Jewish Holidays

“On Rosh Hashanah it is written, on Yom Kippur it is sealed.”

The High Holy days, a time of reflection and teshuvah (or repentance), consists of two holidays: Rosh Hashanah (The Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (The Days of Atonement.) The holiday begins on the first day of the Hebrew month of Elul.

Here are some resources that can help make your holidays more meaningful.

Celebrate the High Holy Days: a guide to Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and the Days in Between (My Jewish Learning)

Everything You Need to Teach Your Kids About Rosh Hashanah (PJ Library)

Everything You Need to Teach Your Kids About Yom Kippur (PJ Library)

High Holiday Resources (Gateways: Access to Jewish Education)

Are you looking for recipes to enhance the holidays?

Rosh Hashanah by Jamie Geller

Yom Kippur by Jamie Geller

The Nosher: Rosh Hashanah (My Jewish Learning)

The Nosher: Yom Kippur (My Jewish Learning)

What Jew Wanna Eat! This ain’t yo Bubbe’s blog (Rosh Hashanah recipes)

CHANUKAH

Chanukah, an eight day festival of lights, is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at a time of the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid Empire. We also celebrate the miracle of the oil that lasted 8 nights. At this holiday, we rededicate ourselves as Jews.

According to the Hebrew calendar, Chanukah is observed on the 25th day of Kislev.

GENERAL RESOURCES ON CHANUKAH

Find captioned videos, stories, recipes, activities, and more through these resources.

Chanukah Resources (J Connect at Jewish Federation of Greater Washington)
Hanukkah (Union for Reform Judaism)
Hanukkah (Aish.com)
Hanukkah for Kids (PJ Library)
What is Hanukkah? (Chabad.org)

CHANUKAH IN ASL RESOURCES

JDCC – How to Light the Chanukah Menorah (in ASL)

INTERFAITH RESOURCES

PASSOVER

Each spring we retell the story of Passover at our Seder tables with our family and friends: the Israelites were once slaves in Egypt and now they are free. At this holiday, we think of the struggles and journeys that many people around the globe experience to find freedom.

We invite you to use these resources to enrich your celebration of Passover.

GENERAL RESOURCES ON PASSOVER

Are you looking for recipes, themes, and information on traditions to help you plan your Seder? We have some resources to share with you.

Aish.com provides a collection of Passover resources that includes stories, videos, recipes, laws, and haggadahs for you to download.
Chabad offers resources on the Passover holidays including stories.
Jewish Food Experience shares several articles on Passover food.
Kosher for Passover recipes can be found at epicurious.com website.
PJ Library shares Passover Essentials on their website.

SAMPLE HAGGADAHS

There are several haggaddahs available for you to either download or create:

The American Jewish World Service has prepared a Haggadah based on social justice themes for you.
Avodah: Sparking Jewish Leaders, Igniting Social Change presents a collection of Passover resources.
The Jewish Federation of North America offers a traditional Haggadah.
Gateways: Access to Jewish Education provides a number of tools that could be incorporated into family friendly Passover activities.
Make your own Haggadah through this resource.
The Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism shares several versions of the Haggadah on different themes, some of which relate to environmental justice, racial justice, refugee crisis, and so much more.

LIBRARY RESOURCES

Check your local library branch for its collection of books on Passover that you can check out on your library card.
PJLibrary: Jewish Books on Passover
Sign up for this free children’s Jewish through books by mail service.

Holidays