In 1848, Rabbi Israel Salanter, the lifelong religious leader of the Lithuanian Jews, made a historical religious pronouncement for his community, saying that they were all exempt from the Yom Kippur Fast (Fast of Day of Atonement) and that they were even required to eat on that Yom Kippur day.

Yom Kippur is, by far, the most important fast in the Jewish religion. That year, however, there was a deadly cholera epidemic that was raging through the community, and the rabbi explained that when a fast puts a life at risk, protecting the life is more important than the fast.

Saving a life taking priority over observing a fast can be found in the rabbinical records of the ancient sages of the Talmud.  Rabbi Israel Salanter, however, was innovative because he rose to the emergency situation of the time and said that even healthy people must eat to protect themselves from the possibility of becoming at risk.

Rabbi Salanter’s landmark decision is a matter of Jewish Rabbinical Record but the broadly and popularly accepted “word of mouth” record has it that in the middle of the Yom Kippur synagogue service Rabbi Israel Salnter sat at a table on the “bima” (dias) and ate in front of the congregation to make sure that they would take him seriously.

On Wednesday, I saw news alerts that there was an extreme heat watch in effect from Wednesday, July 1 through July 5, and that temperatures on Thursday were expected to exceed 100 degrees. The message warned that these levels could be dangerous, and people should not go out more than they have to and must be sure to keep themselves well hydrated.

After that news, I thought of Rabbi Salanter and the Yom Kippur of 1848. I decided then and there to knock out this story.

Thursday at daybreak is the fast of Tammuz which commemorates the Roman army breaching the Jerusalem wall, and the nightfall of July 22 commemorates the Fast of Av, the day when, subsequent to the Roman breach of Jerusalem wall, the Temple was ultimately destroyed and the Jews were exiled from their land.

Wishing everyone a healthy summer and please be mindful of weather conditions.

Hersh Goldman is a Swampscott resident.