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  "title": "Yom Kippur",
  "summary": "The Day of Atonement — the holiest day of the year, observed with a 25-hour fast, five services, and white garments.",
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      "title": "Yom Kippur",
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    "article": {
      "slug": "holidays-yamim-noraim-yom-kippur",
      "title": "Yom Kippur",
      "deck": "The Day of Atonement — the holiest day of the year, observed with a 25-hour fast, five services, and white garments.",
      "summary": "Summary. Yom Kippur, the 10th of Tishrei, is the Day of Atonement, the holiest day of the Jewish year. The Torah commands a 25-hour fast (Vayikra 23:27–32); five prohibitions of pleasure (eating, drinking, washing, anointing, marital relations, and the wearing of leather shoes); and a day of prayer and confession. Five services are conducted: Kol Nidrei (evening), Shacharit, Musaf (with the Avodah service recalling the High Priest's Temple service), Mincha, and Ne'ilah (the \"closing of the gate,\" the most intense service of the year). The shofar is sounded one final time at the close. The Mishnah teaches: \"For sins between a person and God, Yom Kippur atones; for sins between persons, Yom Kippur does not atone until one has appeased the other.\"",
      "level": "essential",
      "sectionSlug": "holidays",
      "tags": [
        "yom kippur",
        "atonement",
        "fast"
      ],
      "publishedAt": "2026-07-06T02:19:03.001Z",
      "wordCount": 873,
      "readMinutes": 4
    },
    "section": {
      "slug": "sacred-time",
      "title": "Sacred Time"
    },
    "image": null,
    "blocks": [
      {
        "type": "summary",
        "body": "Summary. [Yom Kippur](/glossary.json#letter-Y), the 10th of [Tishrei](/glossary.json#letter-T), is the Day of Atonement, the holiest day of the Jewish year. The [Torah](/glossary.json#letter-T) commands a 25-hour fast ([Vayikra 23:27–32](https://www.sefaria.org/Leviticus.23.27-32)); five prohibitions of pleasure (eating, drinking, washing, anointing, marital relations, and the wearing of leather shoes); and a day of prayer and confession. Five services are conducted: [Kol Nidrei](/glossary.json#letter-K) (evening), [Shacharit](/glossary.json#letter-S), [Musaf](/glossary.json#letter-M) (with the [Avodah](/glossary.json#letter-A) service recalling the High Priest's Temple service), [Mincha](/glossary.json#letter-M), and [Ne'ilah](/glossary.json#letter-N) (the \"closing of the gate,\" the most intense service of the year). The [shofar](/glossary.json#letter-S) is sounded one final time at the close. The [Mishnah](/glossary.json#letter-M) teaches: \"For sins between a person and God, Yom Kippur atones; for sins between persons, Yom Kippur does not atone until one has appeased the other.\"",
        "text": "Summary. Yom Kippur, the 10th of Tishrei, is the Day of Atonement, the holiest day of the Jewish year. The Torah commands a 25-hour fast (Vayikra 23:27–32); five prohibitions of pleasure (eating, drinking, washing, anointing, marital relations, and the wearing of leather shoes); and a day of prayer and confession. Five services are conducted: Kol Nidrei (evening), Shacharit, Musaf (with the Avodah service recalling the High Priest's Temple service), Mincha, and Ne'ilah (the \"closing of the gate,\" the most intense service of the year). The shofar is sounded one final time at the close. The Mishnah teaches: \"For sins between a person and God, Yom Kippur atones; for sins between persons, Yom Kippur does not atone until one has appeased the other.\""
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "The Five Prohibitions",
        "text": "The Five Prohibitions"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[The Mishnah (Yoma 8:1)](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Yoma.8.1) lists five categories of [inuyim](/glossary.json#letter-I) (afflictions) on Yom Kippur: no eating or drinking; no washing (for pleasure); no anointing (with oils or lotions); no marital relations; no wearing of leather shoes. The fast begins at sundown the evening before ([Erev Yom Kippur](/glossary.json#letter-E)) and ends at nightfall (the appearance of three stars) the next day. The fast is mandatory for adults; children begin training in fasting at roughly age 9 by fasting for a few hours and gradually building up to the full fast by [Bar/Bat Mitzvah](/glossary.json#letter-B). The very young, the sick, the pregnant, and the nursing have specific [halachic](/glossary.json#letter-H) exemptions; consult a rabbi.",
        "text": "The Mishnah (Yoma 8:1) lists five categories of inuyim (afflictions) on Yom Kippur: no eating or drinking; no washing (for pleasure); no anointing (with oils or lotions); no marital relations; no wearing of leather shoes. The fast begins at sundown the evening before (Erev Yom Kippur) and ends at nightfall (the appearance of three stars) the next day. The fast is mandatory for adults; children begin training in fasting at roughly age 9 by fasting for a few hours and gradually building up to the full fast by Bar/Bat Mitzvah. The very young, the sick, the pregnant, and the nursing have specific halachic exemptions; consult a rabbi."
