This year 2025, offers a glimpse into the diverse and vibrant holidays celebrated in Israel. From Passover, commemorating freedom from slavery, to Independence Day marking the birth of a nation, these holidays weave together history, religion, and cultural traditions.
We’ll explore some of the major holidays, including joyful celebrations like Shavuot, a harvest festival and commemoration of receiving the Torah, and Sukkot, where families dwell in temporary huts. We’ll also delve into the solemn and introspective High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Join us on a journey through these public holidays in Israel in 2025, each with its unique customs and significance, offering a window into Israeli culture and traditions.
| Know More: Public Holidays in Isle of Man In 2025 |
Public Holidays in Israel In 2025
Israel has many special holidays that create a colorful calendar throughout the year. These holidays celebrate freedom, harvests, and important days of reflection. They bring together history, religion, and cultural traditions.
Let’s take a journey through some of the major public holidays in Israel in 2025 and learn about their unique customs and meanings.
First Day of Passover
Passover is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the Israelites’ freedom from slavery in Egypt over 3,000 years ago. The story, found in the Bible’s book of Exodus, describes how God sent ten plagues to Egypt to convince Pharaoh to let the Israelites go.
The last plague was the death of every firstborn. To protect themselves, the Israelites marked their doors with lamb’s blood so the plague would “pass over” their homes. This is why the holiday is called Passover.
On the first day of Passover, families gather for a special dinner called a Seder. They read the story of the Exodus, sing songs, and eat symbolic foods like bitter herbs to remember the bitterness of slavery.
Last Day of Passover
The last day of Passover is also a big celebration in Israel. It marks the end of the holiday and the complete freedom of the Israelites. According to the Bible, this was the day the Israelites crossed the Red Sea. Pharaoh’s army chased them, but God split the sea, creating a dry path for the Israelites to cross safely. Then, the sea closed over the Egyptian army. This miracle showed God’s power and protection.
The last day of Passover is a day of joy and thanksgiving. People go to synagogues for special prayers, thanking God for the miracles that saved their ancestors. Many also have festive meals with family and friends. Some communities stay up all night studying Torah on this day. In Israel, it is also a public holiday, allowing people to relax and appreciate their freedom.
Independence Day
Israel’s Independence Day, or “Yom Ha’atzmaut” in Hebrew, celebrates Israel becoming an independent country on May 14, 1948. For thousands of years, Jews lived in many different countries, often facing discrimination without a homeland. The movement called Zionism in the late 1800s aimed to establish a Jewish state in the land of Israel.
After World War II and the Holocaust, this goal became urgent. In 1947, the United Nations voted to divide the land into two states: one Jewish and one Arab. On May 14, 1948, Israel declared its independence.
Shavuot
Shavuot is a joyful holiday that comes seven weeks after Passover. Its name means “weeks” in Hebrew, referring to this seven-week period. Shavuot has two main meanings. First, it celebrates the wheat harvest in Israel. In ancient times, people brought their first and best wheat to the Temple in Jerusalem as a thank-you gift to God. This is why Shavuot is also called the “Festival of First Fruits.”
Second, Shavuot celebrates the giving of the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) to the Israelites at Mount Sinai soon after they left Egypt. According to tradition, all Jewish souls—past, present, and future—were at Mount Sinai when God gave the Ten Commandments.
Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year. Its name means “Head of the Year” in Hebrew. Unlike other New Year celebrations, Rosh Hashanah is a serious but hopeful time. It marks the beginning of the “Ten Days of Repentance” that end with Yom Kippur.
Jews believe that on Rosh Hashanah, God judges each person’s deeds from the past year and decides their fate for the coming year. People reflect on their actions, seek forgiveness from those they have wronged, and pray to God for forgiveness and a good year ahead.
Second Day of Rosh Hashanah
The second day of Rosh Hashanah is also a public holiday in Israel. Important holidays like Rosh Hashanah are traditionally celebrated for two days. This practice started long ago when calendars were less precise, ensuring everyone celebrated together.
The second day is similar to the first, with synagogue prayers, shofar blowing, and reflection on one’s actions. Festive meals with symbolic foods continue, and some eat a new fruit they haven’t had since the last season, adding extra joy. This second day allows more time for prayer, reflection, and family, helping people start the year with renewed purpose.
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish year, means “Day of Atonement.” It comes ten days after Rosh Hashanah, ending the “Ten Days of Repentance.” On Yom Kippur, Jews believe God seals His judgments made on Rosh Hashanah. It is the last chance to ask forgiveness for wrongs done in the past year.
The main practice of Yom Kippur is fasting. For about 25 hours, adults don’t eat or drink. They also refrain from work, bathing, wearing leather shoes, or using lotions, focusing completely on spiritual matters.
People spend most of the day in synagogue, praying. Many wear white, symbolizing purity. There are five prayer services, more than any other day, with the last one, “Neilah,” meaning “locking,” symbolizing the gates of heaven closing.
First Day of Sukkot
Sukkot is a joyful, seven-day holiday that comes five days after Yom Kippur. Its name means “booths” or “huts,” referring to the temporary shelters the Israelites lived in during their 40 years in the desert after leaving Egypt.
Jews built and decorated huts called “sukkot” (singular: sukkah) to remember this, eating meals and sometimes sleeping in them. This reminds them that God protected their ancestors in fragile huts and teaches not to rely too much on physical things.
Sukkot also has themes of harvest and unity. It is a harvest festival, the last chance to gather crops before winter.
Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah is a joyful holiday that comes right after Sukkot. Its name means “Rejoicing with the Torah.” Every week, a portion of the Torah is read in the synagogue, taking a year to read it all from Genesis to Deuteronomy.
On Simchat Torah, this cycle ends and immediately starts again, showing that learning Torah never ends; there is always more to discover.
The holiday is celebrated with great joy, especially in the synagogue. All the Torah scrolls are taken out of the ark where they’re kept, and everyone marches around the room seven times, holding the scrolls.
This is called “hakafot.” People sing, dance, and wave flags, even giving toy Torah scrolls to children to join in. This shows love for the Torah, like dancing with something precious.
| Holiday | Date | Weekday |
| First Day of Passover | Apr 13, 2025 | Sunday |
| Last Day of Passover | Apr 19, 2025 | Saturday |
| Independence Day | May 01, 2025 | Thursday |
| Shavuot | Jun 02, 2025 | Monday |
| Rosh Hashana | Sep 23, 2025 | Tuesday |
| Rosh Hashana Holiday | Sep 24, 2025 | Wednesday |
| Yom Kippur | Oct 02, 2025 | Thursday |
| First Day of Sukkot | Oct 07, 2025 | Tuesday |
| Simchat Torah | Oct 14, 2025 | Tuesday |