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ROSH  HASHANAH  AND  YOM  KIPPUR1
JEWISH  LITURGY

Religious Program Specialist 3 & 2, Module 01-Personnel Support
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the Orthodox and 7 days by Reform Jews. Sukkot is a Thanksgiving holiday held after the crops have been harvested. As a matter of note, the American holiday  of  Thanksgiving  was  influenced  in  part  by  the  Jewish  Festival  of Sukkot. A sukkah or booth is set up, roofed with branches, and decorated inside with  flowers  and  fruit.  The  sukkahs  are  built  to  remind  the  Jews  of  the makeshift shelters they lived in and the hardships they endured during the 40 years they wandered in the desert before reaching the Promised Land. It is considered very important by most Jews to enter a sukkah or booth during this festival period. Many Jews try to eat at least one meal in a booth. Other Jews spend an entire day and night in a booth. Many Jewish commu- nities hold contests each year to determine who has created the most interest- ing  or  beautiful  booth. Traditionally  inclined  Jewish  personnel  will  want  to  attend  synagogue services  on  the  first  2  days  and  the  8th  day  of  Sukkot.  Nontraditional observers are likely to attend services on the first and last days, or just 1 day. The  RP  may  be  called  upon  to  assist  in  the  construction  of  the  sukkah  or booth. Public Works or Seabee personnel will often construct such a booth if the  request  comes  from  the  command  chaplain.  Details  on  constructing  a booth  can  be  found  in  a  book  entitled  the  Jewish   Catalogue— 1, published  by  the  Jewish  Publication  Society  of  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania. The sukkah is dismantled at the end of the 9-day period which is concluded on  the  Feast  of  Simchat  Torah. SIMCHAT  ATZERETH  AND  SIMCHAT  TORAH.  -On  the  eighth day  of  Sukkot,  the  festival  called  Simchat  Atzereth  or  the  “Eighth  Day  of Solemn Assembly” is celebrated. Several special features mark the morning service. Yizkor or memorial prayers are said for the dead, and a prayer called Geshem  (rain)  is  recited.  God  is  asked  to  provide  rain  to  the  Holy  Land  of Israel where rain is both scarce and precious. On the ninth day of Sukkot, the festival of Simchat Torah, which means “Rejoicing   in   the   Law,”   is  celebrated.  It  is  a  holiday  dedicated  to  the greatest  Jewish  book  of  all—the  Torah. On this occasion, the last chapter of the five books of Moses is read, and the  cycle  of  reading  the  Torah  begins  anew.  On  this  occasion,  all  of  the Torah  Scrolls  are  taken  out  of  the  Ark  and  lovingly  carried  around  the synagogue seven times in a procession. Before the end of the festival, candy, cakes,  fruits,  and  refreshments  are  distributed  to  the  children.  Simchat Torah  brings  the  High  Holy  Day  season  to  a  close. HANUKKAH  (The  Feast  of  Lights). —This 8-day holiday usually falls in December.   It   commemorates   the   victory   of   the   Jewish   Maccabees   over Syrian  despots  (167  B.C.)  in  a  fight  for  religious  freedom  that  saved Judaism,  as  a  culture,  from  annihilation. Each Hanukkah, Jews light candles for 8 days—one on the first evening, adding  one  more  each  evening  until  all  eight  candles  are  lighted.  A  ninth candle,  called  the  Shpmmes  (servant),  stands  taller  than  the  rest  in  the menorah  (candelabrum)  and  is  used  to  light  the  others.  This  shows  that one  can  give  love  and  light  to  others  without  losing  one’s  own  radiance. Hanukkah is observed with parties, games, and gifts to the children. 2-54







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