Pages discussing the Jewish calendar and sacred time, including the sabbath and holidays
- What Do Jews Do on Christmas?
- Do Jews celebrate Christmas? And if they don't, then what do they do on December 25?
- Jewish Calendar
Basic
- Learn about the Jewish calendar, its background and history, the numbering of Jewish years, the months of the Jewish year and the days of the Jewish week.
- The Jewish Calendar: A Closer Look
Intermediate
- A closer look at the mathematics behind the Jewish Calendar, explaining how Hebrew dates are calculated. Provides sample JavaScript code to show how the calculations work.
- Shabbat
Basic
- Learn about the Jewish sabbath and its observances. Includes a description of a typical sabbath and a recipe for cholent, a traditional Jewish sabbath dish.
- Special Shabbatot
Intermediate
- Learn about some Shabbatot (Sabbaths) that have a special additional reading or significance.
- Jewish Holidays
Basic
- Learn about Jewish holidays generally. Includes a list of all Jewish holidays and their dates for the next five years. Provides links to pages about each specific holiday.
- The Month of Tishri
Basic
- Learn about Tishri, the most holiday-intensive month of the Jewish year.
- Rosh Hashanah
Basic
- Learn about the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, a day of the awakening sound of the shofar (ram's horn trumpet) and the sweetness apples dipped in honey.
- Days of Awe
Basic
- Learn about the period of introspection from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur, known as the Days of Awe.
- Yom Kippur
Basic
- Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, a day of fasting and prayer, seeking forgiveness for our mistakes of the past year and resolving to be better in the coming year, concluding with a triumphant final blast of the shofar.
- Tips for Yom Kippur Fasting
- Some tips for fasting on the Jewish Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur.
- Sukkot
Basic
- Learn about the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles.
- Know Your Etrog
Intermediate
- Learn about the etrog (citron) fruit used in Jewish rituals during the festival of Sukkot (Tabernacles). Includes photographs of an etrog and an etrog tree.
- Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah
Basic
- Learn about the Jewish holidays at the conclusion of Sukkot: Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah.
- Chanukah
Basic
- Learn about Chanukah, the Jewish Festival of Lights. Learn the rules for playing dreidel and a recipe for latkes (potato pancakes).
- Tu B'Shevat
Basic
- Learn about the holiday of Tu B'Shevat, the Jewish Arbor Day, the New Year for Trees.
- Purim
Basic
- Learn about the Jewish holiday of Purim, from the Book of Esther. Includes a recipe for hamentaschen (traditional holiday cookies).
- Pesach: Passover
Basic
- Learn about the Jewish holiday of Passover, known to Jews as Pesach. Includes an outline of the seder (the family holiday ritual meal) and a recipe for charoset (a traditional seder food).
- Pesach Seder: How is This Night Different
Intermediate
- Learn about the Pesach (Passover) seder in the context of traditional Jewish practice, explaining how the rituals in the seder fit into traditional Jewish life.
- Pesach (Passover) Cooking Tips
Basic
- Suggestions and tips to help you plan meals for Pesach (Passover). This page focuses on the many things that you can eat, instead of the usual focus on things you can't eat.
- The Counting of the Omer
Basic
- Learn about the counting of the omer, a Jewish observance counting the days between the festivals of Pesach (Passover) and Shavu'ot.
- Shavu'ot
Basic
- Learn about the Jewish festival of Shavu'ot, the festival of the giving of the Torah.
- Tisha B'Av
Basic
- Learn about the fast of the ninth of Av, a day commemorating the tragedies that have befallen the Jewish people.
- The Month of Elul and Selichot
Basic
- Discusses the Jewish month of Elul, a time of repentance, and the recitation of Selichot, prayers for forgiveness and mercy, during that period
- Minor Fasts
Basic
- Learn about the minor fasts of the Jewish calendar and their significance.
- Rosh Chodesh
Basic
- Learn about the minor festival of Rosh Chodesh, the first day of the new month.
- New Holidays
Basic
- Learn about the holidays that were added to the Jewish calendar to commemorate historical events of the last century.
- Birkat Hachamah: Blessing the Sun
Basic
- Learn about the once-in-28-years recitation of the blessing of the sun, birkat hachamah
- A Gentile's Guide to the Jewish Holidays
Gentile
- Provides a basic, minimal awareness of the holidays most commonly observed by American Jews and the accommodations that Jews may require for these holidays.
- Holocaust: A Personal View
Basic
- Personal stories about the Holocaust experiences of members of my extended family
- Virtual Dreidel Game
Basic
Go to Site Map
Judaism 101