Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is the Jewish calendar’s most serious, sacred and meaningful days. According to the Jewish religion, Yom Kippur is the day when God decides who will be written into the Book of Life and who into the Book of Death. Yom Kippur is a day of fasting and praying, with its gloomy atmosphere also expressed by the white attire that worshipers wear, and by the fact that we do not wear leather shoes or other accessories made out of leather. The fast is usually broken with family and friends around a festive feast.  

During that time, it is appropriate to wish others an easy fast as opposed to a happy holiday, “gmar chatima tova”, which means a good final sealing with which we wish for others to be inscribed into the Book of Life and for God to forgive their sins.   

Yom Kippur begins with Kol Nidre, in which we ask God to free us from our promises that we might not be able to keep. The prayers said on the Day of Atonement are focused on the concept of teshuvah, repentance, asking for forgiveness. The closing prayer is Neilah, which means closing the gate, and it refers to the idea that the gates of heaven will close and that God will make the final decision.