All you need to know for Yom Kippur 2023
Times, shiurim and inspiration for Yom Kippur.
Times:
Jerusalem
Candle Lighting – 17:58PM
End of Chag–19:08PM
Tel Aviv
Candle Lighting –18:15PM
End of Chag – 19:10PM
Haifa
Candle Lighting – 18:07PM
End of Chag – 19:09PM
New York
Candle Lighting –18:30PM
End of Chag –19:28PM
Chicago
Candle Lighting –18:23PM
End of Chag – 19:22PM
Melbourne
Candle Lighting –17:48PM
End of Chag – 18:57PM
Candle Lighting – 17:58PMEnd of Chag–19:08PMTel Aviv
Candle Lighting –18:15PMEnd of Chag – 19:10PMHaifa
Candle Lighting – 18:07PMEnd of Chag – 19:09PMNew York
Candle Lighting –18:30PMEnd of Chag –19:28PM Chicago
Candle Lighting –18:23PM End of Chag – 19:22PMMelbourne
Candle Lighting –17:48PM End of Chag – 18:57PMThe Laws of the Fast Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
https://www.yeshiva.co/midrash/52560
Fast of Kippur
https://www.yeshiva.co/ask/58268
Ask The Rabbi: What Should I Do To Prepare For The Fast?
Rabbi Stewart Weiss
Fasting is not meant as an "affliction;" it is in itself a form of teshuva, allowing us to concentrate on our spiritual, rather than physiological side on this one day. To prepare properly for the fast: * Drink at least 8 full glasses of water on Sunday (erev YK) & avoid caffeinated beverages; * Increase starch & fiber intake before the fast, eating items such as whole-grain cereals or bread, pasta, rice, potatoes; * Decrease protein intake & avoid salty foods such as lox, pickles, chips or pretzels. The meal before the fast may include boiled, grilled or baked chicken; steamed or raw vegetables, beans, lentils, fresh fruit; cake or bread.
“On this Day He will Atone You”
Rabbi Yossef Carmel
The observance of Yom Kippur on the Torah level revolves around two focal points.
One is the individual’s obligation to afflict himself (Vayikra 16:29), in addition to the regular refraining from forbidden work that is found on other holidays and Shabbat. In other words, a person’s normal flow of life is stopped, and he is forced to think. The five prohibitions of affliction (some from the Torah, while others might be of Rabbinic origin) create a behavioral and thereby cognitive change. They cover different areas of basic human needs (in days past, anointing was important for hygiene).
The second element of Yom Kippur is the service carried out in theBeit Hamikdash by the Kohen Gadol, with the help of a few assistants. This very involved service was performed only once a year, and it was very different from daily sacrifices. The majority of the nation was uninvolved in the events in the Beit Hamikdash on Yom Kippur and certainly could not play an active role in them. The height of the service took place in a totally secluded place, the Holy of Holies, in which no one else was allowed to enter or see, and special precautions were taken to ensure maximum purity and sanctity.
So, on Yom Kippur, the average person dealt with refraining from lower things. As far as positive steps, it was the nation’s highest spiritual representative who was active. The question then is: what positive activity was the average Jew involved in on this holy day? How did the unique spiritual atmosphere find expression?
In our days, the order of events that used to be followed in the Beit Hamikdash becomes a focal point of our davening, especially in the repetition of Musaf. Indeed, our prayers take up the majority of our day, but they are primarily post-Beit Hamikdash liturgy. What did our forefathers do?
Let me suggest an idea, which also has practical ramifications in our days. Chazal tell us that Tu B’Av and Yom Kippur were special days in Israel, in that the girls went out in borrowed white garments in order to not embarrass anyone (Taanit 26b). White garments, which we (including men) wear on Yom Kippur nowadays as well, hint at the involvement in societal matters, with a focus on not embarrassing others. In other words, people were called upon to put a strong focus on the mitzvot between man and his fellow man within the framework of this spiritual day. Yom Kippur is obviously not a holiday which includes the element of "there is no happiness without meat and wine" (see Pesachim 109a), but it is one which our forefathers used to improve society. Asking forgiveness and rectifying wrongdoings, not only physical ones but also oral and indirect ones, like the embarrassment of girls of lesser means, were the mitzvot of the day.
