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Jewish Fast Days
A ta'anit or taynis (Biblical Hebrew ''taʿaniṯ'' or צוֹם ''ṣom'') is a fast in Judaism in which one abstains from all food and drink, including water. Purposes A Jewish fast may have one or more purposes, including: * Atonement for sins: Fasting is not considered the primary means of acquiring atonement; rather, sincere regret for and rectification of wrongdoing is key. Nevertheless, fasting is conducive to atonement, for it tends to precipitate contrition. Therefore, the Bible requires fasting on Yom Kippur. Because, according to the Hebrew Bible, hardship and calamitous circumstances can occur as a result of sin, fasting is often undertaken by the community or by individuals to achieve atonement and avert catastrophe. Most of the Talmud's Tractate ''Ta'anit'' ("Fast ) is dedicated to the protocol involved in declaring and observing fast days. * Commemorative mourning: Most communal fast days that are set permanently in the Jewish calendar serve this purpose. These fas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biblical Hebrew
Biblical Hebrew ( or ), also called Classical Hebrew, is an archaic form of the Hebrew language, a language in the Canaanite languages, Canaanitic branch of the Semitic languages spoken by the Israelites in the area known as the Land of Israel, roughly west of the Jordan River and east of the Mediterranean Sea. The term 'Hebrew' was not used for the language in the Hebrew Bible, which was referred to as 'language of Canaan' or 'Judean', but it was used in Koine Greek and Mishnaic Hebrew texts. The Hebrew language is attested in inscriptions from about the 10th century BCE, when it was almost identical to Phoenician language, Phoenician and other Canaanite languages, and spoken Hebrew persisted through and beyond the Second Temple period, which ended in 70 CE with the siege of Jerusalem (70 CE), siege of Jerusalem. It eventually developed into Mishnaic Hebrew, which was spoken until the 5th century. The language of the Hebrew Bible reflects various stages of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Midrash
''Midrash'' (;"midrash" . ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; or ''midrashot'') is an expansive Judaism, Jewish Bible, Biblical exegesis using a rabbinic mode of interpretation prominent in the Talmud. The word itself means "textual interpretation", "study", or "exegesis", derived from the root verb (), which means "resort to, seek, seek with care, enquire, require". Midrash and rabbinic readings "discern value in texts, words, and letters, as potential revelatory spaces", writes the Hebrew scholar Wilda Gafney. "They reimagine dominant narratival readings while crafting new ones to stand alongside—not replace—former readings. Midrash also asks questions of the text; sometimes it provides answers, sometimes it leaves the reader to answer the questions". Vanessa Lovelace defines midrash as "a Jewish mode of int ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Avinu Malkeinu
Avinu Malkeinu (; "Our Father, Our King") is a Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ... prayer recited during Jewish services during the Ten Days of Repentance, from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur inclusive. Since the 17th century, most Eastern Ashkenazim, Ashkenazic communities recite it also on all Ta'anit, fast days; in the Sephardim, Sephardic and Western Ashkenazic tradition (as well as a very few Eastern Ashkenazic communities) it is recited only during the Ten Days of Repentance. Joseph H. Hertz (died 1946), chief rabbi of the British Empire, described it as "the oldest and most moving of all the litanies of the Jewish Year". It makes use of two sobriquets for God that appear separately in the Bible; "Our Father" (Isaiah 63:16) and "Our King" (Isaiah 33:2 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Selichot
Selichot (, singular: , ''səliḥā'') are Jewish penitential poems and prayers, especially those said in the period leading up to the High Holidays, and on fast days. The Thirteen Attributes of Mercy are a central theme throughout these prayers. Selichot of the High Holidays In the Sephardic tradition, recital of Selichot in preparation for the High Holidays begins on the second day of the Hebrew month of Elul. In the Ashkenazi tradition, in years where the first day of Rosh Hashanah begins on a Thursday or Saturday, selichot are recited from the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah. If, however, the first day of Rosh Hashanah falls on a Monday or Tuesday, selichot are recited from the Saturday night more than a week before Rosh Hashanah to ensure that it is recited at least four times. This may be because originally the pious would fast for ten days during the season of repentance, and four days before Rosh Hashanah were added to compensate for the four of the Ten Da ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haftarah
The ''haftara'' or (in Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazic pronunciation) ''haftorah'' (alt. ''haftarah, haphtara'', ) "parting," "taking leave" (plural form: ''haftarot'' or ''haftoros''), is a series of selections from the books of ''Nevi'im'' ("Prophets") of the Hebrew Bible (''Tanakh'') that is publicly read in synagogue as part of Judaism, Jewish religious practice. The ''haftara'' reading follows the Torah reading on each Shabbat, Sabbath and on Jewish holidays, Jewish festivals and ta'anit, fast days. Typically, the ''haftara'' is thematically linked to the ''parashah'' (weekly Torah portion) that precedes it. The ''haftara'' is sung in a chant. (Chanting of Biblical texts is known as "ta'amim" in Hebrew, "''trope''" in Yiddish, or "Hebrew cantillation, cantillation" in English.) Related blessings precede and follow the haftara reading. The origin of haftara reading is lost to history, and several theories have been proposed to explain its role in Jewish practice, suggesting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium CE. They traditionally speak Yiddish, a language that originated in the 9th century, and largely migrated towards northern and eastern Europe during the late Middle Ages due to persecution. Hebrew was primarily used as a literary and sacred language until its 20th-century revival as a common language in Israel. Ashkenazim adapted their traditions to Europe and underwent a transformation in their interpretation of Judaism. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, Jews who remained in or returned to historical German lands experienced a cultural reorientation. Under the influence of the Haskalah and the struggle for emancipation, as well as the intellectual and cultural ferment in urban centres, some gradually abandoned Yiddish in favor of German and developed new forms of Jewish relig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mincha
