JUDAISM

In a message to the community on the occasion of Rosh Hashanah, Chief Rabbi Rav David Sivi reminds us that this is a perfect time to take the first small steps toward future change.

Passover, which constitutes the focus of the Jewish life and has always acted as a life guide with its still up-to-date teachings, is our first festival that is spoken of clearly in the Torah. Passover´s requirements were told by God to Moshe Rabenu two weeks before the Exodus from Egypt.

During the Tu BiShvat Holiday, also known as the holiday of the trees and the new year of the trees, we take care to eat fruits that grow in the Holy Land. This year we are celebrating the Tu BiShvat Holiday on Thursday, January 25th, starting on the evening of Wednesday, January 24th.

Hanukkah festival, where we light eight candles for eight nights, increasing by one candle each night, together with our family and loved ones, is starting this evening, Thursday, December 7th.

With the Rosh Hashanah holiday, we will be celebrating on Friday, September 15th, and Saturday, September 16th this year, we are commencing the year 5784 in the Jewish calendar.

This year the Passover (Pesach) Festival, the anniversary of the miracle of Exodus from Egyptian slavery, will be celebrated starting on the eve of Wednesday, April 5th.

With the Rosh Hashanah holiday, we will be celebrating on Monday, September 26th, and Tuesday, September 27th this year, we will be commencing the year 5783 in the Jewish calendar.

The Shavuot Holiday, the anniversary of the time our Torah was given at Mount Sinai and the festival of weeks, will start at sundown on Saturday, June 4th this year.

This year we are starting to celebrate the Passover (Pesach) Festival, the anniversary of the miracle of Exodus from Egyptian slavery, which is always at the center of Jewish life, on the eve of Friday, April 15th.

The 15th of Shevat on the Jewish calendar is known as Tu BiShvat, the day that marks the beginning of a ´new year´ for trees. This year we are celebrating Tu BiShvat Holiday on Monday, January 17th, starting from the evening of Sunday, January 16th.

Hanukkah festival, where we light eight candles for eight nights, increasing by one candle each night, together with our family and loved ones, is starting on the eve of Sunday, November 28th.

Sukkot, like no other Jewish festival, celebrates the dual nature of the Jewish faith; the universality of God and the particularity of Jewish existence. The Sukkot Festival, which lasts seven days and seven nights, is starting at sundown on Monday, September 20th.

Yom Kippur, the day of forgiveness, and purification, and atonement, is regarded as the holiest day of the year in Judaism.

Rosh Hashanah holiday, when we celebrate the beginning of a new year, is the day Adam and Eve were created and the creation of the universe was completed.

Shavuot, the anniversary of the giving of our Torah at Mount Sinai and the festival of weeks, will start at sundown on Sunday, May 16th, this year.

The Passover Festival, when we celebrate the freeing of Jews from their 210-year-long slavery in the Egyptian lands and achieving their independence, is starting on the evening of Saturday, March 27th.

Purim, the happiest festival in the Jewish calendar, will be celebrated on Friday, February 26th this year.

´Tu BiShvat´ which means 15th of the month of Shevat (on the Jewish calendar), is also known as The New Year for Trees, Festival of Trees (Chag Ha´Ilanot), and Festival of Fruits (Chag Ha´Perot).