Yom Kippur Information

Jewish High Holidays are also known as High Holy Days. The start of the Jewish High Holidays starts with Rosh Hashanah and ends with Yom Kippur. There are ten days that the Jewish High Holidays encompass.

Rosh Hashanah is the first day of the holy days. This holiday is considered the Jewish New Year. Rosh Hashanah is observed for two days and is considered the anniversary of the creation of the world. Rosh Hashanah is also the day in which God put the fate of every person in the “Book of Life,” or the “Book of Death.”

The ten days that are considered the holy days are also called the “Days of Awe.” During these ten days, people of the Jewish faith use the ten days to focus on atonement and repentance. The book of life and the book of death remain open during the ten days so Jewish people can reflect on their lives and change their fate before Yom Kippur.

During the Days of Awe, Shabbat Shiva occurs. While the Days of Awe are a time for Jewish people to atone and repent for their sins and wrongdoings, Shabbat Shiva is considered the day for Jewish people to truly focus on their mistakes and try to fix what they have done wrong.

Yom Kippur ends the holy days. This day is considered the holiest day on the Jewish calendar. On this day, Jewish people are required to fast and many attend prayer services for the day. Yom Kippur is considered the day in which the books of life and death are sealed. If a Jewish person has not atoned for his sins, his fate is sealed in the books. If he has atoned for his sins, his fate is changed and he is clean of all his previous sins going into the New Year.

Hanukkah is he traditional Jewish Festival of Lights. It's a time of presents and candles and finds its roots back in ancient times when Judah Macabee and his followers fought the Greeks and Syrians. According to the Talmud, the holiest book in the Jewish religion that interprets the Torah, there was only enough oil for the menorah in the Second Temple to last one more night, but by what is deemed a miracle, it lasted eight nights and is the reason Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days and menorahs are lit in Jewish homes to commemorate this momentous event.[...]

The Jewish New Year is known as Rosh Hashanah. The holiday is filled with Jewish customs and traditions. Unlike most other Jewish celebrations, the holiday lasts two days. These are the two days of Tisheri, which are in the seventh month of the civil year, and the first month of the ecclesiastical year in the Hebrew calendar. The holiday commences at sunset since according to the Hebrew calendar, days begin at sunset. The day that the holiday begins is at the end of 29th of Elul, which is the twelfth month of the ecclesiastical year. The two days which the holiday runs are considered to be one long day, which in Aramaic, is known as ‘Yoma Arichtah’. [...]

In the Jewish religion, Yom Kippur is a holiday which is best known by its common reference as the ‘day of atonement’. It is regarded by many as the most sacred of the Jewish holidays. The holiday marks the culmination of a ten day period known as the days of repentance. During the holiday, people observe a full day’s fast which begins at sundown the night before until sundown on the day of the holiday. A ritual feast is organized and marks the end of the holiday. [...]