Jewish holiday traditions: Judaism – Holidays and Observances

Judaism – Holidays and Observances

Kosher restrictions apply: Jewish dietary guidelines which apply daily throughout the year.  These restrictions include pork, shellfish (fish is allowed) and mixing meat with dairy.

Individuals may require time away from campus for travel and observance. Note that all Jewish holidays begin the evening before the date specified  on most calendars. This is because a Jewish “day” begins and ends at sunset,  rather than at midnight

Chanukah (Hanukkah) — Festival of Lights. Celebration lasts for 8 days of prayer, gift giving, and lighting of the Menorah.

Erev Pesach — Fast of the Firstborn. Observed only by a fast of the firstborn males, it marks the beginning of Passover.

Erev Rosh Hashanah — Nine Nights.  The celebration and festival last for nine nights and ten days, ending with the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur).  All labor and travel ends.

Kol Nidre — Eve of Day of Atonement. This begins the ending of the 10 Days of Awe.  The night is devoted to prayer, repentance, and fasting.  It is considered the Sabbath of Sabbaths.

Rosh Hashanah — Jewish New Year.  Two day festival for reflection and planning for the future.  Services are held and labor is not permitted.

Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities. Food accommodations should be made for events.

Passover — Marks the liberation from Egypt. The first two and last two days of Passover require all labor to end.

Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities. Food accommodations should be made for events. Besides Kosher restrictions, the use of leavening is prohibited; matzah is eaten in place of bread. 

Purim — Celebrates deliverance from Persia. This is a carnival and readings from the Book of Esther.   No work or school restrictions accompany this day.

Simchat Torah — Rejoicing in the Torah. End of the weekly Torah Readings for the year. 

Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities. Food accommodations should be made for events.

Shemini Atzeret — A fall festival on the last night of Sukkot that includes a memorial service for the dead.

Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities. Food accommodations should be made for events.

Shavuot — Commemorates the receipt of the Torah on Mount Sinai.

Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities. Kosher restrictions apply but it is customary to eat dairy.

Sukkot — Feast of the Tabernacles. Celebration lasts for 7 days with no labor for the first two days.

Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities. Food accommodations should be made for events.

Tisha B’Av — Commemorates a series of Jewish tragedies including the destruction of the first and second temples of Jerusalem. Includes fasting.

Plan limited activities after a fast.

Tu B’Shevat — New Year for Trees. Anniversary for all trees planted that year. 

Yom Hashoah — Jewish Holocaust Memorial Day. Closest day to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. 

Yom Kippur — Day of Atonement. Most sacred day, spent in the synagogue.  Fasting lasts 25 hours.  No labor or travel is possible.

Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities and after a day of fasting.

Hanukkah – Jewish Holidays Explained

The much beloved eight-day holiday of Hanukkah is one of the Jewish holidays that does not come from the Bible. Why do we celebrate this late addition to the Jewish calendar?

The Hebrew word Hanukkah literally means “re-dedication. ” Just as Judah and the Maccabees rededicated the Temple in Jerusalem, we have the opportunity to rededicate ourselves to our most cherished values.

Hanukkah takes place in the winter, usually in December, at the time of year in the northern hemisphere when the days are the shortest and the nights the longest. It’s a time of year when many faiths and cultures engage in a ritual of lighting candles. Lighting the Hanukkah candles reminds us of our responsibility to bring light into dark places and to repair the world’s brokenness. Some families have adopted the tradition of dedicating each new candle lit over the eight nights to a specific hope or cause, and then giving a donation to a supporting organization.

Hanukkah celebrates the victory of the Maccabees, a small band of fighting men led by Judah Maccabee, over the much larger and more powerful Syrian-Greek army of Antiochus the IV, who controlled Jerusalem and the province of Judea. At that time, there was conflict between those Jews who wanted to fully embrace Greek culture and those Jews who wanted to maintain traditional Jewish Life. In support of the assimilationists, Antiochus made decrees outlawing the practice of Judaism and set up idols of Greek gods in the Temple in Jerusalem and throughout the area, forcing the Jewish population to bow down to them. The Maccabean revolt was a battle to preserve the Jewish way of life.

