Yom Kippur 2023: Yom Kippur 2023 and Sukkot are on the horizon! The dates of Yom Kippur and Sukkot are determined by the Hebrew calendar and vary annually on the secular calendar. Learn about the history of Yom Kippur and Sukkot, when to celebrate them in 2023, and the proper methods to observe them, as they are vastly distinct!
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What date is Yom Kippur in 2023?
Yom Kippur begins at sundown on Sunday, September 24, 2023, and ends on Monday, September 25, 2023, in the evening.
What is the date of Yom Kippur in 2023?
In 2023, Yom Kippur will commence on Sunday evening and end on Monday evening.
When in 2023 are Sukkot and Yom Kippur?
Yom Kippur begins at sundown on Sunday, September 24, 2023, and ends on Monday, September 25, 2023, in the evening.
Sukkot commences on Friday, September 29, 2023 at sunset and concludes on Friday, October 6, 2023 at sundown.
Yom Kippur Background
Jews believe that shortly after leaving Egypt, the Israelites committed the transgression of worshipping a golden calf. This prompted Moses to climb Mount Sinai and beseech God to forgive the Israelites. After two 40-day periods atop the mountain, permission was granted. Yom Kippur commemorates the day Moses descended Mount Sinai after receiving the Divine Favour for his people.
Yom Kippur Details
Yom Kippur is the highest day of the Hebrew calendar and is referred to as the Day of Atonement in the Jewish religion.
It is characterised by abstinence from eating, drink, bathing, lotions, perfumes, physical intimacy, and leather shoes. On Yom Kippur, all types of work are prohibited. The day is to be devoted in worship and repentance.
Forty days prior to Yom Kippur, observant Jews begin blowing the shofar, a special instrument, each morning and reciting Psalm 27 after their morning and afternoon prayers. In some communities, a special supplication called Selichot is recited every morning during this period.
The week preceding Yom Kippur is known as the Ten Days of Repentance, during which special prayers are performed.
Honey cake is traditionally served as part of two festive banquets on the day preceding Yom Kippur, before the fasting period begins. Additionally, holiday candles are ignited before the fast begins.
Additionally, celebrants donate more to charitable causes, and Yom Kippur religious services frequently have additional charity platters for those in need.
The religious services of Yom Kippur consist of five different prayer sessions: Maariv on the evening before the fast begins, Shacharit on the first full day of Yom Kippur, Musaf and Minchah in the afternoon, and Neilah just before sunset, which concludes the fasting period.
Sukkot Background
Sukkot commemorates the protection God provided the Israelites as they departed Egypt. Some believe that he used clouds to shield them from the harsh desert sun, while others commemorate the tents they resided in during their forty-year journey to freedom.
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Sukkot Details
During the first two days of Sukkot, which are known as yom tov, labour is prohibited. During the evening of Yom Kippur, celebrants light candles and eat challah bread dipped in honey.
The following five days are spent dining in a sukkah, a tent topped with natural vegetation; some participants spend the majority of their awake hours in the sukkah.
Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah are the names given to the final two days of Sukkot. Shemini Atzeret is the second-to-last day of Sukkot, during which you continue to partake in the sukkah but without a blessing. During Simchat Torah, the annual cycle of Torah reading is completed and restarted, accompanied by music and dancing.
Celebrants consecrate the Four Kinds on each night of Sukkot besides Shabbat: an etrog (citron), a lulav (palm frond), three hadassim (myrtle twigs), and two aravot (willow twigs). The Four Kinds represent distinct Israeli communities, and Sukkot is a celebration of their unity.
