Minor Festivals

Apart from the three pilgrimage festivals of Pesach, Shauvot and Sukkot the Jews celebrate five other main festivals. One of these we have already looked at in the festival of Simhat Torah. The other four festivals of the Jewish year are. Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Purim and Chanukah.

Rosh Hashanah (New Year)

The main symbol associated with Rosh Hashanah is the shofar or ram's horn. This instrument is capable of producing three different sounds and these are used to call the people to repent.

• A long, drawn-out sound which calls everyone to listen
• A broken, plaintive sound which represents the repentant people of Israel
• A sharp, staccato sound which is reminiscent of the sobbing of repentance

On Rosh Hashanah the shofar is blown 100 times. Just as trumpets announce the presence of a human king so the shofar pronounces the kingship of God. It is also calling the people to two things.

• To look back to the creation of the world when all things were perfect
• To look forward to the day of judgment when God will call all people to account

This theme of judgment is important at Rosh Hashanah and in the days that follow it. The Rabbis of old taught their congregations that on Rosh Hashanah three books are opened in heaven that record the deeds of all the people. One day people will be called upon to account for what is written into those books.

These three books are

• The book of the righteous, whose fate will be life
• The book of the wicked, whose fate will be death
• The book of the in-between, whose fate depends on how they behave from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur (nine days)

The New Year also looks forward to the time when the Messiah will come and will redeem the Jews and all of the human race.

Yom Kippur (the day of atonement)

In Jewish tradition Yom Kippur is ranked as the holiest day of the year. Beginning after the sunset on the ninth day of Rosh Hashanah it is marked by 25 hours of prayer and fasting following the example of God's angles who do not need to eat or drink but spend all their time praising God. So on this one day Jews try to serve God as though they were angels. They follow the teaching of the Talmud which forbids eating, drinking, washing, sexual intercourse, anointing and wearing leather shoes on this day.

According to tradition, Satan is able to tempt the Jewish people every day of the year except on Yom Kippur. On that day God declares to Satan, "You have no power over then today; nevertheless go and see what they are doing", the story goes that God finds all the Jews of the world dressed as angels and Satan agrees that he has no power over them. God then binds Satan in chains and says to all the Jews "You are forgiven all your sins". To Jewish people then, Yom Kippur is , above all else, a day of forgiveness. (The day of Atonement). So Jews will try to seek forgiveness from all the people that they feel they have wronged in the last year.

Chanukah (the festival of lights)

The festival of Chanukah (dedication) is celebrated for eight days in December. It is different from the other Jewish festivals in that it is not mentioned in the bible. The festival is based on the rapture and rededication of the temple in Jerusalem in 165BCE. This building, so important to the Jews, had been captured by the Greek armies and dedicated to their own god, Zeus.

After the recapture of the temple by the Jewish army, led by Judas the Maccabee and eight day celebration was held. During this time the temple was cleansed and purified. Every pagan (not holy) object was removed, the menorah (7 branched candlestick) was found to be so damaged that a new one was made out of 7 spears of the Jewish warriors thus the weapons of war were turned into the weapons of peace.

The Jews could then only find enough oil to keep the everlasting light (Ner Tamid) before the Holy Ark for a single day. As this light symbolised the continuous peace of God with his people it was never allowed to go out. Miraculously, on this occasion, one day's worth of oil lasted for eight days until a new supply could be prepared this is way the festival of Chanukah is eight days long.

Today light and rejoicing are the key elements in the celebration of Chanukah. On each night of the festival a candle is lit in a menorah. so that by the end of the week all eight of the festival candles have been lit. The first of these candles is called the 'slave' or 'servant' candle and is used to light the rest. The candles must be lit early in the evening soon after sunset and so the whole family can join in the festival. As each candle is lit the following prayer is said.

"These lights are holy, and we are not permitted to make use of them, but only to see them in order to thank you for your wonders and miraculous deeds"

Most of all Chanukahs is a time of celebration. Presents will be given and received, party foods will be eaten, especially things cooked in oil. A special potato pancake called a latke is made and eaten. The whole of the eight days of Chanukah is a party.

Purim (the festival of lots)

The festival of Purim takes place in late winter. It commemorates the spectacular events in the biblical book of Esther. In this book, set in the ancient country of Persia, the Jews are saved by actions of Esther, who the Jews believe was inspired by God.

The story has four main characters

• The Persian king, Ahasuerus
• The Jewish queen, Esther
• The commander-in-chief of the king, Haman
• Ester's Jewish uncle, Mordecai

Haman wanted to destroy all the of the Jews living in Persia and he persuaded the king to allow him to do so. They were only defeated by the wisdom of Mordecai and the courage of Esther. In the end Haman was hanged on the very gallows that he had built for others. Because Haman cast 'lots' to determine the appropriate day for the Jewish massacre, this festival is known as Purim, which is the Hebrew word meaning 'lots'.

God is not mentioned at all in the biblical account of the story of Esther. He is, however, believed to be behind the scenes controlling what is going on. Indeed in this aspect, the hidden hand of God, which gives Purim its power and importance by showing that in the end good will triumph over evil.

In the synagogue the whole of the story of Esther is read out, and every time the name of Haman is mentioned the children will ring bells, and shake rattles or anything noisy to drown out the name of Hanam. Also on the festival Jews are encouraged to get drunk !! because it was only because Haman was drunk that Esther could trick him, and become queen and so save the Jewish nation.