Having defeated Antiochus’ army, Judah and his men went to the Temple, cleansed it, and rededicated it to the service of the one God. Judah restored its sacred furniture and wanted to light the menorah (candelabrum) that stood in the central courtyard using pure olive oil as was customary. However, all he could find was one small bottle of oil, with just enough to burn for one day. Miraculously, that little bit of oil burned for eight day and nights, until new oil could be made. This is why Hanukkah is known as the “Festival of Lights. ”

The central ritual of Hanukkah is the nightly lighting of the hanukkiah, a nine-branched candelabrum. Each evening, one candle is added until the hanukkiah is ablaze with light on the eighth evening. This meaningful ritual most often takes place at home, with the whole family gathered. As the candles burn brightly, Hanukkah songs are sung and the game of dreidel (spinning tops) is played. In commemoration of the miracle of the oil, it is traditional to eat delicious foods fried in oil: latkes (potato pancakes), and an Israeli favorite, sufganiyot (jelly donuts).

• As darkness falls one evening of Hanukkah, join loved ones and choose a beautiful candle to light. Enjoy the warm glow of family, friendship and love.
• Talk or think about something that you would like to (re)dedicate yourself to in the coming months.
• Make a donation to a cause you care deeply about.
• Many traditions teach that “the body is the Temple of the spirit. ” Do something special for your body: take a yoga class, go for a swim, enjoy a spa treatment, or explore new wellness activities.

1. Load the candles from right to left. One candle (the shamash) is used to light the other candles. The shamash is placed in a candle-holder slightly elevated from the other candles.

2. Light the shamash. On the first night, say Blessings 1, 2 & 3. On all other nights say Blessings 1 & 2.

3. Light the candles from left to right. Add a candle each night until all eight candles, plus the shamash, are lit on the eighth night.

4. Celebrate! Sing, play dreidel, eat delicious latkes!

Hanukkah Blessing

ברוך אתה יי, אלוהינו מלך העולם, אשר קידשנו במצוותיו, וציוונו להדליק נר של חנוכה.

Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melech haolam asher
kidshanu b’mitzvotav, v’tzivanu l’hadlik ner shel Hanukkah.

Praised are you, Eternal One,
our God, source of all life,
who has made us holy with sacred
obligations and commanded us to kindle the Hanukkah lights.

ברוך אתה יי, אלוהינו מלך העולם, שעשה נסים לאבותינו, בימים ההם בזמן הזה.

Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melech haolam she’asah
nissim l’avoteinu ba’yamim ha’hem bazman hazeh.

Praised are you, Eternal One,
our God, source of all life,
who has made us holy with sacred
obligations and commanded us
to kindle the Hanukkah lights.

ברוך אתה יי, אלוהינו מלך העולם, שהחיינו, וקיימנו, והגענו לזמן הזה.

Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melech haolam
shehechiyanu, v’kiyamanu, v’higiyanu laz’man hazeh.

Praised are you, Eternal One,
our God, source of all life,
who has given us life, sustained us and
enabled us to reach this moment.

Traditions :: Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia

The Jewish people have existed for more than three thousand years. His way of life and philosophy, moral standards and calendar, teaching children and looking at history – all this and much more is united by the concept of “Jewish tradition”. When one speaks of the Jewish tradition, one has in mind something essentially different from what is called the national tradition among other peoples.

Religion has preserved the Jewish people through all the vicissitudes of history. The Jewish people are defined not by material or physical criteria, but by their spiritual power, charged by the Torah and its commandments. Judaism fully regulates all spheres of human life.

Observance of the commandments of the Torah is the direct duty of every Jew. By fulfilling the commandments, a person contributes to the revelation of Divinity on earth, makes this world a better place.
The traditional way of life of a Jew includes the creation of a family, the study of the Torah, private and public prayer, the observance of the Sabbath and Holidays, good deeds and charity.

Prayer is service to the Almighty with the heart, this is the time when a person unites with God. Jewish tradition recommends praying in congregation. At least 10 praying adult male Jews – a minyan – should come together. The minyan symbolizes the “community of G-d”, in which it is possible to pronounce especially sacred moments of prayer. It is believed that a collective prayer is always heard by the Almighty.
The Jewish tradition is called in Hebrew “Masore Yisrael”. The word masoret comes from the verb masar, which means to transmit, as a tradition is something that is passed down from generation to generation. But the term “Moreshet Yisrael” is often used. The word moreshet comes from the verb yarash, meaning to inherit. This expression, therefore, could be more accurately translated as “Jewish heritage.”
The Jewish tradition is both our heritage, inherited from our ancestors, and what we create today to pass on to future generations.