So, let me propose, ladies and gentlemen, that even though intense davening is a mainstay of our Yom Kippur, every community should dedicate a part of the day (including the break between tefillot) to activity to improve society. Let us remember that without individual and communal improvement of society, Yom Kippur cannot bring the desired atonement!
One is the individual’s obligation to afflict himself (Vayikra 16:29), in addition to the regular refraining from forbidden work that is found on other holidays and Shabbat. In other words, a person’s normal flow of life is stopped, and he is forced to think. The five prohibitions of affliction (some from the Torah, while others might be of Rabbinic origin) create a behavioral and thereby cognitive change. They cover different areas of basic human needs (in days past, anointing was important for hygiene).
The second element of Yom Kippur is the service carried out in theBeit Hamikdash by the Kohen Gadol, with the help of a few assistants. This very involved service was performed only once a year, and it was very different from daily sacrifices. The majority of the nation was uninvolved in the events in the Beit Hamikdash on Yom Kippur and certainly could not play an active role in them. The height of the service took place in a totally secluded place, the Holy of Holies, in which no one else was allowed to enter or see, and special precautions were taken to ensure maximum purity and sanctity.
So, on Yom Kippur, the average person dealt with refraining from lower things. As far as positive steps, it was the nation’s highest spiritual representative who was active. The question then is: what positive activity was the average Jew involved in on this holy day? How did the unique spiritual atmosphere find expression?
In our days, the order of events that used to be followed in the Beit Hamikdash becomes a focal point of our davening, especially in the repetition of Musaf. Indeed, our prayers take up the majority of our day, but they are primarily post-Beit Hamikdash liturgy. What did our forefathers do?
Let me suggest an idea, which also has practical ramifications in our days. Chazal tell us that Tu B’Av and Yom Kippur were special days in Israel, in that the girls went out in borrowed white garments in order to not embarrass anyone (Taanit 26b). White garments, which we (including men) wear on Yom Kippur nowadays as well, hint at the involvement in societal matters, with a focus on not embarrassing others. In other words, people were called upon to put a strong focus on the mitzvot between man and his fellow man within the framework of this spiritual day. Yom Kippur is obviously not a holiday which includes the element of "there is no happiness without meat and wine" (see Pesachim 109a), but it is one which our forefathers used to improve society. Asking forgiveness and rectifying wrongdoings, not only physical ones but also oral and indirect ones, like the embarrassment of girls of lesser means, were the mitzvot of the day.
So, let me propose, ladies and gentlemen, that even though intense davening is a mainstay of our Yom Kippur, every community should dedicate a part of the day (including the break between tefillot) to activity to improve society. Let us remember that without individual and communal improvement of society, Yom Kippur cannot bring the desired atonement!
Yom Kippur
Rabbi Berel Wein
You Kippur is the quintessential and unique Jewish holy day of the year. All the other holidays that our God has given to us as a faith and as a people have their parallels in non-Jewish society. All societies have days of national independence, harvest festivals of Thanksgiving, celebrations of victories and historic moments of salvation and national preservation. Naturally, our holy days of this genre are far different than others, in that they are accompanied by specific biblical commandments as to how the day is to be commemorated and what holy rituals, special foods and unique prayer services are to be attached to and are an integral part of the commemoration of that day.
We can see that the concept behind these days such as Pesach. Shavuot. Succot. Chanuka and Purim have characteristics that are universal, that can be said to apply to other nations in the world. This is even true of Rosh Hashana. since every culture has some sort of day to begin the new year, whether it be on the solar or lunar calendar.
But Yom Kippur is different in every way and has no equal anywhere in human civilization or history. There is no other day on the calendar that commands the attention of Jews to the relationship between the God of Israel and the people of Israel, as does the day of Yom Kippur. The day of Yom Kippur is a gift from God to the people of Israel, and in all the millennia of its existence it has remained an exclusively Jewish concept and holiday.
The very concept of forgiveness per se is itself a novel and even surprising one. After all, whatever a person has done has a finality to it, and there always are consequences that are derived and emanate from human behavior. It is almost illogical to think that, somehow, the past can be undone, that wrongs can be righted, foolishness and sin are erased as though they never happened. These consequences are true in human terms.
Humans have the power to forgive, but never the power to retract or correct what was done before. But heaven is operating in a manner that is far beyond our understanding or our ability to judge. The unlimited power of the Almighty seems to include the retroactive ability to erase what happened before, and, the capacity to change the consequences that previous behavior may have ordained and were deemed to be immutable.
