Friday
Continue Holiday 0-6.
SUKKOTH
Monday:
Hanukkah Purim
Midterm
• October 6
• Yom Kippur!!! OOOOOPS…..
Calendar
• Years counted from creation of the world
• 5763.
Gregorian Calendar: from time of Christ.
Gregorian Calendar is “Solar”
12 lunar months 11 days shorter than Solar year
13 lunar months 19 days longer
Solution:
Alternate 12 month and 13 month years.
19 year cycle, 7 years have 13 months.
Extra days
• Sometimes extra days are added to some
months to keep Sabbath from interfering
with major festivals.
•
Result.
• Date of festivals are always the same in
the Jewish calendar
• Date of festivals shifts in the Western
calendar
• But: each festival is always in the same
season.
If you though that was odd…
• First month is Nissan, in the spring
• Seventh month is Tishri in the autumn.
• New Year is in Tishri.
Tishri
• Sept- Oct.
• 13 days of festivals
• 7 days in which work is forbidden.
HIGH HOLY DAYS
10 days
• Rosh Hashana

Yom Kippur
High Holy Days
Days of Awe
• Time of introspection
• God’s Books are open.
Written on R. HaSh: sealed on Yom Kippur
• Individual’s Fate for next year is to be
decided.
Changing God’s decree
• Repentance
• Prayer
• Charity.
• "May you be inscribed and sealed for a
good year." typical greeting
Rosh Hashanah
• “Head of the Year”
• Evening of Friday, Sept 26, 2003
• Celebrated over 2 days outside of Israel.
• 1 Day in Israel.
Day of Creation
Day of Judgment
• Day of sounding the
SHOFAR
Sounded 100 times
on each day of Rosh
Hashanah
Shofar
Horn from Kosher Animal
War Alarm
Announced Royalty, and
Divinity
Shofar sounds
• Shevarim
• Tekia
• Teruah
Call to Repentance
• Shofar sounded when Abraham tried to
sacrifice Isaac: God gives him a ram instead.
• Shofar sounded with Israel received Torah
• Shofar will sound with Messiah comes.
No work on R. HaSh.
• If R. HaSh. Falls on Sabbath, Shofar is not
blown.
• Most of the day spent in Synagogue.
Yom Kippur
(evening of Oct 5, 2003)
Day of Atonement.
Celebrated on 1 Day.
Ancient Israel: Y. K. day of sacrifices for
Israel’s sins.
Most Holy Day
Atone: reconciliation for offences
• Talmud says: Yom Kippur only allows you
to atone for offending God.
• If you have offended another person, you
have to seek reconciliation from them
directly, before Yom Kippur.
“Complete Sabbath”
• No work at all on Yom Kippur
•
•
•
•
Complete Fast: no eating or drinking
Washing
Luxuries: leather shoes
Sex.
Fast
• Food Restrictions are NOT binding on
•
•
•
•
Ill
Elderly
Young
Expectant and new mothers.
Synagogue
• Orthodox may spend 9 am-3 pm
• Return 5 or 6, until nightfall
• Special Yom Kippur Siddur used.
Kol Nidre “All Vows”
• Controversy:
• Asking God to annul personal vows made.
• Reform removed it from Yom Kippur liturgy
• Anti-Semitists used it to claim Jews were
dishonest, unfit for public office.
Amidah
• Yom Kippur Amidah asks for forgiveness
for all of Israel’s sins.
Ne’ilah: Closing
• 1 hour service: ARK is opened
(congregation must stand)
• Final Shofar blast signifies God’s books
are sealed: The Gates of Heaven are
closed.
Sukkot
• 5th day after Yom Kippur
• October 11
• Lasts for 7 days.
• No work on first 2 days
Sukkot
• Historical:
Israelites wandering in
wilderness
• Agricultural: Autumn festival.
Leviticus 23:42-3
• You shall live in huts seven days; all
citizens of Israel shall live in huts, in order
that future generations may know that I
made the Israelite people live in huts when
I brought them out of the Land of Egypt, I
the Lord your God.
A Sukkah
The homes of the wandering Israelites
– Must be big enough to live in it.
• Eat meals in it
• Sleep in it, weather and health permitting
Sukkah
• 3 walls
– Any material
• Roof with hole in it
– Branches, wood, etc.
• Decorated: Harvest
theme.
Sukkah and Thanksgiving
• Similar motifs
• Harvest
• Gratitude.
Leviticus 23:40
On the first day you
shall take the fruit of the
goodly trees, branches
of palm trees, boughs
of leafy trees, and
willows of the brook,
and you shall rejoice
before the Lord your
God seven days.
“4 Species”
1 Palm branch
2 Willow branches
3 Myrtle branches
Etrog: a citrus fruit
Lulav and etrog
Held and waved
during prayers on all
7 days of Sukkot
Book of Ecclesiastes
read on Sukkot:
pleasures are futile.
Shemini Azeret
Simhat Torah
Day after last day of Sukkot
In Israel: both on same day
Outside Israel, on separate days.
Assembly of the 8th
Rejoicing in the Torah
• Shemini Azeret: End of Torah cycle
• Simhat Torah: Beginning of Torah cycle
• Work is not permitted.
Simhat Torah.
Chanukah
Evening of Dec. 19, 2003
• A “Minor” Festival that has grown to be
very popular.
• Most important ancient festival NOT
mentioned in the Bible.
• “Home-based” Festival: family oriented.
Historical and seasonal
• Victory of Maccabees against oppressors
• Traditional winter festival (solstice)
• Lights represent lengthening days.
Chanukah
• Maccabean revolt against Seleucid
dynasty
• 164 bce
• Rededication of Temple.
Lamp Oil
• Ritually pure
• Purification took 8 days
• 1 day supply when temple taken, lasts 8
days.
Festival of Lights: menorah
8 days
8 + 1 candles
1 to light others.
Flames must not merge
Miracle of Oil
• A Great excuse to eat fried foods!
• Latkes: Potato Pancakes.
Judaism 101 site has recipe…
Tzedekah
• Accent on charity
Gelt
• Gifts of money for kids
• Predates Christmas Presents
Dreidel
Purim
• Starts evening of March 6, 2004
• In Leap Years with extra month, Purim
happens in the second month of Adar
• One month before Passover.
Purim Commandment
• To hear the book of Esther being read.
Commandment: Tzedekah
• Gifts of food and money.
Purim
Lots
• Esther: saved the Jews from a nasty, wicked
mean so-and-so.
– Mordechai & Esther (Horray!)
– Haman: wicked advisor (Boo!)
– Ahasuerus, K. of Persia (ends up being ok)
Esther:
• No mention of God
• Read with comical voices, lamentations
– 10 sons of Haman, read in one breath
Audience Participation
• Cheer etc. when heroes are mentioned
• Boo etc. when Haman is mentioned.
• Can’t drown out the reader!
Carnival
• Dress-up
• Plays, parodies,
Everyone is parodied
• Scholars, rabbis, etc
• Talmud is spoofed.
Eat Drink and Be Merry
• Drink enough to confuse:
“Cursed be Haman” and
“Blessed be Mordechai”.
Drunk?
• hOw eNoungh drunk isht thet ???
• Not drunk enough to violate
commandments, or be obnoxious
• Alcoholics, kids, etc exempt from mitzvah.
Passover / Pesach
• Historical: Release from Slavery
• Agricultural: “First Fruits” offerings