Interfaith Calendar

Description: A fall festival, which includes a memorial service for the dead and features prayers for rain in Israel.

General Practices: Beginning at sundown, Jews light a Yahrzeit memorial candle at sundown on Shemini Atzereth (the 8th night of Sukkot).

Recommended Accommodations: Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities on the first two days.

Description: Start of the Jewish New Year. Begins at sundown (first day) and ends at nightfall (last day). The Jewish calendar celebrates the New Year in the seventh month (Tishrei) as a day of rest and celebration ten days before Yom Kippur.

General Practices: Prayer in synagogue and festive meals

Recommended Accommodations: Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events, or activities on this date. If planning an event, provide food accommodation as requested (kosher restrictions apply).

Description: A Hindu festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil. During this time, Hindus worship Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati.

General Practices: Durga is the mother goddess, and so Hindus try to visit their mothers and other relatives during this time. Some Hindus will pray and fast, and there are often feasts and dances.

Description: Yom Kippur is often considered the holiest day of the year for Jews, and the day is dedicated to atonement and abstinence. Begins at sundown (first day) and ends at nightfall (last day).

General Practices: During Yom Kippur, Jews fast from before sundown until after sunset, and light a Yahrzeit memorial candle at sundown on the night of Yom Kippur.

Recommended Accommodations: Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities on this date and after a day of fasting.

Description: A week-long celebration which begins with the building of Sukkah for sleep and meals; Sukkot is named for the huts Moses and the Israelites lived in as they wandered the desert before reaching the promised land.

General Practices: Sukkot, beginning at sundown, families in the United States commonly decorate the sukkah with produce and artwork.

Recommended Accommodations: Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities on the first two days.

Description: Simchat Torah marks the completion of the annual cycle of the reading of the Torah in the synagogue and the beginning of the new cycle.

General Practices: Practitioners dance in synagogues as all the Torah scrolls are carried around in seven circuits.

Recommended Accommodations: Avoid scheduling important academic deadlines, events or activities on the first two days.

Description: Also referred to as Harvest Home, the Feast of the Ingathering and Meán Fómhair. Mabon is the second celebration of the harvest, a ritual of thanksgiving for the fruits of the earth. One of the eight major annual sabbats or festivals.

General Practices: At Mabon, day and night are in equal balance. It is a time to offer gratitude for the blessings of the harvest and also to begin to prepare for turning inward. Making dishes with apples, squash and pumpkins as part of ritual celebration is customary.