This idea is the expression of the will and mercy of heaven, extended to us as put forth in the words of the great prophet Yechezkel: "The Lord does not wish for the death of human beings due to their sins, but rather wishes that they repent of their evil ways and thereby live." The Lord is the master of second chances. This is a rare and uniquely Jewish idea. It opens the way for regrets and rehabilitation, restoration, and accomplishment. Without such ideas, and without such an understanding of the Creator, we would truly be bereft of hope and confidence in our future and in our very lives.
But this great gift must be earned. The Torah does not offer us a free lunch under any circumstances. Yom Kippur comes with a list of requirements, not just for the day, such as abstaining from food and drink etc., but it also requires a complete change of heart and attitude, and true regret on our part for the missteps of our past, and certainly of the past year.
We have all been sorely tested in this past year, with unexpected plagues and tragedies, and a complete change in our societal lives and even our economic fortunes. The events of the past year should certainly have humbled us and made us think twice before we again boast of our abilities and achievements. It, hopefully, has made us less arrogant and dampened our egos. And that should be viewed as a good thing, for the beginning of repentance is always the feeling of humility and a certain degree of helplessness. We are, after all, but flesh and blood, mortal and frightened, alone and powerless before forces over whom we exert no influence or power.
We can only ask the Lord that mercy and patience should be extended to us, and that we will try in this coming year to live up to the great challenges and demands that Jewish life imposes upon us. Additionally, that we will view these challenges and demands as opportunities, and not as negative trials.
We can see that the concept behind these days such as Pesach. Shavuot. Succot. Chanuka and Purim have characteristics that are universal, that can be said to apply to other nations in the world. This is even true of Rosh Hashana. since every culture has some sort of day to begin the new year, whether it be on the solar or lunar calendar.
But Yom Kippur is different in every way and has no equal anywhere in human civilization or history. There is no other day on the calendar that commands the attention of Jews to the relationship between the God of Israel and the people of Israel, as does the day of Yom Kippur. The day of Yom Kippur is a gift from God to the people of Israel, and in all the millennia of its existence it has remained an exclusively Jewish concept and holiday.
The very concept of forgiveness per se is itself a novel and even surprising one. After all, whatever a person has done has a finality to it, and there always are consequences that are derived and emanate from human behavior. It is almost illogical to think that, somehow, the past can be undone, that wrongs can be righted, foolishness and sin are erased as though they never happened. These consequences are true in human terms.
Humans have the power to forgive, but never the power to retract or correct what was done before. But heaven is operating in a manner that is far beyond our understanding or our ability to judge. The unlimited power of the Almighty seems to include the retroactive ability to erase what happened before, and, the capacity to change the consequences that previous behavior may have ordained and were deemed to be immutable.
This idea is the expression of the will and mercy of heaven, extended to us as put forth in the words of the great prophet Yechezkel: "The Lord does not wish for the death of human beings due to their sins, but rather wishes that they repent of their evil ways and thereby live." The Lord is the master of second chances. This is a rare and uniquely Jewish idea. It opens the way for regrets and rehabilitation, restoration, and accomplishment. Without such ideas, and without such an understanding of the Creator, we would truly be bereft of hope and confidence in our future and in our very lives.
But this great gift must be earned. The Torah does not offer us a free lunch under any circumstances. Yom Kippur comes with a list of requirements, not just for the day, such as abstaining from food and drink etc., but it also requires a complete change of heart and attitude, and true regret on our part for the missteps of our past, and certainly of the past year.
We have all been sorely tested in this past year, with unexpected plagues and tragedies, and a complete change in our societal lives and even our economic fortunes. The events of the past year should certainly have humbled us and made us think twice before we again boast of our abilities and achievements. It, hopefully, has made us less arrogant and dampened our egos. And that should be viewed as a good thing, for the beginning of repentance is always the feeling of humility and a certain degree of helplessness. We are, after all, but flesh and blood, mortal and frightened, alone and powerless before forces over whom we exert no influence or power.
We can only ask the Lord that mercy and patience should be extended to us, and that we will try in this coming year to live up to the great challenges and demands that Jewish life imposes upon us. Additionally, that we will view these challenges and demands as opportunities, and not as negative trials.