1. Major (and some minor) Jewish Holidays

2. There are many different Jewish holidays, just as there are many others holidays in other cultures. Some of these holidays are more important than others.

3. The most important holiday in Judaism is actually two holidays connected by a period of ten days. At the beginning of this ten day period is Rosh Hashanah. At the end is Yom Kippur.

4. Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of the Jewish New Year.

5. Because the Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar, the Jewish New Year is different than the New Year we celebrate.

6. Part of the Rosh Hashanah service in the synagogue is the blowing of the shofar. A shofar is a ram’s horn.

7. Blowing the shofar is supposed to wake people up, get them ready for the new year.
Listen to the sound of the shofar.

8. After services, Jews gather together and eat apples and honey
After services, Jews gather together and eat apples and honey. They do this to ensure a sweet new year.

9. They also have a meal together
They also have a meal together. At this meal, they might eat honey cake, and they will eat from a bread called a challah.

10. On Rosh Hashanah, the challah is round. Normally, it is braided
On Rosh Hashanah, the challah is round. Normally, it is braided. It is round to show that the year is like a circle, starting but coming around to the same place.

11. After Rosh Hashanah, there is a ten day period during which Jews are supposed to make up for the wrongs they have committed during the year.

12. At the end of the ten days, there is another holiday called Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement.

13. Yom Kippur is the holiest day in Judaism
Yom Kippur is the holiest day in Judaism. On it, Jews are supposed to confess their sins. That way, they will be written down by God in the Book of Life. This is a little like getting into Heaven, even though the Jewish belief in Heaven is a little fuzzier than the Christian one.

14. On Yom Kippur, Jews fast from sundown to the night before to sundown that day.

15. Then they break the fast with another big meal.

16. The other really big holiday in Judaism is Passover.

17. Passover celebrates the escape of the Jews from Egypt, where they were slaves.

18. God told Moses, a Jew, to ask the Pharaoh to let the Jews go.

19. But the Pharaoh was cruel, and didn’t want to give up his slaves.

20. So God sent plagues upon the Egyptians.
Biting flies
Rivers of blood
Frogs
Boils
Wild beasts
Cattle disease
Locusts
Slaying of the first born
Hail

21. One of the plagues God sent was that all the first born sons of the Egyptians would die. Jews painted lamb’s blood on their doors so that God would know they were Jewish and not take their sons.

22. This is why the holiday is called Passover, because God passed over the Jews.

23. The Jews escaped. But while they were running away, they didn’t have time to prepare meals.

24. They couldn’t let their bread rise
They couldn’t let their bread rise. Therefore, on Passover, Jews eat a special bread called matzoh, that hasn’t risen.

25. Jews celebrate the holiday with a big meal called a seder.

26. On the table is a special plate, called a seder plate
On the table is a special plate, called a seder plate. On this plate are different things that represent part of the story.

27. At the seder they read and remember the story of the Jews in Egypt
At the seder they read and remember the story of the Jews in Egypt. The story is called the Haggadah. Then they eat!

28. The holiday that most people think about when they think about Jewish holidays is Hanukkah.

29. Hanukkah isn’t actually a big holiday
Hanukkah isn’t actually a big holiday. But it’s become a bigger holiday because it usually happens around the same time as Christmas.

30. Hanukkah remembers a Jewish military victory by people called the Maccabees.

31. While the Maccabees were fighting, the rest of the Jews hid in the synagogue.

32. In a synagogue, there is a lamp that is supposed to always burn
In a synagogue, there is a lamp that is supposed to always burn. The Jews in this synagogue had oil for the lamp for only one day. But then a miracle happened. The oil lasted for eight days.

33. Because of this miracle, for eight nights, Jews light candles in a menorah. They light a new candle each night until on the eighth night, all the candles are lit.

34. Jews also exchange presents each night, but mostly this is because of Christmas – Jews didn’t want to be left out.

35. Traditionally, Jews usually give money to charity on this holiday.

36. Jews also play a game with a spinning top called a dreidel
Jews also play a game with a spinning top called a dreidel. They play for candy, pretzels, or even money!

37. They also eat foods that have been cooked in oil
They also eat foods that have been cooked in oil. One of these traditional foods are called latkes. Latkes are potato pancakes.

38. There are other more minor Jewish holidays
There are other more minor Jewish holidays. One of these holidays is called Purim.

39. Purim remembers a time when an evil man named Haman tried to get the king of Persia to kill all the Jews.

40. The king’s wife, Esther, was Jewish
The king’s wife, Esther, was Jewish. She convinced the king not to kill the Jews.

41. To celebrate Purim, Jews read the story of Esther
To celebrate Purim, Jews read the story of Esther. Every time they hear the name “Haman,” they boo or make noise with noisemakers called “groggers.”

42. Purim is a little like the Jewish version of Halloween
Purim is a little like the Jewish version of Halloween. People put on costumes and have parades.

43. Children usually dress up as one of the characters from the story
Children usually dress up as one of the characters from the story. (Not just children.)

44. Jews eat special cookies called hamantaschen, which are shaped like Haman’s hat.

45. Jews also celebrate Yom Ha’Shoah, which remembers the Holocaust.

46. Another sad holiday is Tisha B’Av, which remembers when the second temple in Jerusalem was destroyed.

47. There are also holidays that celebrate the harvest, trees, the founding of Israel, and more.
Sukkot
Tu B'Shevat
Israeli Independence Day
Shavuot

48. THE END!