Jewish festivals and holy days are central to Judaism, marking key moments in history and spiritual life. These celebrations range from solemn days of reflection to joyous feasts, each with unique customs and rituals that strengthen Jewish identity and community bonds.

The Jewish calendar is filled with diverse observances, including the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, pilgrimage festivals like Passover and Sukkot, and minor holidays such as Hanukkah and Purim. Each festival carries deep religious and cultural significance, shaping Jewish practice and tradition.

High Holy Days

Rosh Hashanah - Jewish New Year

• Celebrates the creation of the world and marks the beginning of the Days of Awe, a 10-day period of introspection and repentance
• Customs include sounding the shofar (ram's horn), attending synagogue services, and eating symbolic foods such as apples dipped in honey to evoke a "sweet new year"
• Work is forbidden, and festive meals are shared with family and friends
• Occurs on the first and second days of Tishrei (September or October) in the Hebrew calendar

Yom Kippur - Day of Atonement

• Holiest day of the year in Judaism, characterized by fasting, prayer, and repentance
• Observant Jews fast from sundown to sundown, refraining from work, eating, and drinking
• Many spend the day in synagogue, engaged in continuous prayer and reflection, seeking forgiveness for sins committed in the past year
• Marks the end of the Days of Awe and is seen as a chance for spiritual renewal and a clean slate
• Falls on the 10th day of Tishrei, 10 days after Rosh Hashanah

Pilgrimage Festivals

Passover (Pesach) - Commemorates the Exodus from Egypt

• Celebrates the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt, as described in the Book of Exodus
• Lasts for seven days in Israel and eight days in the diaspora, typically falling in March or April
• Central ritual is the Seder, a festive meal that retells the story of the Exodus using symbolic foods and a special text called the Haggadah
• Dietary restrictions include abstaining from chametz (leavened bread and any food made with wheat, barley, rye, oats, or spelt that has been in contact with water for more than 18 minutes)
• Matzah, an unleavened flatbread, is eaten throughout the holiday as a reminder of the haste with which the Israelites fled Egypt

Sukkot - Feast of Tabernacles

• Week-long harvest festival that commemorates the Israelites' 40-year journey through the desert after the Exodus
• Central observance is the construction and dwelling in a temporary structure called a sukkah, reminiscent of the huts the Israelites lived in during their desert wanderings
• Sukkot is one of the three pilgrimage festivals (along with Passover and Shavuot) during which the Israelites were commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem
• Festive meals are eaten in the sukkah, and the lulav (palm, myrtle, and willow branches) and etrog (citron fruit) are waved as part of the holiday rituals
• Falls on the 15th day of Tishrei, five days after Yom Kippur

Shavuot - Feast of Weeks

• Celebrates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai and the wheat harvest in the Land of Israel
• Occurs on the 6th of Sivan, 50 days after the second day of Passover
• Customary to eat dairy foods (cheesecake, blintzes) and study Torah throughout the night
• In agricultural communities, Shavuot also marks the end of the spring barley harvest and the beginning of the summer wheat harvest
• One of the three pilgrimage festivals, along with Passover and Sukkot

Minor Festivals

Hanukkah - Festival of Lights

• Eight-day festival commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem during the Maccabean Revolt
• Central ritual is the lighting of the menorah, a nine-branched candelabrum, with one candle lit on the first night and an additional candle added each subsequent night
• Traditional foods include latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly-filled doughnuts), fried in oil to symbolize the miracle of the Temple oil lasting for eight days
• Custom of giving gifts and playing the dreidel game has become popular, especially in North America
• Falls on the 25th day of Kislev, typically in November or December

Purim - Feast of Lots

• Celebrates the deliverance of the Jewish people from a plot to destroy them in the ancient Persian Empire, as recorded in the Book of Esther
• Customs include reading the Megillah (Book of Esther), exchanging food parcels (mishloach manot), giving charity to the poor (matanot la'evyonim), and participating in a festive meal (se'udat Purim)
• Many people dress up in costumes and attend carnival-like celebrations, particularly in Israel
• Falls on the 14th day of Adar (February or March), with celebrations lasting through the 15th in walled cities like Jerusalem

Tu B'Shvat - New Year of the Trees

• Celebrates the beginning of the "new year" for trees, which is used to calculate the age of trees for tithing and other agricultural purposes
• Customary to eat fruit, particularly the Seven Species mentioned in the Bible (wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates)
• In modern times, Tu B'Shvat has become associated with environmental awareness and tree-planting initiatives, especially in Israel
• Falls on the 15th day of Shevat (January or February)

Tisha B'Av - Ninth of Av

• Day of fasting and mourning commemorating the destruction of both the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem, as well as other tragedies in Jewish history
• Observances include reading the Book of Lamentations, refraining from eating and drinking, and following mourning practices such as sitting on low stools and avoiding leisure activities
• Many Orthodox Jews believe that Tisha B'Av will be a day of rejoicing in the messianic era, when the Temple will be rebuilt
• Falls on the 9th day of Av (July or August), culminating a three-week period of mourning that begins on the 17th of Tammuz