Jewish calendar and holydays 2024 - 2026
Jewish calendar and holidays
The Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar meaning that it follows the moon and not the sun…as do the regular, Gregorian calendar. The Jewish calendar date begins at sundown and continues until sundown because of Genesis 1, 5:” And there was evening and there was morning, day one.”
The months, how many days do they have?
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8.Cheshvan – 29/30 days |
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9. Kislev – 29/30 days |
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10. Tevet – 29 days |
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11. Shevat – 30 days |
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12. Adar - 29 days : Adar has another full month in leap years |
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Adar I – 30 days |
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Adar II – 29 days |
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Holydays |
2024 |
2025 |
2026 |
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Tu B’Shvat |
Jan. 25 |
Feb. 13 |
Feb. 2 |
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Purim |
March 23/24 |
March 13/14 |
March 3/4 |
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Pessah |
April 22 - 30 |
April 12 - 20 |
April 1 – 9 |
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Yom HaShoa |
May 5/6 |
April 22/23 |
April 14/15 |
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Yom HaZikaron |
May 12/13 |
April 29/30 |
April 20/21 |
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Yom HaAtzmaut |
May 13/14 |
April 30/Mai 1 |
April 21/22 |
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Lag Be’Omer |
May 25/26 |
May 15/16 |
May 4/5 |
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Shavuot |
June 11 - 13 |
June 1 - 3 |
May 21 – 23 |
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Rosh HaShanah |
Oct. 2 - 4 |
Sept. 22 - 24 |
Sept. 11 – 13 |
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Yom Kippur |
Oct. 11/12 |
Oct. 1/2 |
Sept. 20/21 |
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Sukkot |
Oct. 16 - 18 |
Oct. 6 - 8 |
Sept. 25 – 27 |
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Simchat Torah |
Oct. 23 – 25 |
Oct. 13 – 15 |
Oct. 2 - 4 |
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Hanukkah |
Dec. 25 - Jan. 2 |
Dec. 14 - 22 |
Dec. 4 – 12 |
Leviticus 23, 1-44
23 The Lord spoke again to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘The Lord’s appointed times which you shall proclaim as holy convocations—My appointed times are these:
Sabbath:
Starting on sundown Friday evening. This is the weekly day of rest because God rested after 6 days of creation.
3 ‘For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, a holy convocation. You shall not do any work; it is a sabbath to the Lord in all your dwellings.
4 ‘These are the appointed times of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them.
Pessah/Passover/Easter: Nissan is the first month on the Jewish calendar. Before the Jews left Egypt, on the first day of the month of Nissan, G‑d told Moses and Aaron: “This month shall be to you the head of months.” This holiday has, like Sukkot, «full holidays” for the first and last day and “half holidays” for the days in between. It is allowed to work on the days in between. During the entire holiday people eat “Matza” which is unleavened bread.
In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight is the Lord’s Passover. 6 Then on the fifteenth day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. 7 On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work. 8 But for seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the Lord. On the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work.’” 9 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you enter the land which I am going to give to you and reap its harvest, then you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. 11 He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord for you to be accepted; on the day after the sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12 Now on the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a male lamb one year old without defect for a burnt offering to the Lord. 13 Its grain offering shall then be two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering by fire to the Lord for a soothing aroma, with its drink offering, a fourth of a hin of wine. 14 Until this same day, until you have brought in the offering of your God, you shall eat neither bread nor roasted grain nor new growth. It is to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places.
The counting of the "Omer": The time period between the two holidays which are connected to the grain harvest.
15 ‘You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete sabbaths.
Shavuot/ Feast of weeks/Pentecost: This is the shortest harvest holiday. It is usual to eat fish and food containing dairy. It is also common to eat apple dipped in honey.
