The Jewish calendar has many important holidays, including Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Hanukkah, Purim, Pesach, Yom Ha-Shoah, Shavu’ot, and Shabbat. Dates can be confusing as they are based on the Jewish calendar, not the Gregorian calendar.
Many people are familiar with Hanukkah, Pesach and Rosh Hashanah, three major Jewish holidays, but there are a number of other important holidays in the Jewish calendar to commemorate various events in Jewish history and to celebrate the Jewish faith. In communities with large Jewish populations, they may be designated as official holidays, although for devout Jews, the holiday actually begins the night before, which is important to keep in mind when planning events to coincide with these days.
The Jewish calendar begins with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, which falls in late September or early October. Ten days after the New Year, Jews around the world celebrate Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. On this day, people fast for 25 hours and attend special church services. Yom Kippur is a day of reflection and an opportunity for Jews to have a private conversation with God about their actions over the past year.
Five days after Yom Kippur, the holiday of Sukkot falls, which usually falls in October. On Sukkot, Jews commemorate 40 years their ancestors spent wandering in the desert. Some families build a small shelter, called a sukkah, and spend time in the shelter during this holiday. After Sukkot ends, people celebrate Simchat Torah, the date when the annual cycle of Torah reading ends and the cycle starts again for the year. Typically, Torah scrolls are carried in a parade on Simchat Torah.
In December, people of the Jewish faith celebrate Hanukkah, the festival of lights, to commemorate the miracle at the Temple in Jerusalem. This eight-day holiday comes with gifts, as many Gentiles know, but people also eat traditional foods during Hanukkah and light candles on a special candlestick called a hanukiah every night to celebrate. While many non-Jews know this holiday as a primary Jewish holiday, it is actually not traditionally considered one of the most important. Its importance may have been raised simply due to its proximity to a very important holiday in the Christian religion: Christmas.
A month before Passover, also known as Pesach, people celebrate Purim, a holiday based on the story of Esther. Children dress up and act out Bible stories in some Jewish communities on this holiday, and everyone celebrates with feasts and food. During the eight-day Pesach holiday, people remember the exodus from Egypt. This is one of the Jewish holidays that coincides with the holidays of other religions, as Easter usually falls on the same dates.
Some Jewish communities also observe Yom Ha-Shoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, in late April or early May. The next major Jewish holiday is Shavu’ot, which commemorates the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. Jewish families also celebrate an important holiday every Friday night and Saturday when they observe Shabbat.
The changing dates of these days can confuse outsiders. Holidays shift because they are not tied to the Gregorian calendar used by most of the world, but rather to the Jewish calendar. Dates on the Jewish calendar are calculated slightly differently, and as a result, holidays appear to jump when mapped to the Gregorian calendar.
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