Several religious observances occur during the month of October.
Note that we will send a communication for Diwali on Monday, October 24.
Yom Kippur (Jewish)
Tuesday, October 4 – Wednesday, October 5
Yom Kippur, also known as the Jewish Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. Yom Kippur begins at sundown on Tuesday, Oct. 4 and ends in the evening on Wednesday, Oct. 5. Many Jewish families and communities will spend the day fasting, attending synagogue or observing the holiday in other meaningful ways. This offers a time for Jews to reflect on sins or wrongdoings from the previous year. Another important observance is the blowing of the shofar, an ancient musical horn typically made of a ram's horn, which is sounded ceremonially to conclude Yom Kippur.
Eid Milad ul-Nabi (Muslim)
Sunday, October 9
This day is observed as a public holiday in many countries with a large Muslim population as it commemorates the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday. In 2022, it falls on Sunday, Oct. 9. The popular Islamic festival is celebrated around the world in the third month of the Muslim lunar calendar with activities that include night-long prayer sessions, marches and parades, and meetings to listen to stories and poems (nats) about Muhammad’s life and teachings.
Sukkot (Jewish)
Sunday, October 9 – Sunday, October 16
Every fall, Jews around the world celebrate the festival of the Sukkot by constructing a temporary dwelling called a sukkah. Beginning five days after Yom Kippur, Sukkot is named after the booths or huts (sukkot in Hebrew) in which Jews are supposed to dwell in during this week-long celebration. The holiday commemorates the forty-year period during which the children of Israel were wandering in the desert, living in temporary shelters. Sukkot is also a harvest festival, one of the three Pilgrim Festivals of the Hebrew Bible. The first day of Sukkot is Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022. No work is permitted on the first and second days of the holiday.
Birth of Bab and Birth of Baha’u’llah – Twin Holy Birthdays (Bahá’í)
Wednesday, October 26 and Thursday, October 27
There are two Bahá’í holy days that are celebrated in October this year: Birth of the Bab (October 26) and Birth of Baha’u’llah (October 27). The holy days begin at sunset the first day and end at sundown the second day. Note that these holy days land on different days every year based on lunar calculations or the solar calendar starting with the Spring Equinox. The Festivals of the Twin Birthdays or the Twin Holy Birthdays celebrate the births of two central figures of the Baháʼí Faith. It is a joyous event that begins with prayers and devotional readings and develops into some kind of festive social gathering, either at home or in a place of worship. The festival is celebrated, in the spirit of the Bahá'í, to be open to all. These are two of the nine holy days of the year when work is suspended.