Virtual Event
Don’t Spend Tisha B’Av Alone.
Join hundreds of Jews from around the world for live Torah study with Rabbi Fohrman and bring community and connection to your fast.
TISHA B’AV AFTERNOON
August 3rd, 3-5 PM ET
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About This Event
Tucked away in the Book of Zechariah is a provocative but little known story – including the only explicit reference to the practice of fasting on Tisha B’Av in Tanach. The story tells of representatives who come to Zechariah with a question for God. At the time, the Second Temple was being rebuilt, so the people wanted to know if they still needed to fast. God doesn’t answer 'yes.' But He doesn’t answer 'no.' Instead, God changes the conversation. He responds that there’s something more important to Him than fasting… something more to what Tisha B’Av is really about.
Flash forward to the present day and the question the people asked Zechariah suddenly feels relevant again. We, too, have returned to the land. We, too, are a generation living between destruction and regrowth. In just the last two years, we’ve experienced horrific suffering – but also real victory. How does that shape our Tisha B’Av? How does that flavor our mourning? Should we be focused on mourning? Or should we be turning our full attention to building the future? Might God’s answer to the people centuries ago also be the guiding wisdom we need today? What is that something more that Tisha B’Av is really meant to be about?
Come dive into these questions with Rabbi Fohrman and Imu Shalev this Tisha B’Av afternoon.
TISHA B’AV AFTERNOON
August 3rd, 3-5 PM ET
New to Aleph Beta? Welcome. Learn more about us here!
Your Hosts
Rabbi David Fohrman
Our Lead Scholar
Rabbi David Fohrman is the founder and lead scholar at Aleph Beta. Over the last two decades, he’s pioneered a way of reading Biblical text that feels both rigorous and revelatory. Through Aleph Beta, he’s given expression to that, developing what is now a vast library of content, spanning all types of media: animated videos, podcasts and books. He’s also embarked on an effort to train a team of Torah scholars adept at the close-reading methodology he’s pioneered – and their work can be found at Aleph Beta, too.
Prior to his founding of Aleph Beta, Rabbi Fohrman served as a senior editor and writer for the ArtScroll Talmud Project. He also taught Biblical themes as adjunct faculty at Johns Hopkins University, where he had earlier received a Master’s degree in Western intellectual history. Rabbi Fohrman received his rabbinical and Talmudic training at the Ner Israel Rabbinical College, but some of his earliest and most profound exposure to Biblical text analysis came from his encounters with Rabbi Yosef Leibowitz, in his childhood years in Northern California.
Imu Shalev
Our CEO
Imu Shalev is the CEO at Aleph Beta. He works closely with Rabbi David Fohrman and a team of writers, producers and animators on creating podcasts and video presentations for the meaningful study of Biblical text. Immanuel hosts "A" Book Like No Other," a new podcast that features Rabbi Fohrman's latest Torah research. Imu also served as Executive Producer and Brand Consultant for Mayim Bialik's YouTube and social media channels. Immanuel previously served as a singer and Director of the Maccabeats and wrote and produced the viral video "Candlelight" with over 16 million views on youtube. Imu has worked on more than 30 YouTube videos that have broken 1 Million views. He is passionate about bringing meaning to Jewish education through the medium of podcast, video and technology. Immanuel graduated from Fordham Law School and Yeshiva University and attended Yeshivat Kerem B'Yavneh.