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "Erev Yom Kippur",
        "text": "Erev Yom Kippur"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "The eve of Yom Kippur is itself a substantial preparatory day. Customs include: an early afternoon meal (the [seudah mafseket](/glossary.json#letter-S), the \"breaking meal\"); the ritual of [kapparot](/glossary.json#letter-K) (in some communities, swinging a chicken — or, in the modern practice of many, swinging a sum of money — around the head with a recitation that transfers one's sins to it; the chicken is then slaughtered and given as charity, or the money is given as charity); the lighting of a [yahrzeit](/glossary.json#letter-Y) candle for departed parents; the lighting of the holiday candles by the woman of the house; the recitation of [Birkat HaBanim](/glossary.json#letter-B) (the blessing of the children) by parents before leaving for [shul](/glossary.json#letter-S).",
        "text": "The eve of Yom Kippur is itself a substantial preparatory day. Customs include: an early afternoon meal (the seudah mafseket, the \"breaking meal\"); the ritual of kapparot (in some communities, swinging a chicken — or, in the modern practice of many, swinging a sum of money — around the head with a recitation that transfers one's sins to it; the chicken is then slaughtered and given as charity, or the money is given as charity); the lighting of a yahrzeit candle for departed parents; the lighting of the holiday candles by the woman of the house; the recitation of Birkat HaBanim (the blessing of the children) by parents before leaving for shul."
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "Kol Nidrei",
        "text": "Kol Nidrei"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "The Yom Kippur evening service opens with the haunting Kol Nidrei (\"all vows\"), an Aramaic legal formula declaring null all personal vows of the coming year. The melody, of Eastern European origin, is one of the most recognizable in Jewish music. Three Torah scrolls are taken out of the ark; the entire community participates in the standing recitation. The legal status of the formula was historically controversial (some rabbis sought to remove it; the [Reform](/glossary.json#letter-R) movement classically did remove it before restoring it), but its emotional power has secured its place.",
        "text": "The Yom Kippur evening service opens with the haunting Kol Nidrei (\"all vows\"), an Aramaic legal formula declaring null all personal vows of the coming year. The melody, of Eastern European origin, is one of the most recognizable in Jewish music. Three Torah scrolls are taken out of the ark; the entire community participates in the standing recitation. The legal status of the formula was historically controversial (some rabbis sought to remove it; the Reform movement classically did remove it before restoring it), but its emotional power has secured its place."
