Yom Kippur Oct 2011

Yom Kippur is the major Jewish holiday. Yom Kippur takes place on Friday, October seventh. The Jewish community believes it to be the day that God will judge them. It is the Day of Atonement for most Jewish people. It falls in the month of Tirshrei, which is in September or October. This holiday mark the ten days of Awe, which is a period of introspection and repentance. This follows the Jewish New Year, called Rosh Hashanah.

Yom Kippur is also called Yom HaDin. This day is starts a twenty-five hour fast. This starts before sunset on the evening before Yom Kippur, and ends after night fall on Yom Kippur. A person cannot eat or drinking, not even water. The Jewish community does this to become more like spirits, and less like animals. Jews believe that eating and drinking make people more like animals. They believe that people can focus more on God if they do not worry about their needs for the day. Children under the age of nine are not allowed to fast, along with pregnant women, women who just gave birth, and people who are suffering from a life-threatening illness. Children under the age of twelve are allowed to take part in it, but are encouraged to eat less.

This day is the day that Jewish People believe ask for forgiveness from God and people that they have hurt. The ten days leading up to Yom Kippur are the Ten Days of Repentance. This is the time to seek out the people they have offended and ask for their forgiveness sincerely. A very important part of the repentance part of Yom Kippur is called teshvah. This is where a person asks God for forgiveness. Jewish people believe that a person can only be forgiven from God on Yom Kippur. This is the day that the Jews believe God will judge everyone.

The last major part of Yom Kippur is prayer. The Yom Kippur is the longest synagogue service in the Jewish year. This service starts in the morning and ends at nightfall. Many prayers are said through the service but one is the major one that is said is Al Khet. It is a prayer asking for forgiveness for the sins that the person has committed in the year. Jewish people have different conception on their sins. They believe that the everyday offences, such as hurting people we love, lying to our self and using foul language, is what is truly sinful. While reciting the pray, people beat their sins against their chest as each sin is mentioned. Every sin is plural because Jewish traditions teach that every Jewish person should have the same responsibility for the actions of other Jews. When the Jewish person comes back for the afternoon service, they read a portion on the Book of Jonah. This is read to remember God’s willingness to forgive people who are truly sorry. The end of the service is called Ne’ilah or Shutting. The name is from the imagery of the Ne’ilah prayers. They talk about the gates being shut against the Jewish people. The Jewish people pray intensely during this, hoping to be able to get into God’s presence before these gates have been shut.