Festivals and Holy Days
 

Rosh Hashanah

1 Tishri 		Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year and the start of the Ten Days of Repentance. We prepare ourselves for the task of asking forgiveness and atoning for our sins. Rosh Hashanah is also a time of celebration; we eat slices of apple dipped in honey, symbolising a 'good and sweet New Year'

Yom Kippur

10 Tishri 		Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is the culmination of the Days of Repentance. It is the most holy and solemn day of the Jewish year. We fast from sunset until nightfall the following day. The day is spent in prayer, atoning for our sins against God and our fellow man and asking for forgiveness.

Sukkot

15 Tishri 		Sukkot is the Autumn harvest festival. It commemorates the time that the Jews wandered in the desert after escaping from slavery in Egypt before reaching the land of Israel. We build 'sukkot', shelters covered in greenery and decorated with fruit, to remember the long journey through the desert.

Simchat Torah

23 Tishri 		Simchat Torah means 'rejoicing in the law'. It is a joyful occasion, marking the end of the annual cycle of Torah readings and the start of the new cycle. We celebrate by taking all the scrolls from the ark, and carrying them round in procession, dancing and singing.

Chanukah

25 Kislev 		Chanukah commemorates the rededication of the Temple at the time of the Maccabee rebellion. There was only enough oil for the Temple lamp for one day, but the oil lasted for eight days until new oil could be made. The festival is observed by lighting candles on each night - one candle on the first night, two on the second, and so on for the eight days of the festival.

Tu B'Shevat

15 Shevat 		Tu B'Shevat, the fifteenth day of the month of Shevat, is the 'New Year of the trees'. In Israel, it is the beginning of spring and children plant trees on this day. In the Diaspora we mark the festival by eating a variety of fruits, particularly fruits mentioned in the Torah.

Purim

15 Adar 		The story of Purim is told in the bible, in the Book of Esther. The story is of the deliverance of the Jews from the threat of extermination in the Persian Empire over two thousand years ago. It is a joyous festival which we celebrate in carnival style - dressing up in costume, and staging humorous plays.

Pesach

15 Nisan 		Pesach (Passover) commemorates the liberation of the ancient Israelites from slavery in Egypt. On the first two nights family and friends gather for a special meal, the seder, and read the story of Pesach. We eat matzah (unleavened bread) to remind us of the bread the Israelites ate when they hurriedly left Egypt.

Shavuot

6 Sivan 		Shavuot was originally a harvest festival, occurring seven weeks after Pesach, marking the start of the summer wheat harvest. Today we celebrate Shavuot as the anniversary of the day God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses and the Israelites at Mount Sinai.