Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur ( Hebrew יוֹם כִּפּוּר 'Day of Atonement' , also Yom ha-Kippurim יוֹם הכִּפּוּרִים), in German mostly Day of Reconciliation or Festival of Reconciliation , is the highest Jewish holiday . According to the Jewish calendar system , it is celebrated on the 10th day of the month of Tishri - as a strict day of rest and fasting . In the Gregorian calendar , Yom Kippur falls on different dates in September or October from year to year. Together with the two-day New Year festival Rosh Hashanah , which takes place ten days before, it forms the high holidays of Judaism and the climax and conclusion of the ten days of repentance and conversion. Yom Kippur is observed more or less strictly by a majority of Jews, not even religious ones.
Events
The date of this day varies according to the Gregorian calendar , since the Jewish calendar is always recalculated according to the moon. Jewish holidays begin on the evening before the specified day. Yom Kippur is celebrated on the following days:
| Jewish year | Gregorian date |
|---|---|
| 5781 | September 28, 2020 |
| 5782 | September 16, 2021 |
| 5783 | October 5, 2022 |
| 5784 | September 25, 2023 |
| 5785 | October 12, 2024 |
Since the Islamic Festival of Sacrifice also takes place on the 10th day of a month in a lunar calendar, it happens every 32 to 33 years that both holidays are celebrated on the same calendar day for 2 to 3 consecutive years.
story
According to modern exegesis , the day of atonement mentioned in the Torah Yom ha-Kippurim and Shabbat Shabbaton probably goes back to the time after the Babylonian exile , despite parallels to Hittite rituals, which indicate a higher age. It was already the most important holiday of the Israelites in the earlier days of the Second Temple . The most extensive account of this holiday can be found in Leviticus (3rd Book of Moses): “On the tenth day of the seventh month you should fast and do no work, neither a native nor a stranger among you. For on this day your atonement takes place so that you will be cleansed; You will be cleansed of all your sins before the Lord. ”( Lev 16.29–30 LUT , also Lev 23.26–32 LUT and Num 29.7–11 LUT .)
Second Temple Period
The temple ceremonies practiced on the Day of Atonement at the time of the Second Temple may have developed from an earlier ceremony for the purification of the temple, which then took on the form described in the Bible after the Babylonian exile and became the Day of Atonement, which is celebrated annually on the tenth day of the seventh month developed. Indications that the holiday arose only in the post-exilic period are the absence in the lists of the holidays in the 2nd and 5th books of Moses and in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah ( Ex 23.14 LUT , Ex 34.18-23 LUT , Dtn 16,1–17 LUT Neh 8–9 LUT ), the designation of Aarons as high priest , which is post-exilic, as well as the dress code for the high priest to wear “linen trousers” ( Lev 16,2–4 LUT ). Pants were a Persian invention that came to the Israelites before the 6th century BC. B.C. was hardly known.
In Jerusalem temple particular were that day sacrifices offered, it was the only day on which the high priest - the - solely and strictly shielded sanctum was allowed to enter the temple to receive on behalf of the people of the forgiveness of sins. There he sprinkled the ark of the covenant with the blood of two sacrificial animals. Likewise, the lot was thrown over two goats ( Lev 16,5-22 LUT ). One with the lot “for God” was sacrificed to cleanse the temple. All the sins of the people of Israel were made public by the high priest via the billy goat determined by lot “for Asazel ”. The animal was then killed “for Asazel” by being sent over the edge of the mountain cliffs in the Judean Desert.
scapegoat
With Luther's translation of the Christian Bible into German, the term scapegoat was coined. According to the traditional Christian interpretation of the version of history ( Lev 16,3-26 LUT ) in the Old Testament , all sins of the people are charged to the goat in a symbolic act, the "goat for Asasel" is interpreted as a substitute "scapegoat". To this day, a scapegoat is someone who is falsely blamed and ultimately held responsible for their own misfortunes, mistakes and sins by unrepentant people, and who is sometimes eliminated, although the original concept required a confession of own guilt and repentance from the community.
