah will be caught up in the siege against Yerushalayim. 3 When that day comes, I will make Yerushalayim a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who try to lift it will hurt themselves, and all the earth's nations will be massed against her. 4When that day comes," says ADONAI, "I will strike all the horses with panic and their riders with madness; I will keep watch over Y'hudah, but I will strike blind all the horses of the peoples.
5 The leaders of Y'hudah will say to themselves, 'Those living in Yerushalayim are my strength through ADONAI-Tzva'ot their God.'
6 When that day comes, I will make the leaders of Y'hudah like a blazing fire pan in a pile of wood, like a fiery torch among sheaves of grain; they will devour all the surrounding peoples, on the right and on the left. Yerushalayim will be inhabited in her own place, Yerushalayim.
7ADONAI will save the tents of Y'hudah first, so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of those living in Yerushalayim will not appear greater than that of Y'hudah.
8 When that day comes, ADONAI will defend those living in Yerushalayim. On that day, even someone who stumbles will be like David; and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of ADONAI before them.
9 "When that day comes, I will seek to destroy all nations attacking Yerushalayim;
10 and I will pour out on the house of David and on those living in Yerushalayim a spirit of grace and prayer; and they will look to me, whom they pierced." They will mourn for him as one mourns for an only son; they will be in bitterness on his behalf like the bitterness for a firstborn son.
11 When that day comes, there will be great mourning in Yerushalayim, mourning like that for Hadad-Rimmon in the Megiddo Valley.
12 Then the land will mourn, each family by itself - the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Natan by itself, and their wives by themselves;
13 the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shim'i by itself, and their wives by themselves;
14 all the remaining families, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.
Tisha B'Av
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem, by Francesco Hayez


Official name Hebrew: תשעה באב‎
English: Ninth of Av
Observed by Jews
Type Jewish religious and national
Significance Mourning the destruction of the ancient Temples and Jerusalem, and other major calamities which have befallen the Jewish people.
Observances Fasting, mourning, prayer
Date 9th day of Av (if Shabbat, then the 10th of Av)
2016 date Sunset, August 13 – nightfall, August 14
2017 date Sunset, July 31 – nightfall, August 1
2018 date Sunset, July 21 – nightfall, July 22
2019 date Sunset, August 10 – nightfall, August 11
Frequency annual
Related to The fasts of Gedalia, the Tenth of Tevet and the Seventeenth of Tammuz, the Three Weeks & the Nine Days


Tisha B'Av (help·info) (lit. "the ninth of Av") (Hebrewתשעה באב‎ or ט׳ באב‎) is an annual fast day in Judaism which commemorates the anniversary of a number of disasters in Jewish history, primarily the destruction of both the First Temple by the Babylonians and the Second Temple by the Romans in Jerusalem.

Tisha B'Av is regarded as the saddest day in the Jewish calendar and it is thus believed to be a day which is destined for tragedy.[1][2]Tisha B'Av falls in July or August in the Western calendar.
The observance of the day includes five prohibitions, most notable of which is a 25-hour fast. The Book of Lamentations, which mourns the destruction of Jerusalem is read in the synagogue, followed by the recitation of kinnot, liturgical dirges that lament the loss of the Temples and Jerusalem. As the day has become associated with remembrance of other major calamities which have befallen the Jewish people, some kinnot also recall events such as the murder of the Ten Martyrs by the Romans, massacres in numerous medieval Jewish communities during the Crusades and The Holocaust.

Contents

History[edit]

Biblical origins according to Judaism[edit]

According to Rabbinic tradition (as seen in the Mishnah Taanit 4:6), the sin of the Ten Spies (besides Joshua and Caleb) produced the annual fast day of Tisha B'Av. When the Israelites accepted the false report that the land of Canaan (Israel) would be "impossible" to conquer, the people wept over the false belief that God was setting them up for defeat. The night that the people cried was the ninth of Av, which became a day of weeping and misfortune for all time.[3]

Destruction of the Temple[edit]


Excavated stones from the Western Wall of the Temple Mount (Jerusalem, Israel), knocked onto the street below by Roman battering rams in 70 AD
The fast commemorates the destruction of the Jewish First Temple and the Second Temple,[4] both of which occurred on the 9th of the Hebrew month of Av, about 655 years apart.[5]
In connection with the fall of Jerusalem, three other fast-days were established at the same time as the Ninth Day of Av: these were the Tenth of Tevet, when the siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonians began; the Seventeenth of Tammuz, when the first breach was made in the wall by the Babylonians; and the Third of Tishrei, known as the Fast of Gedaliah, the day when Gedaliah was assassinated in the time of the Babylonians following the destruction of the First Temple. The three weeks leading up to Tisha B'Av are known as The Three Weeks, while the nine days leading up to Tisha B'Av are known as The Nine Days.

