The Color of Yom Kippur

The Jewish holiday Yom Kippur is a tradition that is over 2,000 years old. It has a history all the way back to the Biblical prophet Moses who went to the top of Mt. Sinai to commune with God and receive the 10 Commandments on tablets of stone.

The book of Leviticus in the Old Testament law states that ...It (Day of Atonement) shall be a day of holy convocation, you shall afflict yourselves and present a food offering to the Lord. And you shall not do any work on that day...... Leviticus 23:27-28a (Holy Bible ESV). It was to be a time of prayer and fasting and no work was to be done by the command of God.

Historically, Yom Kippur was celebrated when the High Priest (Kohen Gadol) was purified with holy water and then entered the most sacred part of the temple in Jerusalem -- The Holy of Holies -- and sprinkled the blood of the sin offering (or to atone) on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. This happened once a year, hence the Day of Atonement. The instructions for worship can be found in the Torah (which is also the first 5 books of the Old Testament)

Since that time, the temple in Jerusalem has been destroyed, but the Jewish faith lives on in synogogues all over the world. The Jews today do not sacrifice and sprinkle blood on the mercy seat, but they do rituals to represent those things.

In those synogogues, on the Day of Atonement, convocations are said 5 times a day, there is fasting for 25 hours (30 minutes before sundown the day before to 30 minutes after sundown the day after), and there is the ritual of sprinkling which is to represent the sprinkling of the blood. This is also the one day that most Jews are prostrate in prayer. (wikipedia -- Yom Kippur)

A great way to teach children about historical and religious holidays is to provide activity and coloring pages. Here are several websites where you can find some of these activities.

1. This first site offers some coloring pictures of early Jewish history and the beginnings of the Yom Kippur traditions such as Abraham and Moses with the tables of stone.

2. torahtots. This one is a favorite of mine. You click on the site, then pick the holiday you want to color. There is Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Channukah, and many more to choose from. Teach, Print, then color.

3. Akhlah. Once you get to the site, you then type in the holiday you want in the area to the right where it says "search". There youw ill find worksheets and color pages for that holiday. Of course, I typed in Yom Kippur and there were coloring pages, a crossword puzzle and a few other fun activities.

4. Finally, a last site has some great detailed coloring pages of many Jewish traditions. This page would be great for older children who would enjoy the challenge of more details in their coloring pages.

Enjoy the learning experiences and Happy Yom Kippur.
(Holy Bible ESV)
(wikipedia -- Yom Kippur)