As I write this, my Jewish friends in Melbourne and Brisbane are
having a meal before the fast of Yom
Kippur begins.
Last week there was Rosh Hashanah, the
Jewish New Year, which marks the entry to what is commonly known as the High Holy days. This
ten day period is known as the Days of Awe. This is
a time for serious introspection, a time to consider the sins of the previous
year and repent before Yom Kippur.
Fasting on Shabbat (the Sabbath - Saturday) is
not usual. In the Jewish calendar there are six
fasts. If any one of them (apart fromYom Kippur) falls out on Shabbat,
Shabbat takes precedence and there is no fasting on that day. The fast is
usually pushed off until Sunday (or in one instance -- the Fast of Esther -- it
is observed on the Thursday beforehand, because the day after Shabbat, Sunday,
will be Purim).
The one exception to this rule is Yom Kippur,
when we fast even if it is Shabbat, as it is a biblical fast, and the Torah calls
it "Shabbat Shabbaton" - the Shabbat of Shabbats (in English, the
Sabbath of Sabbaths) implying that it takes precedence over Shabbat.
or, if you prefer,
"Tsom Mo'iil" (have a benefitting fast)
See also
....and after all this,