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "The Avodah",
        "text": "The Avodah"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "The Musaf service includes the Avodah — a liturgical poem recapitulating the High Priest's Temple service on Yom Kippur [(Vayikra 16)](https://www.sefaria.org/Leviticus.16). The High Priest entered the Holy of Holies (the only person to do so, on the only day of the year permitted) and pronounced the ineffable Name of God ten times. Each time the Name is mentioned in the Avodah, the congregation falls to its knees and prostrates fully to the floor — one of only a few times in the year prostration is performed in [Ashkenazi](/glossary.json#letter-A) practice — Ashkenazim also prostrate during the Aleinu of Musaf on Rosh Hashanah. (Some [Sephardic](/glossary.json#letter-S) and Yemenite communities prostrate at other points; [Hasidic](/glossary.json#letter-H) communities follow the Ashkenazi pattern.)",
        "text": "The Musaf service includes the Avodah — a liturgical poem recapitulating the High Priest's Temple service on Yom Kippur (Vayikra 16). The High Priest entered the Holy of Holies (the only person to do so, on the only day of the year permitted) and pronounced the ineffable Name of God ten times. Each time the Name is mentioned in the Avodah, the congregation falls to its knees and prostrates fully to the floor — one of only a few times in the year prostration is performed in Ashkenazi practice — Ashkenazim also prostrate during the Aleinu of Musaf on Rosh Hashanah. (Some Sephardic and Yemenite communities prostrate at other points; Hasidic communities follow the Ashkenazi pattern.)"
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "Ne'ilah",
        "text": "Ne'ilah"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "Ne'ilah (\"closing\") is the final service of Yom Kippur, recited as the sun is setting. The metaphor is the closing of the gates of heaven; the petition is for inscription in the Book of Life. The Ark stands open throughout. The service ends with the recitation of [Shema Yisrael](/glossary.json#letter-S) (once), [Baruch Shem K'vod](/glossary.json#letter-B) (three times), and [Hashem](/glossary.json#letter-H) Hu HaElohim (\"The Lord is God,\" seven times — echoing the people's declaration on Mount Carmel after Eliyahu's victory over the prophets of Baal, [Melachim I 18:39](https://www.sefaria.org/I_Kings.18.39)) — and only then is a single, long [tekiah gedolah](/glossary.json#letter-T) blast sounded on the shofar. The fast is then broken.",
        "text": "Ne'ilah (\"closing\") is the final service of Yom Kippur, recited as the sun is setting. The metaphor is the closing of the gates of heaven; the petition is for inscription in the Book of Life. The Ark stands open throughout. The service ends with the recitation of Shema Yisrael (once), Baruch Shem K'vod (three times), and Hashem Hu HaElohim (\"The Lord is God,\" seven times — echoing the people's declaration on Mount Carmel after Eliyahu's victory over the prophets of Baal, Melachim I 18:39) — and only then is a single, long tekiah gedolah blast sounded on the shofar. The fast is then broken."
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "White Garments",
        "text": "White Garments"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "Many observant Jews wear white on Yom Kippur — a [kittel](/glossary.json#letter-K) (a simple white robe) over weekday clothing. The kittel evokes the angels (white-clad in the prophetic visions), the burial shroud (a reminder of mortality), and the High Priest's linen garments. White, the color of forgiveness ([Yeshayahu 1:18](https://www.sefaria.org/Isaiah.1.18): \"though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow\"), unifies the visual aesthetic of the day.",
        "text": "Many observant Jews wear white on Yom Kippur — a kittel (a simple white robe) over weekday clothing. The kittel evokes the angels (white-clad in the prophetic visions), the burial shroud (a reminder of mortality), and the High Priest's linen garments. White, the color of forgiveness (Yeshayahu 1:18: \"though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow\"), unifies the visual aesthetic of the day."
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "Where Denominations Diverge",
        "text": "Where Denominations Diverge"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "Universal observance, with some denominational variation in liturgical content. Reform classically removed Kol Nidrei (1840s) and restored it (1961); Reform [machzorim](/glossary.json#letter-M) retain Yom Kippur as a major day with adapted text. Conservative observance is essentially traditional. Sephardic and [Mizrahi](/glossary.json#letter-M) liturgies have distinct [piyyutim](/glossary.json#letter-P) and customs.",
        "text": "Universal observance, with some denominational variation in liturgical content. Reform classically removed Kol Nidrei (1840s) and restored it (1961); Reform machzorim retain Yom Kippur as a major day with adapted text. Conservative observance is essentially traditional. Sephardic and Mizrahi liturgies have distinct piyyutim and customs."