Asazel
According to Gesenius, Hoffmann, and Oxford Hebrew Dictionary, Asasel is a rare Hebrew noun that means "discharge" or "total removal". It is an ancient expression for the total elimination of sin and guilt of the community, symbolized by the goat going into the wilderness. Various theories have been put forward to explain the meaning of this word. In the Talmud , Asazel is translated as "steep mountains" and refers to the rock in the desert from which the animal fell in later times. However, the word Asazel was personified at an early stage, as were the Hebrew words for underworld ( Sheol ) and destruction ( Abbadon ). According to the apocryphal book of Enoch , Asasel or Asalsel is the most distinguished of the fallen angels who taught the children of sin. According to this interpretation, the idea of the ceremony seems to be to send the sins back to the evil spirit whose influence they owed their origin. Similar rites of atonement have survived in other peoples. Modern biblical critics assign the above passages to the priestly code and date them to a post-exilic date; they see the sending of the scapegoat to Asazel as an inclusion of an earlier ceremony.
Some conservative Bible scholars point out that the place the goat is sent to is the "wilderness" outside the inhabited area (and not a hostile desert), and that Asazel is neither a place nor a personal name. In their opinion, the “goat of the distance” was simply “released” into freedom.
Kapparot
A ritual still practiced by ultra-Orthodox Jews on the day before the Day of Atonement is the ritual slaughter of a chicken as an atonement ( kapparot ), which cannot be found in the Torah or the Talmud. To do this, a white, healthy, live chicken - a rooster for a man, a hen for a woman - is taken. A rooster and a hen are used for a pregnant woman, since the unborn child can be a boy. Then with a prayer the personal sins are passed on to the animal. The chicken is then swung over the head three times, each time saying, “This is my deputy. This is my trigger. This is my atonement. This chicken is going to die, but I am walking towards a good life and peace. ”Then the animal is killed with a cut through the throat. After bleeding, the poor are given the chicken for consumption.
Halacha
Even after the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in the Jewish War (in the year 70), the Day of Atonement was retained. “Even without an offering, the day itself brings about reconciliation” ( Midrash Sifra , Emor, XIV). According to Jewish teaching, the day is useless unless it is accompanied by repentance . The repentant admission of sins was a condition of atonement. “The Day of Atonement frees from sins against God, but from sins against one's neighbor only after the injured person has been asked for forgiveness” ( Talmud Joma VIII, 9). Hence the custom of settling all disputes on the eve of the fast day. On the Day of Atonement, the souls of the dead are also forgiven. In the Jiskor prayer the deceased is remembered in the synagogue.
According to Talmudic tradition, God opens three books on the first day of the year: one for the very bad, a second for the very pious, and the third for the average person. The fate of the very bad and the very pious will be decided at once; however, the decision about the average person is suspended until Yom Kippur, when the judgment is made for all. In prayerנְתַנֶּה תֹּֿקֶף Unetaneh tokef states:
“On New Year's Day they are inscribed and on the Day of Atonement they are sealed, how many should perish and how many will be born, who should live and who should die, who in his time and who before his time, who by fire and who by water, who by sword and who by hunger, who by storm and who by plague, who will have rest and who will rest, who finds rest and who wanders, who is free from worries and who is full of pain, who is high and who is low, who should be rich and who is poor. But repentance, prayer and beneficence avert the evil doom. "
According to Maimonides, "everything depends on whether a person's merits outweigh the mistakes they have made". Therefore, numerous good deeds are in order before the judgment on the Day of Atonement. Those who are considered valuable by God are inscribed in the book of life, and so it is said in prayer: “Write us in the book of life.” They also greet each other with the words: ( Hebrew לשׁנה טוֹבה תּכּתב Leschana towa tikatev ), "May you be inscribed (in the book of life) for a happy year."
presence
Yom Kippur is the holiest and most solemn day of the Jewish year. Every feast day begins the evening before, because in the Jewish calendar the day lasts from the evening before to the evening of the day - not from midnight to midnight. The beginning of the evening is denoted by the word (Hebrew ערב evening) Erev. For women aged 12 and over and men aged 13 and over, it is a day of fasting for 25 hours. H. From shortly before sunset of the previous day until the next sunset, neither liquid nor solid food is consumed. Smoking is also prohibited. Before the start of Yom Kippur, Kreplach is traditionally eaten, filled dumplings similar to Italian ravioli . Yom Kippur is the only fast day that is also observed on a Sabbath - the other fast days are postponed if they fall on a Sabbath. In addition to the prohibitions on Sabbaths and all public holidays, there is also sexual activity on Yom Kippur. Strictly religious Jews do not wear leather shoes on Yom Kippur and dress in white. Even little or no religious Jews nowadays comply with these rules in a more or less strict form.
