Think there are no more Jewish holidays until Hanukkah? Think again! Join Israeli diplomat and Ethiopian Jew Kasa Bainesay-Harbor live from Israel to learn about this Ethiopian holiday that combines aspects of Yom Kippur, Shavuot and Simchat Torah!

Many think that the Hebrew month of Cheshvan is one without any Jewish holidays. But the Beta Israel or Ethiopian-Jewish community celebrates this unique holiday on the 29th of Cheshvan, 50 days after Yom Kippur. Sigd became an official Israeli holiday in 2008 and is celebrated for the entire month of Cheshvan, raising Ethiopian Jewish visibility and educating Israeli Jews about Beta Israel traditions.

Sigd commemorates Israel receiving the Torah, Beta Israel’s yearning for Israel and the Temple, and is considered the date which Gd was revealed to Moses on Mt Sinai. The holiday includes fasting and reading sacred texts. This year, Sigd begins in the evening on November 22nd, so join us at noon PT for a virtual presentation on the Ethiopian Jewish community in Israel just in time to celebrate Sigd.

Kasa Bainesay-Harbor is the former Deputy Consul General at the Israeli Consulate in Miami. She has also served as the Deputy Head of Mission at the Israeli Embassy in Wellington, New Zealand and the Deputy Head of Mission at the Israeli Embassy in Yangon, Myanmar. Kasa holds an M.A. from Tel-Aviv University in the field of Public Policy and a B.A. from Hebrew University in the field of International Relations and Education. She is fluent in Amharic, Hebrew and English.

No one will be turned away for lack of funds, for cost free registration, please email jrosenberg@marinjcc.org.

Illustration by Hirut Yosef, from Lillith: https://lilith.org/2021/11/a-recipe-for-sigd-an-ancient-holiday-of-yearning/