Yom Kippur is the tenth day of the month of Tishrei and also regarded as the “Sabbath of Sabbaths“. Rosh Hashanah is the first day in the Hebrew month of Tishrei according to the Hebrew calendar.
Yom Kippur completes the annual period known in Judaism as the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora’im (“Days of Awe”) that commences with Rosh Hashanah that is the Jewish new year. Yom Kippur is also the tenth and last day of the Ten Days of Repentance that commences with the first day of Rosh Hashanah.
Heavenly books opened According to Jewish tradition, God inscribes each person’s fate for the coming year into a book, the Book of Life, on Rosh Hashanah, and waits until Yom Kippur to “seal” the verdict. During the Days of Awe, a Jewish person tries to amend his or her behavior and seek forgiveness for wrongs done against God (bein adam leMakom) and against other human beings (bein adam lechavero). The evening and day of Yom Kippur are set aside for public and private petitions and confessions of guilt (Vidui). At the end of Yom Kippur, one hopes that they have been forgiven by God.
Universally observed As one of the most culturally significant Jewish holidays, Yom Kippur is observed by many secular Jews who may not observe other holidays. Many secular Jews attend synagogue on Yom Kippur—for many secular Jews the High Holy Days are the only recurring times of the year in which they attend synagogue —causing synagogue attendance to soar.
Observance in Israel Yom Kippur is a legal holiday in the modern state of Israel. There are no radio or television broadcasts, airports are shut down, there is no public transportation, and all shops and businesses are closed. In 1973, an air raid siren was sounded on the afternoon of Yom Kippur and radio broadcasts were resumed to alert the public to the surprise attack on Israel by Egypt and Syria that launched the Yom Kippur War.
In 2008, 63% of the Jewish people of Israel said that they were intending to fast on Yom Kippur. This is the reason that it is very common in Israel to wish “Tsom Kal” or “Tsom Mo’iil” to everyone before Yom Kippur, even if one does not know whether they will fast or not.
It is considered impolite to eat in public on Yom Kippur or to sound music or to drive a motor vehicle. There is no legal prohibition on any of these, but in practice such actions are universally avoided in Israel during Yom Kippur, except for emergency services.
Over the last few decades, bicycle-riding and inline skating on the empty streets have become common among secular Israeli youngsters, especially on the eve of Yom Kippur.
Trip to Israel 