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "Sources",
        "text": "Sources"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "Torah: [Vayikra 16; 23:26–32](https://www.sefaria.org/Leviticus.16); [Bamidbar 29:7–11](https://www.sefaria.org/Numbers.29.7-11).",
        "text": "Torah: Vayikra 16; 23:26–32; Bamidbar 29:7–11."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Mishnah, Yoma (entire tractate)](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Yoma); [Yoma 8:9](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Yoma.8.9) — the famous mishnah on sins between people.",
        "text": "Mishnah, Yoma (entire tractate); Yoma 8:9 — the famous mishnah on sins between people."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Talmud Bavli, Yoma](https://www.sefaria.org/Yoma).",
        "text": "Talmud Bavli, Yoma."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Yom HaKippurim](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishneh_Torah,_Rest_on_the_Tenth_of_Tishrei).",
        "text": "Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Yom HaKippurim."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 604–624](https://www.sefaria.org/Shulchan_Arukh,_Orach_Chayim.604-624).",
        "text": "Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 604–624."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[What You Need to Know About Yom Kippur Synagogue Services](https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1965282/jewish/What-You-Need-to-Know-About-Yom-Kippur-Synagogue-Services.htm) — Chabad.org.",
        "text": "What You Need to Know About Yom Kippur Synagogue Services — Chabad.org."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Ne'ilah](https://exploringjudaism.org/neilah/) — Rabbinical Assembly.",
        "text": "Ne'ilah — Rabbinical Assembly."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Yom Kippur Musaf Service](https://exploringjudaism.org/yom-kippur-musaf-service/) — Rabbinical Assembly.",
        "text": "Yom Kippur Musaf Service — Rabbinical Assembly."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Yoma 87.b (Steinsaltz Talmud portal)](https://steinsaltz-center.org/portal/library/Talmud/Yoma/chapter/87.b) — Steinsaltz Center.",
        "text": "Yoma 87.b (Steinsaltz Talmud portal) — Steinsaltz Center."
      },
      {
        "type": "heading",
        "body": "Further Reading",
        "text": "Further Reading"
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Yitz Greenberg](/glossary.json#letter-R), The Jewish Way — Yom Kippur chapter.",
        "text": "Yitz Greenberg, The Jewish Way — Yom Kippur chapter."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik](/glossary.json#letter-J), On Repentance (ed. Pinchas Peli).",
        "text": "Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, On Repentance (ed. Pinchas Peli)."
      },
      {
        "type": "paragraph",
        "body": "[Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz](/glossary.json#letter-A), The Yom Kippur Machzor (commentary).",
        "text": "Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, The Yom Kippur Machzor (commentary)."