16 You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the Lord. 17 You shall bring in from your dwelling places two loaves of bread for a wave offering, made of two-tenths of an ephah; they shall be of a fine flour, baked with leaven as first fruits to the Lord. 18 Along with the bread you shall present seven one year old male lambs without defect, and a bull of the herd and two rams; they are to be a burnt offering to the Lord, with their grain offering and their drink offerings, an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to the Lord. 19 You shall also offer one male goat for a sin offering and two male lambs one year old for a sacrifice of peace offerings. 20 The priest shall then wave them with the bread of the first fruits for a wave offering with two lambs before the Lord; they are to be holy to the Lord for the priest. 21 On this same day you shall make a proclamation as well; you are to have a holy convocation. You shall do no laborious work. It is to be a perpetual statute in all your dwelling places throughout your generations. 22 ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, moreover, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field nor gather the gleaning of your harvest; you are to leave them for the needy and the alien. I am the Lord your God.’”
Rosh haShana/ The Feast of (trumpets) shofar/ Jewish New Year:
The year begins on Rosh Hashanah, the first day of the month of Tishrei (the anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve), but Tishrei is not the first month. Rosh Hashanah is actually referred to in the Torah as “the first day of the seventh month.” The translation in Hebrew is “the Head of the Year” because it marks an important beginning.
23 Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 24 “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh month on the first of the month you shall have a rest, a reminder by blowing of shofar, a holy convocation. 25 You shall not do any laborious work, but you shall present an offering by fire to the Lord.’”
Yom Kippur/ The Day of Atonement: Observant Jews neither eat nor drink on this day. The last meal is well before sundown and the next time people sit down to eat will be well after sundown. Much of the day is being spent in the synagogue.
26 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 27 “On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of atonement; it shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall humble your souls and present an offering by fire to the Lord. 28 You shall not do any work on this same day, for it is a day of atonement, to make atonement on your behalf before the Lord your God. 29 If there is any person who will not humble himself on this same day, he shall be cut off from his people. 30 As for any person who does any work on this same day, that person I will destroy from among his people. 31 You shall do no work at all. It is to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places. 32 It is to be a sabbath of complete rest to you, and you shall humble your souls; on the ninth of the month at evening, from evening until evening you shall keep your sabbath.”
Succot/ Feast of Tabernacles/ Feast of Booths: This harvest holiday is special because of the “booth” which is built on the balcony or in the garden. Observant Jews will have all their meals inside the “succa” and will also sleep there at night. One of the many rules for how to build it is that it should be covered with palm branches or similar on top and it must be possible to see the stars through it. Observant jews will carry a “lulav” which consists of “Four Species” and which is representative for everything that grows; Has fruit and smell, has fruit and no smell, has smell and no fruit and has neither smell nor fruit. (fruit meaning edible).
33 Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 34 “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘On the fifteenth of this seventh month is the Feast of Booths for seven days to the Lord. 35 On the first day is a holy convocation; you shall do no laborious work of any kind. 36 For seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the Lord. On the eighth day you shall have a holy convocation and present an offering by fire to the Lord; it is an assembly. You shall do no laborious work. 37 ‘These are the appointed times of the Lord which you shall proclaim as holy convocations, to present offerings by fire to the Lord—burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each day’s matter on its own day— 38 besides those of the sabbaths of the Lord, and besides your gifts and besides all your votive and freewill offerings, which you give to the Lord. 39 ‘On exactly the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the crops of the land, you shall celebrate the feast of the Lord for seven days, with a rest on the first day and a rest on the eighth day. 40 Now on the first day you shall take for yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 You shall thus celebrate it as a feast to the Lord for seven days in the year. It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations; you shall celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 You shall live in booths for seven days; all the native-born in Israel shall live in booths, 43 so that your generations may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out from the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’” 44 So Moses declared to the sons of Israel the appointed times of the Lord.
Other holidays: Tu B’Shvat: The “new year of the trees”. It has to do with the timing for biblical tithes of agricultural produce. It is common to eat dry fruits on this day.
Purim: Based on the Book of Ester but not one of “the Lord’s appointed times”. Children dress up like Ester or Mordechai….or as everything else.
Lag Be’Omer: Celebrated with bonfires.
Yom HaShoa: Holocaust memorial day in Israel
Yom HaZikaron: Memorial day for fallen soldiers in Israel.
Yom HaAtzmaut: Israeli Day of Independence