Shabbat

Shabbat (Saturday) is the seventh day of the week endowed with special holiness, on which work is prohibited. The Torah says: “For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the seas and all that is in them, and on the seventh day he rested. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Shemot). Shabbat begins on Friday at sunset and ends on Saturday with the appearance of the first three stars. The beginning of Saturday marks the obligatory lighting of candles for women 18 minutes before sunset. At the end of the Sabbath, the man (head of the family or community) conducts the Avdala ceremony (lighting a candle with several wicks, incense and a blessing on the traditional drink). Festive meals are held on Shabbat afternoon and evening. In honor of Shabbat, festive clothes are put on, a solemn Shabbat prayer is held in synagogues. Observance of Shabbat laws is the main principle of Judaism. Only in one case is it prescribed to violate the laws of the Sabbath – for the sake of saving human life.

Tzedaka

Tzedaka – providing material or physical assistance to another, is one of the main commandments of Judaism. The very meaning of the word “tsedaka” in Hebrew means not charity, but justice. This emphasizes that alms are not something special, but only a way of restoring justice. The Torah says: “…do not harden your heart and do not close your hand before your poor brother. But open your hand to him and give him…”

You can perform the mitzvah here.

Holidays

In the Torah there are three words for days, which in Russian are called by one word “holiday”. The first Chag is the word closest in meaning to the Russian word “holiday”. The Torah designates them only for Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot. In Temple times, grown men were required to make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem on these holidays.
In the time of the Temple, the holidays had religious, historical and agricultural significance, they expressed the unity of the spiritual and material life of the Jewish people. So, Pesach, established in memory of the liberation from Egypt, is at the same time the feast of the beginning of the barley harvest; Shavuot, the day of the giving of the Torah, is the feast of the beginning of the harvest of wheat and the harvest of fruits; Sukkot, established in memory of the stay of the people of Israel in the wilderness, is the holiday of the end of the harvest. The second Moed is “a certain day”, “term”. The third Mikra kodesh is the “convening of a sacred assembly.” So the Torah calls the holiday when work is prohibited. During the time of the Temple, on this day, everyone had to gather in the Temple to perform a special service to the Almighty. All three of these definitions apply to Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot. The other two dates, two holidays mentioned in the Torah are Rosh Hashanah (New Year) and Yom Kippur (Judgment Day), the days of the beginning and end of the annual Judgment performed by the Almighty.

In addition to the above, there are a number of holidays that arose in memory of certain events: Hanukkah, Purim, Lag B’Omer and five days of universal fasting: the fast of Gedaliah, the tenth of Tevet, the fast of Esther, the seventeenth of Tamuz and the ninth of Av.

A distinctive feature of Jewish holidays is not the organization of the celebration, but the feeling that people have of belonging to this event, as if it were happening to them today. The Torah instructs the Jews to honor the holidays and enjoy them. Honoring the holiday means preparing for its coming. Enjoy – have two festive meals. Before each meal, kiddush is performed – a special blessing on wine.

What Halacha (Jewish law) forbids doing on the Sabbath is also forbidden to do on holidays. The exception is work related to cooking. So, for example, on a holiday it is allowed to light a fire, but only from another fire lit the day before.

Rites

Jewish law, Alacha, regulates all spheres of life, and, accordingly, all important milestones of the life cycle are accompanied by special rituals. Around the rites, for thousands of years, many customs have developed that are especially important and dear to every Jew. They make it possible to relive the experience of their people, to feel like an integral part of it, help to preserve their identity and preserve themselves as a people. “Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? To follow all His ways. .. to keep the commandments of the Lord and His ordinances for your own good…”
Mitzvah (plural – mitzvot) means “commandment”. Keeping the commandments is the duty of every Jew. In total, there are 613 mitzvahs, 248 of them are positive commandments, i.e. commands to do something, and the remaining 365 are negative, i.e. forbidding to do anything. The divine source of the commandments means their eternity and immutability as the absolute foundations of morality and law.

The Jews have the concept of “the joy of the mitzvah”, that is, inner satisfaction and pleasure arising from the fulfillment of the commandments. The Torah says: “God wished to honor Israel, and therefore He increased the Law and multiplied the mitzvot arising from it.”

kashrut

Kashrut is a set of prescriptions and orders regarding food intake. The Torah explains in detail which types of animals are allowed for food and which are forbidden, when you can eat and when you can’t, under what conditions what dishes can be used, and so on. All fruits and vegetables are allowed, but require a check for insects, which are prohibited. All types of fish with scales and fins are allowed. The strictest laws concern meat.

Meat of cloven-hoofed ruminants is considered to be allowed for consumption. A kosher animal must be slaughtered by a specially trained butcher (shochet). In the process of kosher slaughter, special attention is paid to the painlessness of the process.