In Israel , all restaurants and cafes are closed on this day (except Arab ones). All public life stands still. All border crossings (including the airports) are closed. Although there is no official driving ban, the streets are almost completely car-free, only ambulances, fire brigade and police drive. Secular Jews began to take advantage of this situation for bike rides on the empty highways in the last few decades. It is considered rude to eat or listen to music in public on this day. There are no radio or television programs. In October 1973, Syria and Egypt took advantage of the fact that Israel was paralyzed and extremely vulnerable on that day and started the Yom Kippur War . Based on this experience, the military operational capability on Yom Kippur is fully maintained; there are “silent” radio and television that do not broadcast any programs, but only send messages in an emergency.
church service
The serious character that characterizes this day has survived to this day. With a few exceptions, the service in Jewish communities in all directions lasts almost the whole day.
The evening prayer begins with the prayer " Kol Nidre ", which is read before sunset. At the center of the liturgy are the confession of sins, which in the Jewish tradition, in contrast to confession in Christian churches, is always made in the collective we-form, and the requests for forgiveness, whichסְלִיחוֹת Slichot (German:apologies) are called. "For we are not cheeky and stubborn to say before you that we are righteous and have not sinned, in truth we have sinned."
The blessing ( bracha ) Shehechejanu ( Hebrew שהחינו “He who gave us life” ) is spoken, as is the supplication
אָבִֽינוּ מַלְכֵּֽנוּ Awinu Malkenu (Our Father, Our King). Of theכהנים Kohanim (members of the priestly family) is given the Aaronic blessing from 4 Mos 6,24 EU .
The traditional melodies and lamentations both express the insecurity of the individual in the face of an uncertain fate as well as the collective memory of past greatness. On the Day of Atonement, Jews seek exclusive preoccupation with spiritual things. In the Haftara of the Morning Prayer , a passage from the book of Isaiah is read aloud in which the biblical prophet explains the meaning of real fasting. “It's a fast that I love: to loosen the fetters of injustice, to loosen the cords of oppression, to set the enslaved free, to break every yoke. When you see a naked man, clothe him, and do not withdraw from him who is your flesh. Then as the morning will dawn your light and your healing spring up quickly, your righteousness will go before you, the glory of the Eternal will take you. "( Isaiah 58.6-8 EU ) Another special Day of Atonement prayer ne'ila wherein the end of the day is discussed. It is spoken solemnly and powerfully while the Torah shrine remains open. The final conclusion of Yom Kippur will be announced with the shofar .
Jiskor
Four times a year - on Yom Kippur, Shmini Azeret (eighth day of Sukkot), on the last day of Passover and the second day of Shavuot - there is a special memorial prayer,יִזְכֹּר Jiskor ("memory"), spoken in the synagogue to commemorate the different souls of the father and / or mother. This includes a plea for Zedaka for their benefit. Only those whose father and / or mother are no longer among the living remain in the synagogue during the Jiskor prayer. Everyone else leaves the room in order to give the descendants a serious private moment in which they can reunite with their parents with the memory.
Fasting out
After the sound of the three shofar tones at the end of Yom Kippur, the prayers rush home to break the fast with the family. In some synagogues there is a small snack so that you can experience this "fasting out" together with the synagogue community.
Wishes
In the period after Rosh Hashanah, (from 3rd Tishri ) up to and including Yom Kippur, one wishes for Hebrew חתימה טובה chatima towa .
In the period between Yom Kippur and up to and including the last day of Sukkot , ( Hoshana Rabba ), people wish each other Hebrew גמר חתימה טובה gmar chatima tova , German 'may your inscription (in the book of life ) be completed well' . "Gmar" means final, with which one wishes a final, good seal. This time gives one last chance until the end of Sukkot to change for the better.
In the literature
Yom Kippur plays an important role in Jewish literature, for example with the Yiddish author Sholem Alejchem . Franz Kafka's short text Before the Law , which he himself called a legend , can be interpreted as a variation of Pesikta Rabbati 20, a parable from the Aggada .