      }
    ],
    "related": [
      {
        "slug": "holidays-yamim-noraim-rosh-hashanah",
        "title": "Rosh Hashanah",
        "href": "/articles/holidays-yamim-noraim-rosh-hashanah.json"
      },
      {
        "slug": "holidays-shalosh-regalim-sukkot",
        "title": "Sukkot",
        "href": "/articles/holidays-shalosh-regalim-sukkot.json"
      },
      {
        "slug": "holidays-yom-tov-shemini-atzeret-and-simchat-torah",
        "title": "Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah",
        "href": "/articles/holidays-yom-tov-shemini-atzeret-and-simchat-torah.json"
      },
      {
        "slug": "holidays-shalosh-regalim-pesach",
        "title": "Pesach",
        "href": "/articles/holidays-shalosh-regalim-pesach.json"
      }
    ],
    "goDeeper": [
      {
        "slug": "calendar-daf-yomi-a-page-a-day",
        "title": "Daf Yomi: A Page a Day",
        "level": "deeper",
        "href": "/articles/calendar-daf-yomi-a-page-a-day.json"
      },
      {
        "slug": "holidays-fasts-the-four-minor-fasts",
        "title": "The Four Minor Fasts",
        "level": "deeper",
        "href": "/articles/holidays-fasts-the-four-minor-fasts.json"
      }
    ],
    "glossary": {
      "adin-steinsaltz": {
        "term": "Adin Steinsaltz",
        "hebrew": "עדין שטיינזלץ",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz (1937–2020) produced a monumental Hebrew translation and commentary on the entire Babylonian Talmud, later rendered into English, opening the Talmud to a generation of learners without a yeshiva background.",
        "moreSlug": "essentials-essential-facts-the-talmud-in-one-article"
      },
      "ashkenazi": {
        "term": "Ashkenazi",
        "hebrew": "אשכנזי",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Describing Jews whose families trace to Central and Eastern Europe, and the customs, liturgy, and Hebrew pronunciation of those communities. The broad counterpart terms are Sephardi and Edot HaMizrach.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "avodah": {
        "term": "Avodah",
        "hebrew": "עֲבוֹדָה",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Literally 'service' or 'work' — the worship of God, especially prayer, and one of the three pillars on which, Pirkei Avot teaches, the world stands. It also names the Yom Kippur liturgy recalling the High Priest's Temple service.",
        "moreSlug": "essentials-essential-facts-the-three-pillars-torah-avodah-gemilut-chasadim"
      },
      "bar-mitzvah": {
        "term": "Bar Mitzvah",
        "hebrew": "בר מצוה",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The coming of age at which a Jewish child becomes responsible for the mitzvot — traditionally 13 for a boy (bar mitzvah) and 12 or 13 for a girl (bat mitzvah). The occasion is typically marked by being called up to the Torah.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "baruch-shem-kevod": {
        "term": "Baruch Shem Kevod",
        "hebrew": "ברוך שם כבוד",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The line 'Blessed is the name of His glorious kingdom forever and ever,' recited immediately after the Shema's first verse — whispered all year, and said aloud only on Yom Kippur.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "birkat-habanim": {
        "term": "Birkat HaBanim",
        "hebrew": "בִּרְכַּת הַבָּנִים",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The parental blessing of children, customarily given on Friday night and on the eve of Yom Kippur, with hands rested on each child's head.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "erev-yom-kippur": {
        "term": "Erev Yom Kippur",
        "hebrew": "עֶרֶב יוֹם כִּפּוּר",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The day before Yom Kippur — spent asking forgiveness of others, giving tzedakah, and eating the festive meal before the fast. Eating well that day is itself counted a mitzvah.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "halacha": {
        "term": "Halacha",
        "hebrew": "הֲלָכָה",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Jewish law — literally \"the way one walks\" — the legal system that develops from the Torah's mitzvot through the Mishnah, Talmud, and the great codes; the movements differ on how binding it is, not on its centrality to the tradition.",
        "moreSlug": "essentials-essential-questions-what-is-halacha"
      },
      "hashem": {
        "term": "Hashem",
        "hebrew": "הַשֵּׁם",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Literally \"the Name\" — the everyday reverent way Jews refer to God outside of prayer, avoiding casual use of the divine names.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "hasidism": {
        "term": "Hasidism",
        "hebrew": "חֲסִידוּת",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The mystical revival movement founded by the Baal Shem Tov in 18th-century Eastern Europe, teaching that God can be served with joy in every act and every person. Its communities, each led by a Rebbe, remain a major force in Jewish life.",