The knife must be shaped, sharp and smooth. This allows one easy (no pressure) movement to cut the carotid artery, esophagus, jugular vein and trachea from the side of the neck. The animal instantly loses consciousness and does not feel pain (since the nerves have been cut and the blood supply to the brain has been cut off). Jews are also forbidden to eat blood. It is believed that the soul lives in the blood, so the blood is released and covered with earth. After slaughter, the organs are necessarily checked – if they are not completely healthy, the meat is considered treif and is forbidden to be eaten.

One of the basic rules of kashrut is the prohibition to eat meat with milk. The rule is based on the ethical principle “do not boil a goat in its mother’s milk.” A specialist who monitors the production of products for compliance with the rules of kashrut is called a mashgiah (supervisor).

Jewish calendar

The Hebrew calendar is lunisolar. The days and the year are counted by the sun, and the month by the phase of the moon. The Jewish year consists of 12 months, there are full months – 30 days, and incomplete – 29days. A leap year is established with a certain frequency, it has an additional thirteenth month. The first day of each month, the New Moon, is called Rosh Chodesh. On Rosh Chodesh, additional festive prayers are read, it is also considered Women’s Day, there is a tradition to free a woman from work on this day

Attributes of Judaism

When performing rituals, ritual items (ritual utensils) are used – accessories used in worship and ritual ceremonies in the synagogue and in household use.

Ceremonial items are usually works of applied art – carvings, embossing, casting, embroidery, etc. The shape of ceremonial items is determined by their purpose, and the decorative finish is associated with ritual symbols.

TRADITIONAL JEWISH HOLIDAYS

Sabbath

It is impossible not to note the importance of celebrating Shabbat. The Jewish writer Ahad Ha-Arn said, “It was not so much the Jews who kept Shabbat as it was Shabbat that kept the Jews.” The weekly celebration of God’s gift is celebrated both in the community and in the home circle. On this day, you can taste delicious food, relax, enjoy fellowship with your neighbors and sing praises to the Lord. The family has always been the means by which traditional Jewish holidays have been preserved and flourished. And just as a family has preserved these traditions for centuries, today, in our time, the observance of these traditions can greatly strengthen and unite a family. Shabbat is the most important of the Jewish holidays and is the only holiday mentioned in the Ten Commandments. Perhaps this is precisely the reason for its special importance, as well as the fact that this holiday provides an opportunity to communicate with God in a special way every week. Traditionally, a weekly rest day gives family members the opportunity to spend time together, taking a break from daily routine duties. Such unity has never been more necessary than in these days of breakneck speed.

During the week, each member of the family is busy with their own affairs, on Shabbat everyone can get together to talk and pray in the family circle. Shabbat begins on Friday evenings with the lighting and blessing of at least two candles, which symbolize the light and consciousness that the Lord bestows. Blessed wine, reminiscent of the sweetness of life, blessed challah, egg bread, specially baked for Shabbat. Poor families used to be able to save on food, collect crumbs in order to adequately celebrate Shabbat. Usually, chicken soup was prepared for Shabbat with chicken as the main dish. For dinner on Shabbat, a unique Jewish dish “sholent”, a Jewish casserole, is served. This is a fairly ancient dish that came from biblical times. Since you can’t cook on Shabbat, sholent is prepared ahead of time – put in the oven on Friday evening and slowly cooked all night. It is served warm. In winter, warm food was a must. In the days when there were no individual ovens, the cholent was taken to the communal baker and picked up ready on the Sabbath. The main ingredients of cholent are potatoes, beans, onions and some meat. It is impossible not to recognize today the energy value of this dish, with its low content of meat and a large amount of legumes.

PESAH

The Jewish Passover is celebrated on the eighth day of spring, the day of the liberation of the Jews from Egyptian slavery and their formation as a nation. The first evening of Passover is called the Seder (Last Supper). In the family circle, the elders tell the young ones the story of the exodus of the Jews from Egypt. At the same time, ritual dishes are served. Children have an important role to play during the Seder. They ask questions about the meaning and history of the symbolic dishes served.
The Jewish Passover combines two ancient agricultural holidays: a family festival called Pesach, which originated during the time of Moses’ wanderings in the wilderness and later became a Seder, and the Matza holiday, which arose later, when the Jews mastered agriculture. On this holiday, Jews open their doors to their friends and members of the community.