Five calamities[edit]

According to the Mishnah (Taanit 4:6), five specific events occurred on the ninth of Av that warrant fasting:
  1. The Twelve Spies sent by Moses to observe the land of Canaan returned from their mission. Only two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, brought a positive report, while the others spoke disparagingly about the land. The majority report caused the Children of Israel to cry, panic and despair of ever entering the "Promised Land". For this, they were punished by God that their generation would not enter the land. Because of the Israelites' lack of faith, God decreed that for all generations this date would become a day of crying and misfortune for their descendants. (See Numbers 13Numbers 14).
  2. The First Temple built by King Solomon and the Kingdom of Judah destroyed by the Babylonians led by Nebuchadnezzar in 587 BCE (Anno Mundi [AM] 3175) after a two-year siege and the Judeans were sent into the Babylonian exile. According to the Talmud in tractate Ta'anit, the actual destruction of the First Temple began on the Ninth of Av and the Temple continued to burn throughout the Tenth of Av.
  3. The Second Temple built by Ezra and Nehemiah was destroyed by the Romans in August 70 CE (AM 3830), scattering the people of Judea and commencing the Jewish exilefrom the Holy Land that continues to this day.
  4. The Romans subsequently crushed Bar Kokhba's revolt and destroyed the city of Betar, killing over 500,000 Jewish civilians (approximately 580,000) on August 4, 135 CE (Av 9, AM 3895).[6]
  5. Following the Bar Kokhba revolt, Roman commander Turnus Rufus plowed the site of the Temple in Jerusalem and the surrounding area, in 135 CE.[7]
Note: Due to a two-year difference within the Hebrew calendar, the years in which the First and Second Temple were destroyed have been disputed. Though it has been accepted by most historians to refer to the most modern interpretation of the Calendar (which corresponds to the Roman siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE.)

Other calamities[edit]

Over time, Tisha B'Av has come to be a Jewish day of mourning, not only for these events, but also for later tragedies. Regardless of the exact dates of these events, for many Jews, Tisha B'Av is the designated day of mourning for them, and these themes are reflected in liturgy composed for this day (see below).
Other calamities associated with Tisha B'Av:
  • The First Crusade officially commenced on August 15, 1096 (Av 24, AM 4856), killing 10,000 Jews in its first month and destroying Jewish communities in France and the Rhineland.[6][8]
  • The Jews were expelled from England on July 18, 1290 (Av 9, AM 5050).[6]
  • The Jews were expelled from France on July 22, 1306 (Av 10, AM 5066).
  • The Jews were expelled from Spain on July 31, 1492 (Av 7, AM 5252).[7]
  • Germany entered World War I on August 1–2, 1914 (Av 9–10, AM 5674), which caused massive upheaval in European Jewry and whose aftermath led to the Holocaust.[6]
  • On August 2, 1941 (Av 9, AM 5701), SS commander Heinrich Himmler formally received approval from the Nazi Party for "The Final Solution." As a result, the Holocaust began during which almost one third of the world's Jewish population perished.
  • On July 23, 1942 (Av 9, AM 5702), began the mass deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto, en route to Treblinka.
  • Most religious communities use Tisha B'Av to mourn the 6,000,000 Jews who perished in the Holocaust, including special kinnot composed for this purpose (see the main kinnotarticle) (in addition to, or instead of, the secular Holocaust Memorial Days.)
On the 10th of Av the following events took place:

Laws and customs[edit]

Tisha B'Av falls in July or August in the Western calendar. When Tisha B'Av falls on the Shabbat (Saturday) it then is known as a nidche ("delayed") in Hebrew and the observance of Tisha B'Av then takes place on the following day that is Sunday. No outward signs of mourning intrude upon the normal Sabbath, although normal Sabbath eating and drinking end at sunset Saturday evening, rather than nightfall. The fast lasts about 25 hours, beginning at sunset on the preceding evening lasting until nightfall the next day. In addition to fasting, other pleasurable activities are also forbidden.

