Jewish Yom Kippur Date

Yom Kippur: The Day of Atonement

Yom Kippur (יוֹם כִּפּוּר, “Day of Atonement”) lands on 10 Tishrei, ten days after Rosh Hashanah, which usually places it in September or October. No day in the Jewish calendar carries more weight: it is the most sacred day, the high point of the Ten Days of Repentance (Aseret Yemei Teshuvah) that open with the new year.

At its heart sits teshuvah: returning, repenting, mending one’s relationship with God and with other people. Tradition says that on this day God seals the Book of Life for the year ahead. Fasting and prayer atone for wrongs between a person and God, but wrongs done to other people are different. There you have to ask the injured party for forgiveness first.

Applications

The fast runs 25 hours, from sundown to nightfall the next day, and it comes with five prohibitions: no eating or drinking, no bathing, no creams or oils, no marital relations, no leather footwear. There are five prayer services across the day. These include Kol Nidrei on the eve, which annuls vows, and the closing Ne’ilah, the service held as the “heavenly gates” are said to close. White clothing is common, worn as a sign of purity.

FAQ

Who is exempt from the fast? Children under 9, women in labor, the seriously ill, and anyone whose life would be put at risk. On this point halakha leaves no room for doubt. Preserving life, pikuach nefesh, takes precedence over nearly every commandment, the Yom Kippur fast among them.

Why no leather shoes? Leather stands for physical comfort and luxury, and giving it up is part of the self-affliction (inui) the day calls for. Plenty of people head to the synagogue in canvas sneakers or plain cloth shoes.

What is Kol Nidrei? It is the prayer that opens the eve of Yom Kippur, recited in Aramaic, and it frees the worshipper from vows made under duress between this Yom Kippur and the next. The melody that carries it is among the most recognizable in all of synagogue music.