Yom Kippur 2011: Photos from around the world
An Ultra Orthodox Jewish woman swings a chicken over her head during the Kaparot ceremony in the Mea Shearim neighborhood of Jerusalem on October 6, 2011. The Jewish ritual is supposed to transfer the sins of the past year to the chicken and is performed before Yom Kippur, which this year starts at sunset on October 7.
Yom Kippur begins at sundown tonight is the holiest day in the Jewish calendar — and the day with the highest attendance rate in synagogue.
Known as the Day of Atonement, the holiday is a day for Jews to make their amends with God. According to the Jewish Virtual Library, Yom Kippur commemorates the day God gave Moses the second set of Ten Commandments and forgave the Israelites’ sin of idolatry for worshiping the Golden Calf.
Those observing Yom Kippur will also fast from sundown tonight until sundown on Saturday. That accounts for around 25 hours.
More: Obama in Rosh Hashanah message: Israel bond 'unshakeable'
Columnists in the Jerusalem Post and other newspapers have already put in their two cents on how to make it through the day sans food and water. Tips about drinking water leading up to Yom Kippur and avoiding physical activity are common, but some synagogues will be on “high alert” for people who start feeling sick.
The Jerusalem Post reported:
[Israel’s emergency medical center] Magen David Adom is preparing for a high alert for Yom Kippur, with hundreds of medics and paramedics – paid and volunteer – on duty to treat people who feel unwell in synagogues and elsewhere.
Some of them will be equipped with semi-automatic defibrillators for treating people with cardiac arrest. Every year, the emergency first-aid and ambulance service receives calls from about 2,000 people who need help during the fast.
But aside from the fasting, restrictions on sex and the lengthy prayer schedule, Yom Kippur is actually thought to be the most joyous Jewish holiday because it represents a fresh start spiritually, according to the Huffington Post.
More on World Religion: Religious tolerance suffers in Indonesia
Many of those of the Jewish faith have already prepared for the day of repentance with traditional ceremonies. Click through the photo gallery above to view pictures of the Kaparot ceremony and the Tashlich ceremony this year in Israel.