During the Exodus, the Jews fled in a hurry and could not wait for the yeast dough to rise. So they baked unleavened bread on their backs while fleeing from Pharaoh. Matzah, unleavened bread, symbolically reminds them of this flight and struggle. During the Easter week, no yeast dough dishes, no legumes, no rice are served. Products made from matzah replace all grain dishes. Yeast products are not only not served, but also taken out of the house. Sephardic homes follow the same traditions, but prepare different dishes, given their Mediterranean origin.

Traditionally, the Seder is the first two Passover evenings. On the second evening, the seder may take place in the synagogue so that the whole congregation gathers. The women’s seder is becoming more common, providing an opportunity for women to gather and recount their unique role in saving the Jews.

ROSH HASHANA

According to tradition, Rosh Hashanah is the anniversary of creation, or, in other words, the birthday of mankind. The Jewish New Year gives us the opportunity to meet with our loved ones, to reflect on our spirituality. How nice to celebrate the New Year with family and close friends. Everything that each person does is written in the Book of Life. On the day of Rosh Hashanah, all the deeds of people are considered in heaven. The good and bad deeds of the past year are weighed and judged. “On Rosh Hashanah it is written, on Yom Kippur it is confirmed. .. who will live and who will die… but repentance, prayer and charity soften the harsh decisions of the Judges.” The traditional greeting on Rosh Hashanah, “May you have a good year,” thus takes on a deep meaning.

Apples are usually served at the table on this holiday as a symbol of fertility. They are dipped in honey to make the year “sweet”. A round-shaped challah is served on the table as a symbol of endless life.

YOM KIPUR

Yom Kippur is observed rather than celebrated. This Holy Day, the most solemn of all holidays, ends the ten-day period of repentance beginning with Rosh Hashanah. It is during these ten days that Jews remember their deeds and reflect on them. It is said that “forgiveness will not be given until those whom you have hurt have asked for it for you.” At this time, synagogues are full of worshipers. No one stays aside, everyone prays for the remission of sins committed “consciously or out of ignorance.” This holiday is considered very important even by those Jews who observe traditions very rarely or not at all. Yom Kippur is traditionally a day of fasting. On this day, nothing is eaten or cooked. With the last sound of the shofar, a bugle made from a ram’s horn, the end of the day of prayer is announced, and the twenty-four-hour fast is interrupted by sweets, a symbol of a sweet coming year.

HANUKKA

Hanukkah is a holiday of re-sanctification. It lasts eight days and is celebrated in December. It marks the reconsecration of the Second Temple in 165 BC. e., when, in spite of everything, a small group of Jews was able to overcome the oppression of the Syrian invaders. The Syrians sought to destroy Judaism and convert all Jews to Hellenism. This holiday is also important because on this day, for the first time, Jews were able to successfully march and win freedom of religion for all people. After achieving victory, the main concern was to clean the Temple and re-consecrate the altar for the resumption of daily services. It is remarkable, although perhaps not true, that when the Jews cleansed the Temple, they could only find one bottle of oil in it to light an ever-burning fire. But thanks to the miracle of this bottle of oil, it was enough for more than one day. The fire burned for eight days, long enough for the Jews to make new oil. To commemorate this miracle, Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days. The fire is lit in a special eight-cup menorah. At first, only one candle is lit, and another one is lit every night. Hanukkah is predominantly celebrated at home, the family lights and blesses the holiday candles, and everyone enjoys food cooked in oil. For example, they cook such a dish as latkes. Some people say that it has so much cholesterol that it takes a whole year to get rid of it. On this day, children play a game with a dreidel, sing songs, people give gifts to each other. But this holiday is not “Jewish Christmas”.

YOM HASHOAH

Yom Hashoach is the most solemn holiday that has recently appeared on the Jewish calendar. This day, celebrated every year at the beginning of May, is as sad as the day of Tish Bav, which commemorates the destruction of the first and second Temples. Yom Hashoach commemorates the death of six million Jews in Europe during the Nazi regime of Adolf Hitler 1933-1945.

Almost one in three Jews in the world died during the terrible years of the Holocaust. Jews celebrate this day by reciting prayers, remembering loved ones, lighting candles in memory of the dead, so that no one ever forgets what happened at that terrible time, and so that something like this never happens again.

YOM HAATZMAUT

After millions of Jews were exterminated during the Holocaust, everyone thought that the Jews would never come to their senses. But nevertheless, in May 1948, three years after the end of the Second World War, a two thousand year dream came true for people who were deprived of their country and forced to flee to foreign lands. In 1948, the Jewish state of Israel was revived – the first and only state in which the majority of citizens are people of one nation – Jews, Yom Haatzmaut celebrates the birthday of Israel. For Jews, this holiday can be compared to America’s Independence Day – July 4th.

