Click the buttons below to find out some interesting facts about the Jewish holidays

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Click the buttons below to find out some
interesting facts about the Jewish holidays
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Rosh Hashanah - Jewish New Year Celebrates the
Creation, and the Almost Sacrifice of
Isaac Customs apples dipped in honey, fish
heads, pomegranates and new fruits Interesting
facts The Hebrew calendar is based both on the
moon and the solar cycles - similar to the
Chinese calendar. The Gregorian calendar is based
only on the cycles of the moon. A day in the
Gregorian calendar lasts from midnight to
midnight whereas, in the Hebrew calendar, it
lasts from sunset to sunset. The reason often
given for this is that in the first chapter of
Genesis, after each days creation, it says
there was evening and there was morning.
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Yom Kippur - Day of Atonement Commemorates the
day that the Children of Israel received
atonement from God for the sin of the golden
calf. Considered to be the holiest and most
solemn days of the Jewish calendar (though
Shabbat does take precedence). This is the day
when Jews atone for their sins of the past year
before God, and receive forgiveness. This is the
only Fast day mentioned in The Five Books of
Moses (the Torah). Before Yom Kippur, many Jews
seek reconciliation for wrongs they have
committed against other people. It is seen as a
chance for a new beginning. Interesting
Facts Although fasts usually denote mourning,
the Yom Kippur fast is regarded more as a means
of liberating man from his everyday activities,
enabling him to deal with the spiritual issues
involved in repentance.
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Sukkot - Feast of Tabernacles Reminds us that
God protected the Children of Israel, and
provided all their needs after their exodus from
the Land of Egypt. Customs sukkot (booths or
tabernacles), the Four Species (lulav, hadass,
aravah, and etrog). Interesting facts For
mankind, the Four Species are symbolic of Torah
(taste) and good deeds (fragrance). The etrog
(citron), which has both taste and fragrance,
represents a person who studies Torah and also
does good deeds. The aravah (willow), has neither
taste nor fragrance, and represents the person
who has neither Torah nor good deeds. The hadass
(myrtle), has fragrance, represents a person who
does good deeds, but does not study Torah. The
lulav (date palm), whose dates have taste,
represent those who study Torah, but do no good
deeds. Holding these items together symbolizes
the unity of mankind.
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Hanukkah - Festival of Lights An 8-day festival
commemorating the victory of the Maccabees over
the Greeks, and the miraculous sacred oil, which
burned in the newly dedicated Temple for eight
days. Customs Lighting candles in a special
menora, dreidels, latkes and doughnuts. The
Hebrew letters on the dreidel (spinning top), are
usually taken as standing for "nes gadol haya
sham" (or "poh") - a great miracle happened there
(or here). They also represent Yiddish words that
explain how the game is played and won "nun"
nisht nothing (i.e. either you lose or you do
nothing), "gimmel" is "gut" or "gants", "hay"
halb half, and "shin" "stel" put into
the pot.
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Tu bShvat - New Year for Trees Arbor Day The
day originally used to calculate the age of trees
for tithing, this holiday is of little religious
significance today. Customs eating fruits
associated with the Torah and Israel, planting
trees Interesting Facts The tradition of eating
dried fruit is rooted in the fact that dry fruit
last longer, and - unlike fresh fruit - are
available all year round.
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Purim (Lots) Celebrates the deliverance of
the Jews by Queen Esther from the evil Haman,
vizier to the Babylonian king Ahasuerus, after
the destruction of the First Temple. This
festival is celebrated on two different dates 14
Adar, and 15 Adar in Jerusalem and other walled
cities. Customs reading the Book of Esther,
noisy rattles, eating humentaschen, sending
food gifts, wearing masks and dressing up.
Interesting Facts This is the only festival
celebrating the resourcefulness of a woman. This
is also the only festival when it is almost
mandatory to drink wine to excess.
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Pesach - Passover - Festival of Unleavened Bread
An 8-day (7 in Israel) family-oriented holiday,
celebrating the exodus of the Children of Israel
from the Land of Egypt, and their becoming the
Jewish nation. Customs Seder night(s),
reciting the Haggada, eating matzot, seeking out
and burning the chametz. Interesting
facts There is a story that the tradition of
leaving the door open during Seder night may have
resulted from the rumors that blood taken from
Christian children was used in the preparation of
matzot. An open door enabled the non-Jewish
neighbors to see that these rumors were not true.
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Shavuot Customs eating dairy produce, reading
the Book of Ruth, all-night Torah
study. Interesting facts This festival has four
names Shavuot - marking the completion of the
seven weeks of counting the Omer Harvest
Festival - marking the harvesting of the wheat,
and the concluding festival of the grain
harvest. Festival of the First Fruits - marking
the day when the first fruits were taken to the
Temple in Jerusalem. Festival of the Giving of
the Torah - tradition has it that it was at
Shavuot that the ten commandments were given to
Moses and the Children of Israel at Mount Sinai.
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Tu bAv - A Day of Love On this day, second
Temple-era unmarried women wore white clothes and
went out to dance in the vineyards, and seek a
husband. This is a night when there is a full
moon, symbolizing love and romance. Of little
religious significance today - a sort of Jewish
Valentines Day. Interesting Facts On this day
- After wandering in the desert for 40 years, the
Jewish girls without fathers or brothers were
finally allowed to marry outside their own tribe.
Until then, they had had to marry a member of
their own tribe, in order for the land inherited
not to pass to another tribe. The Tribe of
Benjamin, which had not been allowed to
intermarry into other tribes after they had
sinned with the concubine of Gibeah (their
numbers of had greatly decreased as a result),
were finally allowed to capture brides from other
tribes.