What meaning does Yom Kippur have for Jews?

Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur is the Jewish day of repentance, considered to be the holiest and most solemn day of the year. Its central theme is atonement and reconciliation. Eating, drinking, washing, cosmetics, wearing leather shoes, and conjugal relations are prohibited (Mishnah tractate Yoma 8:1). Fasting - total abstention from all food and drink - usually begins a half an hour before sundown (called "tosefet Yom Kippur," the "addition" of fasting a bit of the previous day is required by Jewish law), and ends after nightfall the following day.

A recurrent motif in the Yom Kippur liturgy is that of confession (vidui). The idea is that without soul-searching and verbal articulation of one's misdeeds, there can be no real personal improvement. An important feature of Yom Kippur is the belief that true repentance (regret for past misdeeds and a commitment to future improvement) is followed by God's forgiveness. Of course, in cases when another person has been harmed that person's forgiveness needs to be obtained first.

Contrary to popular belief, Yom Kippur is not a sad day. Sephardic Jews (Jews of Spanish, Portuguese and North African descent) refer to this holiday as "the White Fast." Consequently, many Jews have the custom of wearing only white clothing on this day, to symbolize their "white" purity from sin, akin to angels.

Yom Kippur is considered the most holy of Jewish holidays and its observance is held even among the majority of secular Jews who may not strictly observe other holidays. Many secular Jews will fast and attend synagogue on Yom Kippur, and attendance on Yom Kippur can be double, triple or even more than the normal number of worshippers. In Israel, public non-observance (such as eating or driving a motor vehicle) is taboo. Yom Kippur there has the nickname "Festival of Bicycles," referring to children's practice of freely riding their bicycles in the streets without motor vehicles presenting danger. In Israel on Yom Kippur there is no broadcast television, no public transportation and the airports are closed. There is no commerce of any kind in the Jewish areas.

First answer by Ranger22. Last edit by Pninab. Contributor trust: 141 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 47 [recommend question]