LAG BOMER

Lag Bomer, an ancient grain harvest festival, was celebrated by bringing a measure of grain, or Omer, to the Temple. There are many explanations for why the seven weeks between Passover and Shaviot is practically a time of tribulation. Some believe that the cause of grief is a terrible plague epidemic that occurred at that time. But whatever the true cause of sadness, Lag Bomer, celebrated in the middle of the sad seven weeks, destroys this atmosphere. This is a noisy and joyful holiday, the time of picnics, barbecues and fireworks. Usually, the first cutting of a boy’s hair at the age of three takes place on Lag Bomer.

There are no special dishes associated with this holiday. On this holiday, everything that is usual for every picnic is served at the table – cakes, bagels, sandwiches and cookies. In Israel, popular food at this time is chickpeas, falafel, fruits and nuts.

SHAVIOT FESTIVAL

Shaviot is a spring harvest festival held in summer. Previously, this holiday was one of the three holidays of the Great Pilgrimage, when everyone had to attend a service in one of the temples of Jerusalem. Traditionally, this day is considered the birthday of the Torah, and on this day the transmission of the Law to people on Mount Sinai is celebrated. Shaviot concludes the spring cycle of feasts, which begin with the counting of the omers, bundles of the new barley crop, which are harvested from the temple on the second day of Passover. On Shaviot, the book of Ruth is usually read. This book, the main one on the harvest festival, tells about a woman, a non-Jew, from whom the family of King David descended. The stories in this book are deeply symbolic, as they convey the idea of ​​harvesting and the idea of ​​uniting people around the Law. In honor of the Law, fruits, curd pancakes and other dairy dishes are first served on the table on this day, since the Law is usually compared to “milk with honey. ”

SIMCHAT TORAH

Simchat Torah celebrates the end of the annual Torah reading cycle. The culmination of the reading of the Torah is the reading of the last chapter of Deuteronomy, and immediately after that the beginning of the reading of the first chapter of Genesis. The process of uninterrupted ending and beginning is symbolized by the seven ceremonial circles of parishioners who hold the Torah in their hands. The Simchat Torah holiday dates back to the sixteenth century, at that time it was a way to introduce children to the Torah. Folklorists believe that walking in circles was once one of the ways that people used to propitiate the spirits. It was believed that evil spirits could not get inside the circle. On this holiday, it is customary to eat round products that symbolize the completion of the year. Now, during the Simchat Torah processions, the flag of Israel topped with apples is also worn.

TU BSHEVAT

Tu Bshevat – the Jewish Arbor Day – is known as the new year of trees and is the day when people plant trees. This holiday goes back in time to ancient spring agricultural traditions. One of the customs that has come down to us is the custom of tasting at least fifteen different fruits that day. This number is chosen because this holiday is celebrated on the fifteenth day of the month of Shevat and usually occurs in January or February. On this day, a large number of different fruits are served at the table – dried, fresh, baked.

PURIM

The story recorded in the biblical Book of Esther is reflected in the busiest Jewish holiday, Purim. This is the only holiday where Jews are actually encouraged to drink alcoholic beverages. Purim marks the end of the persecution of the Jews. Although the real events in ancient Persia are hidden in the mists of time, and perhaps nothing like this ever happened in reality, the story was considered so important that it was included in the Bible. Purim is celebrated with a costumed feast, a merry reading of the Book of Esther, during which the audience shouts and laughs with joy. During Purim, you can taste ha-mantashi, triangular hard cookies with filling. The first mention of poppy honey cookies in connection with Purim was found in a medieval poem by Abraham ibn Ezr, who lived in the early twelfth century.

SUKOT

All the symbols and meaning of the Sukkot traditions help the Jew to better understand nature and the world in which we live. Sukkot also recalls the hard times of the Israelites’ wanderings in the wilderness and God’s care that helped the fugitives get to the promised land after forty years. Sukkot is the ancestor of the American Thanksgiving holiday. Jews on this holiday give thanks for the joy of the harvest and for the wonderful gifts of the Lord throughout the ages.

This festival begins with the creation of a Sukkah, a temporary tree in a garden or other open space, and lasts for eight days, during which people enjoy delicious food in the circle of loved ones. The sukkah is decorated with cornstalks, pumpkins and children’s drawings.