Main prohibitions[edit]

Tisha B'Av bears a similar stringent nature to that of Yom Kippur. In addition to the length of the fast which lasts about 25 hours, beginning at sunset on the eve of Tisha B'Av and ends at nightfall the following day, Tisha B'Av also shares the following five prohibitions:[9][10]
  1. No eating or drinking;
  2. No washing or bathing;
  3. No application of creams or oils;
  4. No wearing of (leather) shoes;
  5. No marital (sexual) relations.
These restrictions are waived in the case of health issues but a competent Posek, a rabbi who decides Jewish Law, must be consulted. For example, those who are seriously ill will be allowed to eat and drink. On other fast days almost any medical condition may justify breaking the fast; in practice, since many cases differ, consultation with a rabbi is often necessary. Ritual washing up to the knuckles is permitted. Washing to cleanse dirt or mud from one's body is also permitted.

Additional customs[edit]


Reading kinnot at the Western Wall
Torah study is forbidden on Tisha B'Av (as it is considered a spiritually enjoyable activity), except for the study of distressing texts such as the Book of Lamentations, the Book of Job, portions of Jeremiah and chapters of the Talmud that discuss the laws of mourning.[11]
In synagogue, prior to the commencement of the evening services, the parochet is removed or drawn aside lasting until after the fast. The parochet is the "curtain" or "screen"[12] that normally covers and adorns the Aron Kodesh ("Torah Ark") containing the Sifrei Torah ("Torah scrolls").
According to the Rema it is customary to sit on low stools or on the floor, as is done during shiva, from the meal immediately before the fast, the seudah hamafseket, until midday (chatztot hayom). It is customary to eat a hard boiled egg, and a piece of bread dipped into ashes during this meal. The Beit Yosef rules that the custom to sit low to the ground extends until one prays Mincha (the afternoon prayer).
If possible, work is avoided during this period. Electric lighting may be turned off or dimmed, and kinnot recited by candlelight. Some sleep on the floor or modify their normal sleeping routine, by sleeping without a pillow, for instance. People refrain from greeting each other or sending gifts on this day. Old prayer-books and Torah scrolls are often buried on this day.
The custom is to not put on tefilin for morning services (Shacharit) of Tisha be-Av, and not a talit, rather only wear the personal talit kattan without a blessing. At Mincha services tzitzit and tefilin are worn, with proper blessings prior to donning them.[13]

End of fast[edit]

Although the fast ends at nightfall, according to tradition, the First Temple continued burning throughout the night and for most of the following day, the tenth of Av.[11] It is therefore customary to refrain from eating meat, drinking wine, bathing, cutting hair, doing laundry, listening to music, making a shehechiyanu blessing until midday (chatzos) of the following day.[14]
When Tisha B'Av begins on Saturday night, the Havdalah ritual at the end of Shabbat is truncated (using a candle but no spices), without a blessing over wine. After Tisha B'Av ends on Sunday evening, another Havdalah ceremony is performed with wine (without candle or spices).[15]
The laws of Tisha B'Av are recorded in the Shulchan Aruch (Literally "The Set Table", a code of Jewish Law") Orach Chayim 552–557.

Services[edit]

"Console, O Lord, the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem and the city laid waste, despised and desolate. In mourning for she is childless, her dwellings laid waste, despised in the downfall of her glory and desolate through the loss of her inhabitants…. Legions have devoured her, worshippers of strange gods have possessed her. They have put the people of Israel to the sword… Therefore let Zion weep bitterly and Jerusalem give forth her voice… For You, O Lord, did consume her with fire and with fire will You in future restore her… Blessed are You, O Lord, Who consoles Zion and builds Jerusalem."
Abbreviated from the Nachem prayer.
The scroll of Eicha (Lamentations) is read in synagogue during the evening services. In addition, most of the morning is spent chanting or reading Kinnot, most bewailing the loss of the Temples and the subsequent persecutions, but many others referring to post-exile disasters. These later kinnot were composed by various poets (often prominent rabbis) who had either suffered in the events mentioned or relate received reports. Important kinnot were composed by Elazar ha-Kalir and Rabbi Judah ha-Levi. After the Holocaustkinnot were composed by the German-born Rabbi Shimon Schwab (in 1959, at the request of Rabbi Joseph Breuer) and by Rabbi Solomon Halberstam, leader of the Bobov Hasidim (in 1984). Since Israel's unilateral disengagement from Gaza, some segments of the Religious Zionist community have begun to recite kinnot to commemorate the expulsion of Jewish settlers from Gush Katif and the northern West Bank on the day after Tisha B'Av, in 2005.[16]
In many Sephardic congregations the Book of Job is read on the morning of Tisha B'Av.
A paragraph that begins Nahem ("Console...") is added to the conclusion of the blessing Boneh Yerushalayim ("Who builds Jerusalem") recited during the Amidah (for Ashkenazim, only at the Mincha service). The prayer elaborates the mournful state of the Temple in Jerusalem. The concluding signature of the blessing is also extended to say "Blessed are You, O Lord, Who consoles Zion and builds Jerusalem." Various modern orthodox rabbis and Conservative rabbis have proposed amending Nachem as its wording no longer reflects the existence of a rebuilt Jerusalem under Israeli sovereignty. Chief Rabbi Shlomo Goren, for example, issued a revised wording of the prayer and Rabbi Hayim David HaLevi proposed putting the prayer's verbs relating to the Temple's destruction into the past tense. However, such proposals have not been widely adopted.[17]