        "moreSlug": "going-deeper-deeper-questions-hasidism-vs-mitnagdism"
      },
      "joseph-soloveitchik": {
        "term": "Joseph Soloveitchik",
        "hebrew": "יוסף דב הלוי סולובייצ'יק",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik (1903–1993), known to his students as \"the Rav,\" was the towering figure of 20th-century Modern Orthodoxy; his framing of the Jew as both dignified \"Adam I\" and covenantal \"Adam II\" remains a touchstone of Modern Orthodox thought.",
        "moreSlug": "essentials-essential-questions-what-does-judaism-teach-about-god"
      },
      "kol-nidrei": {
        "term": "Kol Nidrei",
        "hebrew": "כָּל נִדְרֵי",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The haunting Aramaic declaration annulling unfulfilled vows, chanted to a centuries-old melody just before sunset as Yom Kippur begins; the evening service takes its name.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "mincha": {
        "term": "Mincha",
        "hebrew": "מִנְחָה",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The afternoon prayer service, the shortest of the three daily services; its name recalls the afternoon grain offering brought in the Temple.",
        "moreSlug": "going-deeper-deeper-prayers-the-three-daily-services"
      },
      "mishnah": {
        "term": "Mishnah",
        "hebrew": "מִשְׁנָה",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The first great written compilation of the Oral Torah, organized by Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi around 200 CE into six orders; together with the Gemara it forms the Talmud.",
        "moreSlug": "essentials-essential-facts-the-talmud-in-one-article"
      },
      "mizrahi": {
        "term": "Mizrahi",
        "hebrew": "מִזְרָחִי",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Literally 'Eastern' — describing Jews whose families come from the Middle East and North Africa, with their own rich liturgical, halachic, and culinary traditions.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "musaf": {
        "term": "Musaf",
        "hebrew": "מוּסָף",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The 'additional' service recited after the morning service on Shabbat, festivals, and Rosh Chodesh, corresponding to the extra offering brought in the Temple on those days.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "neilah": {
        "term": "Ne'ilah",
        "hebrew": "נְעִילָה",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Literally 'locking (of the gates)' — the final, most intense service of Yom Kippur, recited as the fast ends and the day's gates of prayer close.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "yitz-greenberg": {
        "term": "Rabbi Yitz Greenberg",
        "hebrew": null,
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Rabbi Irving 'Yitz' Greenberg (b. 1933), a Modern Orthodox rabbi and Holocaust theologian known for the principle that no Jewish theological statement should be made that would not be credible in the presence of burning children; author of The Jewish Way.",
        "moreSlug": "holidays-modern-observances-yom-hashoah"
      },
      "reform-judaism": {
        "term": "Reform Judaism",
        "hebrew": null,
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "Reform Judaism treats Halacha as a source of values and meaning rather than binding law, emphasizing individual autonomy, ethical monotheism, and tikkun olam; it was the first movement to fully recognize patrilineal descent and ordain women as rabbis.",
        "moreSlug": "how-to-use-this-field-guide"
      },
      "sephardi": {
        "term": "Sephardi",
        "hebrew": "סְפָרַדִּי",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "A Jew whose family traces to medieval Spain and Portugal — and, in common usage, to the broader communities of the Mediterranean and Middle East that follow Sephardic law and liturgy. The plural is Sephardim.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "shacharit": {
        "term": "Shacharit",
        "hebrew": "שַׁחֲרִית",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The morning prayer service — the longest of the three daily services, built around the Shema and the Amidah.",
        "moreSlug": "going-deeper-deeper-prayers-the-three-daily-services"
      },
      "shema": {
        "term": "Shema",
        "hebrew": "שְׁמַע",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The central declaration of Jewish faith — 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord is our God, the Lord is One' — recited with its Torah paragraphs every morning and evening.",
        "moreSlug": "essentials-essential-prayers-the-shema"
      },
      "tishrei": {
        "term": "Tishrei",
