Yom Kippur

In Kitah Dalet the students each made a Yom Kippur guide, based on the following information:

 

Eat!
On the afternoon before Yom Kippur, we eat a festive meal.

There is a beautiful custom to request and receive a piece of honey cake, so that if, G‑d forbid, it was decreed that we need be recipients, it be fulfilled by requesting honey cake and being blessed with a sweet year

 

Light Candles
Girls and their mothers light candles. These are the brachot:

ברוך אתה ה’ א-לקינו מלך העולם, אשר קדשנו במצותיו וצונו להדליק נר של יום הכפורים

Baruch Atta Ado-nai E-lo-hei-nu Melech Ha’olam Asher Kideshanu Bemitzvotav Vetzvivanu Lehadlik Ner Shel Yom Hakippurim.

ברוך אתה ה’ א-לקינו מלך העולם, שהחינו וקימנו והגיענו לזמן הזה

Baruch Atta Ado-nai E-lo-hei-nu Melech Ha’olam Shehecheyanu Vekiyimanu Vehigi’anu Lizman Hazeh

 

What to Wear
On Yom Kippur we do not wear leather shoes. We do wear nice Holiday clothing. You may also notice that many people are wearing white clothing, and some are even wearing a white robe called a kittel. This is because on Yom Kippur we are likened to angels. The angels do not eat, and neither do we. 

 

Fasting
All girls over 12 years old and boys over 13 old fast. If you are not 12 or 13 yet, you are not obligated to fast, but you can try to fast part of the day, with your parent’s permission.

 

Pray!
Yom Kippur means the Day of Atonement, because it is the day on which we atone for all of our sins.

Yom Kippur is a day of prayer. Go to the synagogue, find yourself a quiet spot, and pray and meditate. Think about the past year, think of all the good things you did and of the not so good things, feel bad about them? Okay, now decide that you will never do those things again. And ask G‑d to forgive you for anything inappropriate you may have done.

 

Shofar
At the end of the day, the whole congregation recites the Shema and a few other verses out loud together, then the shofar is sounded for one long blast. After that we say: “Next Year in Jerusalem.” We then recite the evening services and the fast is over.

 

May we all be sealed for a Shana Tova Umetuka -a good and sweet year!