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Jewish Holidays
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All Jewish Holidays begin at sundown on the evening before the date listed.

The Jewish Sabbath begins at sunset on Friday of each week and ends at sunset on Saturday.

* Denotes Jewish Holy Day when Jewish individuals may be absent from school or work.

** Denotes Jewish Holy Day in which a Yizkor (Memorial) Service is held.

Holiday Descriptions by Rabbi Barry H. Block

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Holiday Descriptions by Rabbi Barry H. Block

Shabbat

Shabbat is the only holy day mentioned in the Ten Command­ments, and, as such, it is the holiest of Jewish days. Each week, we are commanded to rest from our mundane labors of the week and take time to appreciate creation, study Torah, and recall the Exodus from Egypt. We sanctify our lives when we do observe Shabbat, when we set aside time on Friday evening and on Saturday to be with our families, to share a special meal, to sing a Jewish song, and to come to the Temple. The Shabbat dinner table is the family's holiest sanctuary. It should be set with the finest linens and china, silver and glassware. The candles are lit and blessed. The Shabbat is sanctified with wine as the Kiddush is sung. Parents bless children, then all say the motzi and enjoy the meal together.

Rosh Hashanah

Rosh HaShanah, the Jewish New Year, is celebrated each year on the first day of Tishri, early in the fall. The day is a special time of rejoicing, as we wish each other L'shanah tovah, a good year. It is also a solemn day, for Rosh HaShanah is not only the day on which we celebrate the creation of the world. It is equally important as the Day of Remembrance, when the sound of the shofar calls each of us to recount our deeds of the past year in preparation for repentance on Yom Kippur. The Rosh HaShanah festival meal table is set specially, as for Shab­bat. One key difference, though, is that throughout the High Holy Day period, the hallah is to be a round spiral loaf, rather than a long twisted one. The round hallah symbolizes the cyclical nature of life, the seasons and the Jewish year.

Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is a solemn fast day. We pray for forgiveness from God, repent sincerely for our sins during the past year, and bring tz'dakah (charitable expressions of righteousness) to the Temple. The appropriate greeting for Yom Kippur is g'mar chatimah tovah, “May you be sealed for a good year in the Book of Life.” Families gather for a plentiful if simple meal before sundown on the eve of this holy day. At the end of the meal, festival candles are blessed and the fast begins for all adults in the household. The family then goes to Temple for worship services at which Kol Nidre is chanted. While children under the age of 13 do not fast on Yom Kippur, meals for children should be spartan. Parents thereby introduce the notion of fasting while still providing proper nutrition. At the conclusion of Yom Kippur, groups of families and friends gather for a light break-the-fast meal. Traditionally, this is a cold meal con­sisting primarily of dairy products and fish.

Sukkot

The Torah explicitly commands us “to rejoice” on only one holiday: Sukkot. Beginning only five days after Yom Kippur, this seven day festival is a celebration of the abundance with which God has blessed us. We are encouraged to take our meals in the Sukkah throughout the festival. The Sukkah is a temporary dwelling covered with leafy branches and decorated with fruits and vegetables, symbols of the harvest. The Suk­kah is a reminder of temporary dwellings in which our agricultural ances­tors in ancient Israel lived in the fields during the harvest. It also reminds us of the booths in which God caused the Children of Israel to dwell during their wanderings in the desert after the exodus from slavery in Egypt. Meals throughout Sukkot include generous portions of fruit and vegetables, highlighting the importance of an abundant harvest.

Atzeret-Simchat Torah

The day immediately following the end of the festival of Sukkot is a semi-independent holiday combining the sacred occasions of Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah. We refer to the combination as Atzeret-Sim­chat Torah. It is a final assembly day, formally ending the season of the High Holy Days. Atzeret-Simchat Torah is also the day on which we celebrate the renewal of the annual cycle of Torah readings. We read the final verses of Deuteronomy, then immediately recommence the cycle by reading the opening verses of Genesis. We mark the occasion with hakafot, joyous circuits of marching around the Temple with Torah scrolls, flags, and ban­ners. Children beginning their formal religious education are Consecrated on Atzeret-Simchat Torah. They are given miniature Torah scrolls as well as sugar cookies, baked in the shape of the Hebrew letter bet and covered with honey to symbolize the sweetness of studying our Jewish heritage. The letter bet is chosen because it is the first letter of the first word of the Torah, b'reishit, “in the beginning.”

Hanukkah

The festival of Hanukkah lasts for eight days, beginning on the 25th of Kislev, which can fall anywhere from late November to late December. The holiday celebrates the victory of the Maccabees, Jewish military lead­ers, who rebelled against the Greek-Syrian King Antiochus, who forbade the practice of Judaism and desecrated the great Temple in Jerusalem. The word Hanukkah means, “dedication,” and the holy day com­memorates the rededication of the Temple after the Maccabees' victory. The Talmud tells us that the festival lasts eight days because, when the Maccabees rededicated the Temple, they found only enough holy oil to light the eternal lamp for one day. A miracle was wrought, however, and the oil lasted eight days, long enough for new consecrated oil to be found. Another explanation is that, when the Temple was rededicated, the Jews immediately celebrated the festivals of Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret, lasting a total of eight days. They did this because Antiochus had prevented them from observing Sukkot and Shimini Atzeret at the proper time. Hanukkah is celebrated in the home with the lighting of the hanukkiah, or Hanukkah candelabrum. Gifts are exchanged, children are given gelt (coins), and families play dreidl (games with a top bearing He­brew letters). Foods fried in oil, reminiscent of the legend of the miracle of the oil in the Temple, are served during Hanukkah. In particular, latkes (potato pancakes) and sufiganiyot (jelly doughnuts) are enjoyed.

Tu B'Shevat

Tu B'Shevat gets its name from the date on the Hebrew calendar on which it falls: the 15th of Shevat. It is known as the “Birthday of Trees,” and it celebrates the first beginnings of Spring. The date, which usually falls in February, seems absurd in many parts of the world. In Israel and Texas, however, the timing is quite right. Perhaps the most important act a Jew can undertake on Tu B'Shevat is to plant trees in Israel. This can be done through a donation to the Jewish National Fund. A tradition of holding a Tu B'Shevat Seder, celebrating different kinds of fruits that grow in Israel, has become popular in recent years. On this day, we enjoy fruits which grow plentifully in Israel, including dates, figs, pomegranates, carob, and oranges.

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