        "hebrew": "תשרי",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The autumn month that opens the Jewish year, dense with holy days: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "torah": {
        "term": "Torah",
        "hebrew": "תּוֹרָה",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The Five Books of Moses — the scroll at the center of Jewish life — and, more broadly, the whole of Jewish teaching. 'Learning Torah' can mean anything from Chumash to Talmud.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "yom-kippur": {
        "term": "Yom Kippur",
        "hebrew": "יום כיפור",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The Day of Atonement — the holiest day of the Jewish year, a 25-hour fast devoted to prayer, confession, and repair of one's relationships with God and with other people.",
        "moreSlug": "holidays-yamim-noraim-yom-kippur"
      },
      "inuyim": {
        "term": "inuyim",
        "hebrew": "עִנּוּיִים",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The five \"afflictions\" of Yom Kippur — abstaining from eating and drinking, washing, anointing, leather shoes, and marital relations.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "kapparot": {
        "term": "kapparot",
        "hebrew": "כַּפָּרוֹת",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The pre-Yom Kippur atonement custom in which a chicken — or, very commonly today, money given to charity — is symbolically designated in one's place.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "kittel": {
        "term": "kittel",
        "hebrew": "קִיטְל",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The simple white robe worn on Yom Kippur — and by some at the Pesach seder and under the wedding canopy — white for purity and humility.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "machzor": {
        "term": "machzor",
        "hebrew": "מַחְזוֹר",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The holiday prayer book — a siddur arranged for a particular festival, most commonly the High Holiday machzorim for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "piyyut": {
        "term": "piyyut",
        "hebrew": "פִּיּוּט",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "A liturgical poem — one of the artful hymns woven into the prayers, especially on the High Holidays and festivals. The plural is piyyutim.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "seudah-mafseket": {
        "term": "seudah mafseket",
        "hebrew": "סְעוּדָה מַפְסֶקֶת",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The 'separating meal' eaten just before a major fast begins — solemn and spare before Tisha B'Av, ample before Yom Kippur.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "shofar": {
        "term": "shofar",
        "hebrew": "שופר",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "A ram's horn sounded on Rosh Hashanah and at the close of Yom Kippur, producing the piercing blasts that call the listener to repentance.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "shul": {
        "term": "shul",
        "hebrew": "שול",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The Yiddish word for synagogue, used warmly across the Jewish world for the house of prayer, study, and community.",
        "moreSlug": "community-finding-a-shul"
      },
      "tekiah": {
        "term": "tekiah",
        "hebrew": "תקיעה",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The long, unbroken shofar blast, one of the three sounds of Rosh Hashanah; the tekiah gedolah is the extra-long final blast that closes the sequence and ends Yom Kippur.",
        "moreSlug": null
      },
      "yahrzeit": {
        "term": "yahrzeit",
        "hebrew": "יארצייט",
        "translit": null,
        "definition": "The anniversary of a death (Yiddish, 'year-time'), observed each year by lighting a 24-hour candle and reciting Kaddish for the deceased.",
        "moreSlug": null
      }
    }
  },
  "links": [
    {
      "rel": "parent",
      "title": "Sacred Time",
      "href": "/sections/sacred-time.json"
    },
    {
      "rel": "related",
      "title": "Rosh Hashanah",
      "href": "/articles/holidays-yamim-noraim-rosh-hashanah.json"
    },
    {
      "rel": "related",
      "title": "Sukkot",
      "href": "/articles/holidays-shalosh-regalim-sukkot.json"
    },
    {
      "rel": "related",
      "title": "Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah",
      "href": "/articles/holidays-yom-tov-shemini-atzeret-and-simchat-torah.json"
    },
    {
      "rel": "related",
      "title": "Pesach",
      "href": "/articles/holidays-shalosh-regalim-pesach.json"
    },
    {
      "rel": "related",
      "title": "Daf Yomi: A Page a Day",
      "href": "/articles/calendar-daf-yomi-a-page-a-day.json"
    },
    {
      "rel": "related",
      "title": "The Four Minor Fasts",
      "href": "/articles/holidays-fasts-the-four-minor-fasts.json"
    }
  ]
}