Historically, the most significant day in Tammuz is referred to in Zechariya as “fast of the fourth month”. This is also the beginning of the period of mourning, given that the walls of Jerusalem were breached.
Alternatively, the month is also the month of redemption, in which the liberation of the Frierdikker Rebbe occurred: 12/13 Tammuz:
“On the 12th of Tammuz, Hashem did not just liberate me alone, but also all those who love our Holy Torah, those who keep the mitzvos, and even those who {just} bear the name Israel.” This includes every type of Jew, which means that it is a festival of liberation for all Jews.
The name of Tammuz possesses a paradoxical theme as well:
On the one hand it is named after an idol which was called ‘Tammuz’:
Alternatively, Tammuz means “extreme heat”, which is a physical outcome of a strong revelation of Hashem’s presence in the world.
The point of a fast day, is for the day itself to be transformed “to joy, happiness and festival(s).” The same principle applies to golus in its entirety: Galus is not an end unto itself, G-d forbid, but exists in order for us to get out of galus and merit Redemption.
But why then, does the redemption in Tammuz (3rd; 12th; 13th) come before the golus (17th)?
Therefore we must say that the fast can be understood in two ways:
- A form of punishment for our sins.
- A deeper understanding of the fast: That the day itself will become a yom tov when Moshiach comes: Because in retribution, at its core, expresses Hashem’s love toward the Jews. This is like a great and awesome king who out of great love, notwithstanding his dignity, personally washes the filth of his only son. 9 Av, for example always falls on the same day as the 2nd day of Pesach.. alluding to Hashem's great kindness for His people.
In other words, deeper love is found in the attribute of judgement. For example, a father who punishes his son for misconduct: The father’s strictness springs from the father’s powerful love. (His child’s misbehavior affected the father so much, that he acted against his {loving} nature.) The deepest love is expressed by the opposite of love — through strictness.
The reason why the 9th of Av will become a festival (in the Messianic age), is because at its core, Tisha B’Av even now is an expression of the deep love of Hashem.
Previous generations were blinded to see only the sad elements of the month of Tammuz. However, now that we are the generation which precedes Moshiach’s arrival: we already have a “taste” and a “flicker” of the future redemption, the time has come also to have a “taste” of this matter. We can feel how the inner dimension of the fast (and the days of bein ha’metzarim, in general) is really an expression of a lofty idea.
Footnote 48
People are nowadays given the opportunity via the internalizing of Chassidus, to appreciate a deep understanding embedded in suffering... given that, via the tools provided within chassidus – we can, already at the onset appreciate, within the moment of suffering, the pnimiyus embedded within.
So, already preceding 17 Tammuz, Hashem gave us the miracle of 12/13 Tammuz. The theme is that through extreme severity (an execution order on the Frierdikker Rebbe R”L), can lead the path to redemption like the world has never seen previously: It paved the way to expand the work of spreading Torah, etc., in a completely different and superior way, reaching all corners of the globe.
Regarding the third of Tammuz, when the Rebbe was liberated from prison and was sent into exile for three years: Then (in that year), it seemed as though it was another stage of incarceration, since he was being exiled, which in some ways is worse than a death sentence. So much so, that then, it wasn’t known whether being sent to exile in Kostroma was an act of clemency. Perhaps it was merely a ploy to avert the international pressure demanding the Rebbe’s release; and afterward, they would again seek to frame him.
The liberation of the 12th of Tammuz revealed that, in truth, the third of Tammuz was (not the beginning of an exile, but it was) the first stage of the redemption. It was a day of rescue and salvation. Furthermore, the rescue and salvation (kindness) of that day (when the Rebbe was released from prison) in certain ways was greater than was exhibited on the 12th of Tammuz (which was a release only from exile).
To recap: Previous generations merely viewed Tammuz as a month named after idolatry. However, as we came closer to the time of redemption, the inner aspect of Torah revealed and publicized the deeper understanding of “Tammuz”: Specifically in the darkness lies (the power for) the “greater light,” which is {alluded by} the intense heat from the “sun {as a symbol of} Hashem.”
The take home message: Specifically in this generation — the generation on the footsteps of Moshiach — we have the revelation of the inner teachings of the Torah. These teachings reveal and promulgate the deeper message of the three weeks, i.e., the intense love of Hashem for the Jews. As a preparation for these days, we have the festival of redemption of the 12th and 13th of Tammuz. We are shown how, in this time of golus itself, the lofty inner dimension {of this time} can be uncovered (in a way that the concealment and darkness is removed even on an external level).
