Contemporary Holidays
The Torah knows of only five holidays (not counting the lunar Rosh Hodesh and weekly Shabbat): the three pilgrimage festivals and the two holy days of the Yamim Noraim (the days of Awe)- Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Later Jewish history added the holidays of Purim and Chanukah, and some minor fast days (today mainly observed in traditional communities). For almost 2000 years, the calendar had no new special days introduced, and indeed, many Jewish holiday books (see bibliography) do not include the modern holidays for Israel's independence and Yom HaShoah, the Holocaust memorial day, or relegate it to an appendix on 'other special days.'
Yom HaShoah
It is hard to exaggerate the impact of the Holocaust on Jewish life today. Today Judaism greatly suffers, not only demographically, but from the enormous loss of culture and Jewish learning. Jews have not come this close to disappearing since the destruction of the first Temple and the exile to Bablyonia in 586 BCE. Today that catastrophic event is mourned and marked by Tisha B'av, the saddest day in the Jewish calendar. According to the Rabbis, many disastrous events fell on that day, and on its precursor, the 17th of Tammuz, when the walls of Jerusalem were breached. We don't yet have a standard contemporary response to Yom HaShoah.
Because there is no shortage of days in the Jewish calendar marking our (almost) destruction (The classic Jewish holiday definition: They tried to kill us, we won, let's eat), some have argued that we neeed not add a new day. "Let's just remember the Holocaust on Tisha B'av, the day of national mourning, or Asarah B'tevet" (a fairly minor and mostly ignored day in liberal circles), they argued. Survivors wanted to select the day of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, which occurred on the first night of Passover. However, even those who acknowledge that Judaism is continually evolving and changing recognized that this would seriously conflict with the meaning and celebration of Passover. A compromise was reached, and since the semi-mourning period of 'Sefirat Ha'omer' (counting the Omer) begins on Passover, Yom HaShoah was included in the month of Nisan (the month of redemption) and falls on the 27th of Nissan. Israel's Knesset established Yom HaShoah as a day of mourning in 1951.
There are no formal guidelines for commemorating Yom HaShoah (yet). A number of customs are emerging. One is to light a special yellow tinted memorial candle. Many communities hold Holocaust remembrance memorials, with speakers, prayers and appropriate musical selections. Some people read a book or watch a movie with a Holocaust related theme. If it is possible, visit a Holocaust museum or memorial. Some have suggested adopting the customs associated with mourning and Tisha B'av, such as fasting, not wearing leather shoes or putting on tefillin. Certainly, saying the memorial prayer of Kaddish and giving tzedakah (especially to causes that support the continued survival of the Jewish people) are appropriate.
In Israel, the day is called: Yom HaShoah VehaGevurah (The Holocaust and Resistance). Some Israelis (including some survivors who ended up in Israel) were uncomfortable/ embarrassed by the portrayal of Jews being led to their death like sheep. Consequently, it was important to acknowledge those instances where Jews resisted the Nazis.
Yom HaZikaron
The day before Yom Ha'atzma'ut, Israel remembers the soldiers fallen in its many wars and in duty and civilians who died at the hands of terrorist attacks. One feels that the entire country mourns; more than Tisha B'av which is commemorated only by the religious, or Yom Hashoah which is more historical (and with some ambivalence). Restaurants and public buildings close. A siren marks two minutes of silence, and all vehicle traffic stops. Drivers get out of their cars and stand at attention. Pedestrians stop in their tracks. The sight is quite eerie.
At nightfall, the mood in Israel swings into a celebratory explosion of joy and triumph: Yom Ha'atzma'ut is celebrated with fireworks and public performances. People go a little wild, and the party atmosphere spills into the street.
The day is generally not marked by Jews in the diaspora.
Yom Ha'atzma'ut: Israel Independence Day
Israel declared its independence on the fifth of Iyar, (May 14, 1948). No other modern event in Jewish history (except the Holocaust) has had as much of an impact on Jewish life as the rebirth of the modern Jewish state. Since the destruction of the Temple, Judaism has not had to create new customs or holidays, and its ability to respond to new realities has declined, so the creation of new rituals has been slow.
Like the Holocaust, there was a controversy over the date- because the 5th of Iyar falls during the semi-mourning period of Sefirat Ha'omer- some religious communities are uncomfortable with the singing of Hallel (praise) usually reserved for joyous occasions. (The compromise is that parts of Hallel are sung, but the blessing is not recited.)
But there is ambivalence around the celebration of Yom Ha'atzma'ut for another reason, as well. Among some religious groups, the hesitancy (the Israeli rabbinate has created no official holiday ritual or liturgy) stems from whether Israel's birth is part of the divine redemptive experience, or simply a national/political reality. (For example, some ultra-religious Jews are actually anti-Zionist, believing that only God can deliver a Jewish state (one imagines on a silver platter, along with the Messiah).
Of course, there is also an inherent conflict for Jews in the diaspora to fully celebrate Yom Ha'atzama'ut. As long as the idea of living in Israel was a theoretical construct, one could be an 'armchair' Zionist. It is in fact a mitzvah to make aliyah, to 'go up' and live in Israel. Now that the State of Israel exists, (and needs immigration), the celebration of Israel's Independence Day invites individuals to consider their relationship to the Jewish state. If one wishes to 'walk one's talk' it is difficult to truly celebrate Yom Ha'atzma'ut while residing permamently in the diaspora.
Many communities in the diaspora, hold community events on the weekend closest to Yom Yerushalayim, the day Jerusalem was liberated during the 1967 Six Day War, when the weather is nicer, and after Lag Ba'Omer, when the observance of semi-mourning is felt to be less obligatory.
Suggestions for Yom Ha'atzma'ut observance: Watch an Israeli movie or read a book about Israel or by an Israeli author. Listen to Israeli music. Wear blue and white. And what is a Jewish holiday without food? Eat some Israeli food: Israeli produce, felafel, humus. Make a birthday cake with blue and white icing. Sing Hatikvah (Israel's national anthem). Plan to visit Israel (soon).
