Fasting

Most Israeli Jews fast on Yom Kippur, while over half take part in prayer services, survey finds

Only a small number of those reported to be fasting partially or not at all are older people, according to the survey data, suggesting that the reasons are more linked to health or principle.

|ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
A Jewish man blows a shofar at the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City during the final Selichot prayers ahead of Yom Kippur, September 19, 2026.
Boxes of Ozempic, a semaglutide injection drug used for treating type 2 diabetes made by Novo Nordisk, is seen at a Rock Canyon Pharmacy in Provo, Utah, U.S. March 29, 2023.

Could Ozempic make the Yom Kippur fast easier? Here’s what researchers found

In an August Hadassah Magazine article, a 46-year-old New York mother identified as Beth described getting through Yom Kippur services without thinking about food after starting a GLP-1 medication.

|ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
One might think this should be the moment of our greatest anxiety.

'Go, eat with joy': The surprising truth about Yom Kippur

How is it that precisely on the eve of the day when a person stands before his Creator, and his judgment for the coming year is sealed, we are commanded to eat and rejoice?

|ByRABBI SHMUEL RABINOWITZ
An ultra-Orthodox jew prays at the Westen Wall July 17, 2002 on Tisha B'Av

Tisha B'Av 2026: Fast times for Israel and US

See when the fast begins and ends in your area.

|ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF

Taking responsibility on Yom Kippur

The coronavirus may compel people to look at the world and their place in it this year in a very different way.

SEPTEMBER 27, 2020ByHERB KEINON
THE MOOD will be significantly different, far less numinous. But the lack of the traditional Yom Kippur synagogue experience may actually lead to a better ability to concentrate on the substance of the day

Passing on kindness

In rabbinic literature, the biblical ideal of hessed encompasses mitzvot such as visiting the sick, burying the dead, comforting the mourner, and helping a bride and groom rejoice.

SEPTEMBER 27, 2020ByDAVID GOLINKIN
THE BEST way to fight the pandemic is to pass on kindness: to give tzedaka to those who have lost their jobs, to help elderly people who cannot go out to shop, to make a shiva minyan in a park opposite a mourner’s house

The echoes of Yom Kippur

As the Ne’ila service closes out Yom Kippur, we become a better and more refined version of who we are.

SEPTEMBER 27, 2020ByMICHAEL M. COHEN
WE ALWAYS have the gift and opportunity to improve who we are, as well as to repair our shared world

The confession of an ardent Zionist

Am “Al het” of the shortcomings of a people returned to its land.

SEPTEMBER 27, 2020ByDAVID BREAKSTONE
REACHING A point of no return?

MDA prepares for a challenging Yom Kippur in light of coronavirus pandemic

Chairman of the Histadrut Arnon Bar-David dispatched an urgent letter to Health Minister Yuli Edelstein, warning him of a complete collapse of the MDA.

SEPTEMBER 26, 2020ByTOBIAS SIEGAL
An MDA medic wearing protective gear against coronavirus waits outside Shaare Zedek Hospital, Jerusalem

Fast of the 17th of Tammuz: Times and customs

See fast start and end times for your area.

JULY 8, 2020ByTZVI JOFFRE
The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans Under the Command of Titus, A.D. 70

Israel's Chief Rabbi calls for public fast day amid coronavirus outbreak

For those who can't fast, Lau asked that they take on a "ta'anit dibur," a practice in which one abstains from all speech that does not concern Torah or prayer.

MARCH 23, 2020ByTZVI JOFFRE
Chief Rabbi David Lau prays at special prayer service during coronavirus outbreak, March 2020

Asara B'Tevet, the siege of Jerusalem: Fast start and end times

The fast, also known as Asarah B'Tevet, was originally established to commemorate the beginning of the siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonian emperor Nebuchadnezzar in 425 BCE.

JANUARY 7, 2020ByTZVI JOFFRE
‘THE DESTRUCTION of the Temple of Jerusalem,’ Francesco Hayez, 1867

Who by fire: 38,000 pounds of bagels burnt in truck days before Yom Kippur

Even after the Yom Kippur fast, some will have to wait a little longer until they can have their favorite food

OCTOBER 10, 2019ByBEN SALES/JTA
A HOMEMADE bagel with fresh gravlax from ‘Modern Jewish Baker.’

Fasting: From ancient practice to modern trend

Fasting is not a new idea, as Jews know, and scientists are looking at the practice’s potential health benefits.

OCTOBER 8, 2019ByRACHEL WOLF
Empty plate with utensils (illustrative)