Celebrate with Kol Hadash
THE JEWISH CALENDAR
The Jewish calendar provides the rhythm for the Kol Hadash year. American Jews live in multiple calendars: the general solar calendar of 365.2425 days, the school calendar and its vacations, our individual lives and commitments, and the Jewish calendar, which moves back and forth among them. An additional “leap month” 7 out of every 19 years in the Jewish calendar keeps Passover in the spring and Sukkot in the fall, while holidays in the strictly lunar Islamic calendar of 355 days move 10 days each solar year. While the Bible’s calendar began in the spring (Leviticus 23:5 “In the 14th day of the first month is Passover…”), ours begins in autumn.
Shabbat Our regular space for community, inspiration, and enlightenment. See our calendar for a schedule of upcoming Kol Hadash Shabbat events, or here to see our home Shabbat celebration.
FALL HOLIDAYS
Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur [1 Tishrei and 10 Tishrei] The “High Holidays” provide an opportunity to celebrate our Jewish identity and our feeling of community, to reflect on our deeds of the past year and our path for the coming one, and to explore forgiveness . . . not from above, but rather from each other, and from within. Click to learn more about the High Holidays in an article by Rabbi Chalom.
|
Shmini Atzeret/Simhat Torah [22-23 Tishrei] • Originally the closing of the Sukkot holiday, a meaning added later was the celebration of the completion and new beginning of the Torah reading cycle. Today Humanistic Jews who mark Simhat Torah celebrate Jewish and human learning in all forms, from our earliest wisdom to modern science and philosophy – even the word torah itself really means “teaching.”
WINTER HOLIDAYS
Hanukkah [25 Kislev] • A winter celebration of light and Jewish history, Hanukkah's most famous symbols include the 9-candled menorah (8 plus the shamash or lighting candle), the dreidl (Hebrew svivon, four Hebrew letters define rules for the game), and oil-cooked foods like latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly-filled doughnuts). Click here to see our Home Hanukkah celebration.
Tu B’Shevat [15 Shevat] • Tu B'Shevat was a tithing date in the original rabbinic calendar. It may preserve ancient Jewish fertility rites connected with the new moon and the planting of trees. In the late middle ages, the mystical kabbalists in Safed, Israel, created a new seder of fruits, nuts and wine. The early Zionist movement made it a tree-planting occasion in their attempts to reforest the land. And in recent decades, it has become an ecological awareness observance as well. Our Tu B’Shevat seder will take place on Sunday, February 8, 10:30 AM, at Deerfield High School.
SPRING HOLIDAYS
Purim [14 Adar] • Based on questionable history but unquestionable fun, Purim includes dressing up in costume, sharing special foods like hamentaschen [a pun on the Yiddish for poppy (mon) pockets (taschen)], reading the megillah (scroll) complete with boos and cheers, and celebrating with a special carnival. Our Purim Carnival will be March 8 at 11 AM at Deerfield High School.
Passover [15 Nisan] • Originally the first and most important holiday in the Jewish calendar, Passover is likely a combination of shepherding (pesakh) and farming (matsa) celebrations, tied together by the myth of the Exodus from Egypt. Today the sharing of a seder meal with family and friends, the reading of the haggadah, and the sharing of special foods and wine has made Passover one of the most observed Jewish celebrations. Our Congregational Seder at Bluegrass Restaurant in Highland Park will be Thursday, April 9, at 6:00 PM. Read more about Passover by Rabbi Chalom.
Yom Ha-Shoah [27 Nisan] • Holocaust Memorial Day is observed between Passover and Israeli Independence Day. An opportunity to reflect on Kol Hadash will mark Yom Ha-Shoah on Friday, April 24, 8:00 PM, at the Heller Nature Center in Highland Park.
Yom Ha-Zikaron/Yom Ha-Atsma’ut [4-5 Iyar] • Israeli Memorial Day and Israeli Independence Day are holidays of more recent vintage. These events memorialize the fallen soldiers of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and celebrate the creation of a modern, secular Jewish state and Hebrew culture (with all of their problems and challenges) in the land of Israel. The Chicago Jewish community generally sponsors events in conjunction with these holidays, in which Kol Hadash members are encouraged to participate.
SUMMER HOLIDAYS
Lag B’Omer and Shavuot [18 Iyar and 6 Sivan] • Originally the second of three harvest festivals, celebrating the first fruits of the spring planting, Shavuot, (weeks) takes place 50 days after Passover (Lag B’Omer is day 33 in between). Rabbinic Judaism added to this a belief that this was a date of divine revelation, and today we can observe Shavuot as a celebration of Jewish learning and achievement. Confirmation at Kol Hadash often takes place in this season, as well as many Bar and Bat Mitzvahs.
Tisha B’Av [9 Av] • A date of Jewish tragedy marking the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple, Tisha B'Av is traditionally a day of fasting and mourning. Like many fast days in the traditional calendar, this date is not generally marked among Humanistic Jews, though one could certainly observe it as a day of ethnic and historic solidarity, as well as an opportunity to mark personal loss and grief.
This is a very brief summary of major events in the Jewish calendar, as well as how they are observed by Kol Hadash Humanistic Congregation. If you’d like to learn more, please visit these additional resources.
The Society for Humanistic Judaism’s online information on Jewish holidays.
The Center for Cultural Judaism’s links for Jewish holiday articles and services.
Jewish Calendar Tools, including Hebrew dates and holidays.
An excellent resource is The Jewish Festivals: A Guide to Their History and Observance by Hayyim Schauss.
The Society for Humanistic Judaism also sells informational manuals and resource kits for many Jewish holidays.