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Yom Kippur |
Yom Kippur is probably the most important holiday of the Jewish year. Many Jews
who do not observe any other Jewish custom will refrain from work, fast and/or
attend synagogue services on this day. Yom Kippur occurs on the 10th day of
Tishri.
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לקיים מצוות - observe
מנהג - custom
להימנע - refrain
צום - fast
בית כנסת - synagogue
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The name "Yom Kippur" means "Day of Atonement," and that pretty much explains
what the holiday is. It is a day set aside to "afflict the soul," to atone for
the sins of the past year.
This day is, essentially, your last appeal, your last chance to change the
judgment, to demonstrate your repentance and make amends.
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כפרה - Atonement
לייסר - afflict
לכפר - atone
חטאים - sins
חרטה, צער - repentance
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Yom Kippur atones only for sins between man and God, not for sins against
another person. To atone for sins against another person, you must first seek
reconciliation with that person, righting the wrongs you committed against them
if possible. That must all be done before Yom Kippur
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פיוס - reconciliation
מחויב - committed
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Yom Kippur is a complete Sabbath; no work can be performed on
that day. It is well-known that you are supposed to refrain from eating and
drinking (even water) on Yom Kippur. It is a complete, 25-hour fast beginning
before sunset on the evening before Yom Kippur and ending after nightfall on the
day of Yom Kippur. The Talmud also specifies additional restrictions that are
less well-known: washing and bathing, anointing one's body (with cosmetics,
deodorants, etc.), wearing leather shoes (Orthodox Jews routinely wear canvas
sneakers under their dress clothes on Yom Kippur), and engaging in sexual
relations are all prohibited on Yom Kippur.
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רדת הלילה - nightfall
למשוח - anointing
בצורה שיגרתית - routinely
אריג גס - canvas
אסור - prohibited
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As always, any of these restrictions can be lifted where a threat to life or
health is involved. In fact, children under the age of nine and women in
childbirth (from the time labor begins until three days after birth) are not
permitted to fast, even if they want to. Older children and women from the
third to the seventh day after childbirth are permitted to fast, but are
permitted to break the fast if they feel the need to do so. People with other
illnesses should consult a physician and a rabbi for advice.
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מגבלות - restrictions
להסיר - lifted
לידה - childbirth
לא מורשה - no permitted
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Most of the holiday is spent in the synagogue, in prayer. In Orthodox
synagogues, services begin early in the morning (8 or 9 AM) and continue until
about 3 PM. People then usually go home for an afternoon nap and return around 5
or 6 PM for the afternoon and evening services, which continue until nightfall.
The services end at nightfall, with the blowing of the tekiah gedolah, a long
blastthe shofar. See Rosh Hashanah for more
about the shofar and its characteristic blasts
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תפילה - prayer
נשיפה - blowing
צפצוף, שריקת - blast
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It is customary to wear white on the holiday, which symbolizes purity and calls
to mind the promise that our sins shall be made as white as snow.
Some people wear a kittel, the white robe in which the dead are
buried
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טוהר - purity
גלימה - robe
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The evening service that begins Yom Kippur is commonly known as Kol Nidre, named
for the prayer that begins the service. "Kol nidre" means "all vows," and in
this prayer, we ask God to annul all personal vows we may make in the next year.
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כל נדרי - Kol Nidre
נדר - vow
לבטל, לחסל - annul
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The concluding service of Yom Kippur, known as
Ne'ilah, is one unique to the day. It usually runs about 1 hour long.
The ark (a cabinet where the scrolls of the Torah are kept) is kept open
throughout this service, thus you must stand throughout the service. There is a
tone of desperation in the prayers of this service. The service is sometimes
referred to as the closing of the gates; think of it as the "last chance" to get
in a good word before the holiday ends. The service ends with a very long blast
of the shofar.
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מסכם - concluding
תיבה - ark
יאוש - desperation
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After Yom Kippur, one should begin preparing for the next holiday,
Sukkot, which begins five days later
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להתכונן - preparing
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