The Day of Atonement was regarded as a "Sabbath of Sabbaths" [17] It was on this day alone that the High Priest of Israel entered the Holy of Holies inside the Tabernacle where the Ark of the Covenant contained the stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments were engraved. The presence of YHWH in the Holy of Holies on that yearly day, upon the mercy seat, required that the Kohen Gadol be first purified by the sacrifice of a bull in a prescribed manner. Entering the Most Holy Place on other days or without fulfilling the ritual requirements would subject the priest to death.
Yom Kippur (/ˌjɒm kɪˈpʊər, ˌjɔːm ˈkɪpər, ˌjoʊm-/ ⓘ YOM kip-OOR, YAWM KIP-ər, YOHM-;[1][2] Hebrew: יוֹם כִּפּוּר Yōm Kippūr [ˈjom kiˈpuʁ], lit. 'Day of Atonement') is the holiest day of the year in Judaism.[3][4][5] It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei[6] corresponding to a date in late September or early October.
For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and repentance. The day's main observances consist of full fasting and asceticism, both accompanied by extended prayer services (usually at synagogue) and sin confessions.
Yom Kippur is one of the two High Holy Days, or Days of Awe (Hebrew yamim noraim), alongside Rosh Hashanah (which falls nine days previously).[20] According to Jewish tradition, on Rosh Hashanah God inscribes each person's fate for the coming year into the Book of Life, and waits until Yom Kippur to "seal" the verdict.[21] This process is described dramatically in the poem Unetanneh Tokef, which is recited on Rosh Hashanah in the Ashkenazic and Italian rites and on Yom Kippur in the Eastern Ashkenazic and Italian rites:
A great shofar will be blown, and a small still voice will be heard. The angels will make haste, and be seized with fear and trembling, and will say: "Behold, the day of judgment!"... On Rosh Hashanah it is written, and on the Yom Kippur fast it is sealed, how many will pass and how many will be created, who will live and who will die, who in his time and who not in his time... But repentance [teshuva], prayer, and charity [tzedakah] remove the evil of the decree... For You do not desire a person's death, but rather that he repent and live. Until the day of his death You wait for him; if he repents, You accept him immediately.
During the Days of Awe, a Jew reflects on the past year's actions and seeks forgiveness for wrongs done against both God and other people.[22]
Gregorian calendar dates for recent and upcoming Yom Kippur holidays are:
- Sunset, 24 September 2023 – nightfall, 25 September 2023
- Sunset, 11 October 2024 – nightfall, 12 October 2024
- Sunset, 1 October 2025 – nightfall, 2 October 2025
- Sunset, 20 September 2026 – nightfall, 21 September 2026
- Sunset, 10 October 2027 – nightfall, 11 October 2027