History of the observance[edit]


Lamenting in the synagogue, 1887
In the long period which is reflected in Talmudic literature the observance of the Ninth Day of Av assumed a character of constantly growing sadness and asceticism. By the end of the 2nd century or at the beginning of the 3rd, the observance of the day had lost much of its gloom. Rabbi Judah ha-Nasi was in favor of abolishing it altogether or, according to another version, of lessening its severity when the fast had been postponed from Saturday to Sunday (Talmud, Tractate Megillah 5b).
The growing strictness in the observance of mourning customs in connection with the Ninth Day of Av became pronounced in post-Talmudic times, and particularly in one of the darkest periods of Jewish history, from the 15th century to the 18th.
Maimonides (12th century), in his Mishneh Torah, says that the restrictions as to the eating of meat and the drinking of wine refer only to the last meal before fasting on the Eighth Day of Av, if taken after noon, but before noon anything may be eaten (Hilchoth Ta'anith 5:8). Rabbi Moses of Coucy (13th century) wrote that it is the universal custom to refrain from meat and wine during the whole day preceding the Ninth of Av (Sefer Mitzvoth ha-Gadol, Venice ed, Laws of Tishah B'Av, 249b). Rabbi Joseph Caro (16th century) says some are accustomed to abstain from meat and wine from the beginning of the week in which the Ninth Day of Av falls; and still others abstain throughout the three weeks from the Seventeenth of Tammuz (Shulkhan ArukhOrach Chayim 551).
A gradual extension of prohibitions can be traced in the abstention from marrying at this season and in other signs of mourning. So Rabbi Moses of Coucy says that some do not use the tefillin ("phylacteries") on the Ninth Day of Av, a custom which later was universally observed (it is now postponed until the afternoon). In this manner all customs originally designated as marks of unusual piety finally became the rule for all.

In Israel[edit]

In Israel, restaurants and places of entertainment are closed on the eve of Tisha B'Av and the following day by law.[18] Establishments that break the law are subject to fines. Outside of Israel, the day is not observed by most secular Jews, as opposed to Yom Kippur, on which many secular Jews fast and go to synagogue. According to halakha, combat soldiers are absolved of fasting on Tisha B'Av on the basis that it can endanger their lives. The latest example of such a ruling was issued during Operation Protective Edge by Israel's Chief Rabbis: Rabbis David Lau and Yitzhak Yosef.[19]
When Menachem Begin became Prime Minister, he wanted to unite all the memorial days and days of mourning on Tisha B'Av, so that Holocaust Remembrance Day and Memorial Day would also fall on this day but it was not accepted.[20]

Contemporary opinions[edit]

A 2010 poll in Israel revealed that some 22% of Israeli Jews fast on Tisha B'Av, and 52% said they forego recreational activity on this day even though they do not fast. Another 18% of Israeli Jews responded that were recreational spots permissible to be open they would go out on the eve of the fast day, and labeled the current legal status "religious coercion". The last 8% declined to answer.[21]

In relation to the creation of the State of Israel[edit]

As the main focus of the day recalls the destruction of the First and Second Temples and the subsequent scattering of the Jewish people into exile, the modern day re-establishment of a Jewish state in the Holy Land has raised various attitudes within Judaism as to whether Tisha B'Av still has significance or not among secular Israelis, while no segment of Orthodox Jews accept this point of view that they regard as "anti-religious".
Following the Six Day War, the national religious community viewed Israel’s territorial conquests with almost messianic overtones. The conquest of geographical areas with immense religious significance, including Jerusalem, the Western Wall, and the Temple Mount was seen as portentous; however only the full rebuilding of the Temple would engender enough reason to cease observing the day as one of mourning and transform it into a day of joy instead.[22]

Other traditions[edit]

Classical Jewish sources[23] maintain that the Jewish Messiah will be born on Tisha B'Av, though many explain this idea metaphorically, as the hope for the Jewish Messiah was born on Tisha B'Av with the destruction of the Temple.[24]