- Prayer book for the holidays , Wolf Heidenheim (Ed.), Volume 7:מחזור ליוֹם כִּפּוּר Maḥzôr le-yôm kippûr , German 'prayer book for the day of atonement' . Translated by Rabbi Selig Bamberger . Goldschmidt, Basel 1970.
- Pentateuch and Haftaroth. Hebrew text and German translation. Commentary by Joseph Herman Hertz . 5 volumes. Reprint of the 1937/38 edition. Morascha publishing house, Zurich 1984.
- Susanne Galley : The Jewish year. Celebrations, memorials and holidays. Beck, Munich 2003, ISBN 3-406-49442-0 ( Beck'sche series 1523).
See also
literature
- Shmuel Ahituv: Art. Azazel. In: Encyclopaedia Judaica . 2nd edition, Volume 2, Detroit 2007, pp. 763f (English).
- Moshe Herr, S. Sperling: Art. Day of Atonement. In: Encyclopaedia Judaica . 2nd edition, Volume 5, Detroit 2007, pp. 488-493 (English).
- Bernd Janowski : The gift of reconciliation. Leviticus 16 as the keystone of priestly cult theology. In: Thomas Hieke, Tobias Nicklas (Eds.): The Day of Atonement. Its Interpretation in Early Jewish and Christian Traditions . Brill, Leiden / Boston 2012, pp. 3–32 ( PDF ; English).
Web links
- Corinna Körting: Yom Kippur (AT). In: Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (eds.): The scientific biblical lexicon on the Internet (WiBiLex), Stuttgart 2006 ff.
- Yom Kippur. In: talmud.de. Retrieved December 21, 2018 .
- Yom Kippur - the day of atonement. Central Council of Jews in Germany , accessed on December 21, 2018 .
- Ari Lipinski: Article about Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement. In: arilipinski.de. April 13, 2015, accessed December 21, 2018 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Yom Kippur. In: timeanddate.de. Retrieved December 21, 2018 .
- ^ Judy Maltz: Forget about Thanksgivukkah. It's almost Id Kippur. In: Ha-Aretz. October 2, 2014, accessed December 21, 2018 .
- ^ Corinna Körting: Yom Kippur (AT). In: Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (eds.): The scientific biblical lexicon on the Internet (WiBiLex), Stuttgart 2006 ff.
- ^ A b Moshe Herr, S. Sperling: Day of Atonement . In: Michael Berenbaum, Fred Skolnik (Ed.): Encyclopaedia Judaica . 2nd Edition. tape 5 . Macmillan Reference USA, Detroit 2007, pp. 488-493 (English).
- ↑ "... namely to confess the sins of the children of Yisrael ..." W. Gunther (Ed.) Plaut, Annette (edit., Transl.) Böckler, Walter (introduction) Homolka: Wajikra = Ṿa-yiḳra = Leviticus. , 3rd edition, 1st edition of the special edition. Edition, Gütersloher Verlagshaus, Gütersloh 2008, ISBN 978-3-579-05494-0 , p. 158.
- ↑ (Un) holy things from the Holy Land: Chickens for forgiveness. In: kipa-in-jerusalem.blogspot.com. Catholic International Press Agency, October 7, 2011, accessed December 21, 2018 .
- ↑ Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Rosh Hashanah 16b.
- ↑ Prayer book for the New Year celebrations, p. 108. Quoted from: Klaus Samuel Davidowicz: Jüdische Kulturzeitschrift: “I remain a Jew” - thoughts on the “High Holidays”. In: david.juden.at. Archived from the original on December 5, 2011 ; accessed on December 21, 2018 .
- ↑ Judaism festivals: Yom Kippur - the day of reconciliation. In: religion.orf.at. Retrieved December 21, 2018 .
- ↑ Ulrike Putz: Jewish holiday Yom Kippur: The silent hours of Israel. In: Spiegel Online . October 9, 2008, accessed December 21, 2018 .
- ↑ Yom Kippur. In: ordonline.de. Orthodox Rabbinical Conference Germany, August 1, 2016, accessed on December 21, 2018 .
- ↑ Jiskor , Jüdische Allgemeine , October 13, 2014. Accessed September 21, 2020.
- ↑ A doorkeeper stands before the law. In: hagalil.com. Retrieved December 21, 2018 .
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