SIGNIFICANT DATES IN THE JEWISH CALENDAR

Tu BiShvat takes place on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Shevat. We also refer to it as "The New Year of the Trees".  On this day we celebrate the earliest-blooming trees as they emerge from their winter sleep and begin a new fruit-bearing cycle. is also worth noting that it is one of four "New Years" mentioned in the Mishnah.

The Fast of Esther is a fast that takes place from dawn until dusk on Purim eve, commemorating the three-day fast observed by jews in the story of Purim. Like other minor fasts, Ta'anit Esther begins at dawn (first light) and ends at nightfall (full dark). This is one of many minor fasting dates in the Jewish calendar.

Purim is on of the most joyous holidays in the Jewish calendar year. We commemorate the deliverance of the Jews in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction in the wake of a plot by Haman who actually wanted to kill them all.  Observance of the holiday begins with dressing up in fancy dress. Some dress as characters from the Purim story, others however dress in all kinds of fun costumes.

Passover as it is known commemorates the exodus of the Jews from slavery in Egypt. The holiday originated in the Torah, where the word pesach refers to the ancient Passover sacrifice. It is also said to refer to the idea that God “passed over” (pasach) the houses of the Jews during the 10th plague on the Egyptians, the slaying of the first born. The holiday is ultimately a celebration of freedom, and the story of the exodus from Egypt. 

Holocaust Remembrance Day is observed nationally as Israel's day of commemoration for the six million Jews and and millions more who were murdered in the Holocaust by Nazi Germany and its accomplices. This was inaugurated in 1953, by  then Prime Minister of Israel David Ben-Gurion and the President of Israel Yitzhak Ben-Zvi. 

This poignant day is Israel’s Official Memorial Day for her fallen soldiers and victims of terror. Yom Hazikaron is an especially solemn time and marked by ceremonies and silences across the whole country, as everyone comes to a stand still no matter what they are doing to give a minutes silence. The Memorial Day was made an official national holiday in 1963.

A time for celebration, Israeli Independence Day. Here we commemorates the declaration of independence of Israel in 1948. The state ceremony delivering  Yom Haatzmaut takes place at Mount Herzl, Israel’s military cemetery close to Theodor Herzl’s grave. And from there the city is just awash with events, parties, outdoor get togethers, concerts and general good feeling.

Jerusalem Day  is an Israeli national holiday commemorating the reunification of Jerusalem and the establishment of Israeli control over the Old City of Jerusalem in June 1967. It was the Chief Rabbinate of Israel who declared Jerusalem Day a minor religious holiday to thank Hashem for victory in the Six-Day War and for answering the 2,000-year-old prayer of "Next Year in Jerusalem".

Shavuot which translated from Hebrew means 'weeks' is a Jewish holiday that celebrates the giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai. The two day long holiday marks the end of the seven week Counting of the Omer– the time period between Passover and the day God delivering the Torah to Moses and the Israelites on Mt. Sinai.

This holiday commemorates the numerous tragedies that have befallen  the Jewish people throughout history, In particular the destruction of the two temples in 586 BCE and 70 CE. It is believed that many of the tragedies remembered on Tisha B’Av actually occurred on this date. Tisha B’av is the culmination of a three-week period of mourning.

This is known as the Jewish day of love. This was originally hailed as a post biblical day of joy, it served as a tie of coming together for unmarried women in the second temple period (before the fall of Jerusalem in 70 C.E.). ay of love slightly resembling Valentines Day in English-speaking countries. It has now also become,e a popular day for couples to marry.

Rosh Hashanah is the celebration of the Jewish New Year.  It is the first of what we call the High Holidays (or High Holy Days), a ten-day period that ends with Yom Kippur—the holiest day of the Jewish year. On Rosh Hashanah, Jews from all over the world celebrate God’s creation of the world. Rosh Hashanah is two days long, and it usually occurs during the month of September.

Yom Kippur, otherwise known as (The Day of Atonement) is the day of repentance, This is the most holy day on the Jewish calendar. Yom Kippur is a day of reflection, fasting and prayer. Its a culmination of a period of time during the month of Elul in which Jews are required to take stock of their lives, to ask forgiveness from friends and family, and to take steps toward self-improvement for the year to come.

Sukkot is known as the “Festival of Tabernacles” and the “Feast of Booths.” It is one of Judaism’s three central pilgrimage festivals, Building a Sukkah is an icon of Sukkot along with the use of the Etrog fruit. The sukkah is a wooden structure built outside usually in people's gardens. Its roof is made from branches, It is traditional to decorate the sukkah and to spend as much time in it as possible. Weather permitting, meals are eaten in the sukkah, and the hardier among us may also elect to sleep in them, a little like camping.

Chanukah is known as the Festival of Lights. It is the holiday that commemorates the rededication of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem in the 2nd century BCE. Though Chanukah has become especially popular because it falls close to Christmas it is actually considered to be a minor holiday on the Jewish calendar.