Mincha (, ; sometimes spelled Minchah, Minhah, Mincho or Minchuh) is the afternoon prayer service in Judaism. Etymology The name ''Mincha'', meaning "gift" or "offering", is derived from the meal offering that accompanied each sacrifice offered in the Temple (Beit HaMikdash). Origin The Hebrew noun ''minḥah'' () is used 211 times in the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible, with the first uses referring to vegetable and animal offerings brought by Cain and Abel to God. Most other uses refer to a gift offering, made of grain, which could be offered at any time in the day. However, occasionally the Bible uses "mincha" to specifically refer to the afternoon Temple sacrifice. Rabbis in the Talmud debate whether the daily prayers have their origin in the behavior of the biblical Patriarchs, or in the Temple sacrifices. According to the first opinion, the Mincha prayer was originated by Isaac, who "went out to converse in the field", with God. According to the second opinion, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shacharit
''Shacharit'' ( ''šaḥăriṯ''), or ''Shacharis'' in Ashkenazi Hebrew, is the morning '' tefillah'' (prayer) of Judaism, one of the three daily prayers. Different traditions identify different primary components of ''Shacharit''. Essentially all agree that '' pesukei dezimra'', the Shema Yisrael and its blessings, and the '' Amidah'' are major sections. Some identify the preliminary blessings and readings, as a first, distinct section. Others say that Tachanun is a separate section, as well as the concluding blessings. On certain days, there are additional prayers and services added to shacharit, including Mussaf and a Torah reading. Etymology ''Shacharit'' comes from the Hebrew root (''shaħar''), meaning dawn. Origin According to tradition, ''Shacharit'' was identified as a time of prayer by Abraham, as states, "Abraham arose early in the morning," which traditionally is the first ''Shacharit''. However, Abraham's prayer did not become a standardized p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shovevim
Shovavim () is a period of six to eight weeks each year, in which some Kabbalists teach one should focus on repenting for one's sins, particularly sexual sins. The term ''shovavim'' is a Hebrew acronym consisting of the initial letters of the parshioth (Torah portions) of " Shemot", " Va'era", " Bo", " Beshalach", "Yitro" and " Mishpatim". The period in which these portions are read typically falls around Tevet-Shevat in the Hebrew calendar (corresponding to January–February). During a Hebrew calendrical leap year, this period is extended to an eight-week sequence called "''Shovavim Tat''", derived by adding the next two portions, "''Terumah''" and "''Tetzaveh''", to the list. When read as a Hebrew word, ''shovavim'' means "mischief-makers." This word appears in Jeremiah 3:22, which begins: "Return, mischief makers" (). The name ''shovavim'' is thus symbolic of the repentance which one is exhorted to do in this period. History There are several early sources for the fasting e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yom Kippur Katan
Yom Kippur Katan ( translation from Hebrew: "Minor Day of Atonement"), is a practice observed by some Jews on the day preceding each Rosh Chodesh. The observance consists of fasting and supplication, but is much less rigorous than that of Yom Kippur proper. Origin The custom is of comparatively recent origin and is not mentioned in the Shulchan Aruch. It appears to have been inaugurated in the sixteenth century at Safed by the kabbalist Moses Cordovero, who called the fast ''Yom Kippur Katan''; and it was included by Isaac Luria in his ''Seder ha-Tefillah''. R. Isaiah Horowitz refers to it by that name, and says it should be observed by fasting and repentance: "Following the custom of the very pious, one must repent of his ways and make restitutions both in money and in personal acts, in order that he may enter the new month as pure as a new-born infant". When Rosh Chodesh occurs on Shabbat or Sunday, Yom Kippur Katan is observed on the preceding Thursday.This is the common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fast Of Behav
The Fast of Behav (תענית בה"ב) refers to a tradition of Ashkenazic Jews to fast on the Monday, Thursday, and then following Monday after the holidays of Sukkot and Pesach. While today very few people fast, many Ashkenazic communities recite the Selichot for these days. Practically, the fasts are observed in the months of Cheshvan and Iyar, so as not to fast in the happy months of Tishrei and Nisan. Source and practices The Masekhet Soferim (Chapter 21) says that there were "students" who fasted on a Monday, Thursday, and following Monday in the month of Nisan. However, it is clear that this was a private practice which was not publicized. The Tur cites the custom of Ashkenazic and French Jewry to fast in Cheshvan and Iyar. In later generations, this custom spread to some Sephardic communities.Kneset Hagedola492/ref> Some explain that the reason for the fasts is in case one sinned over the long Sukkot or Pesach holidays, and others say that it should be for an atone ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shiva (Judaism)
() is the week-long mourning period in Judaism for first-degree relatives. The ritual is referred to as "sitting " in English. The period lasts for seven days following the burial. Following the initial period of despair and lamentation immediately after the death, embraces a time when individuals discuss their loss and accept the comfort of others. Its observance is a requirement for the parents, siblings, spouses, and children of the person who has died. At the funeral, mourners wear an outer garment that is torn before the procession in a ritual known as . In some traditions, mourners wear a black ribbon that is cut in place of an everyday garment. The torn article is worn throughout the entirety of . Typically, the seven days begin immediately after the deceased has been buried. Following burial, mourners assume the halakhic status of (). This state lasts for the entire duration of . It is necessary for the burial spot to be entirely covered with earth in order for to c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
