Events

This Christian holiday is named after the faith in the return of the son of God to his father in heaven. Jesus Christ, after having risen from death and appeared alive to his followers, is said to have ascended into heaven and to sit "at the right hand of God" (Bible, Lk 24, 50-53). In Paul's letters to the Philippians (Bible, Phil 2, 8-9) we read of the faith in this ascension and its meaning: "God has exalted him who humbled himself and became obedient to death on the cross, and given him a name greater than all names.

Pentecost marks the end of the Easter season. As the followers of Jesus came together for the Jewish feast of Shavuot, the Holy Spirit poured out upon them. After the long absence of their Lord, they feel this outpouring as a comfort and for the first time again perceive themselves as community and followers of Jesus. That is why Pentecost is also interpreted as the birth of the Christian Church. 

This is the highest celebration which begins on the 10th of the last Islamic month and marks the climax and conclusion of the pilgrimage in Mecca. Muslims remember Abraham and his son Ismael, who was to be sacrificed for God. Abraham's devotion and the sacrifice of his beloved Son ultimately rewarded God with the turning away from the human sacrifice itself and the appreciation of human life. God relieved Abraham and his son of their heavy burden by sending a lamb instead of his son as a sacrificial animal. In this sense, all Muslims commemorate annually this special event in which they share the flesh of the sacrificed animal with the family, the needy and visitors.

The name Rosh Hashanah does not appear in the Bible, and even in the prayers of this feast there is hardly any mention of it. It is the "day of remembrance" or "day of the trumpet sound". It is the beginning of the 10 days of penance which end with Yom Kippur. The meaning of the two-day New Year celebration lies in the remembrance of the covenant made between God and Israel. The day is to serve to induce people to go into themselves, to turn away from evil and to act well. Rosh Hashanah is the day on which man should give an account of his actions and become aware of his moral duties. To Rosh Hashanah it is a tradition to eat an apple, which is spread with honey before consumption, thereby expressing the wish that the New Year may be good and sweet. The breads for the New Year are not braided and elongated as usual, but it is common to use round wrapped white breads to symbolize the annual cycle.

Sukkot is the third in the series of pilgrimage festivals. It lasts nine or seven days, since the eighth day, the so-called closing feast (Schemini Azeret), is regarded as an independent holiday; the ninth day, called Simchat Tora (Torah Joy), is the second day of this closing feast, which is celebrated only in the diaspora. The Feast of Tabernacles is celebrated for a total of seven days. It is a Thanksgiving and Remembrance Festival. Since the people of Israel wandered through the desert for 40 years, they built unstable huts. As a memento, Jews build a sukka (the hut) and eat there together.

The day of repentance and prayer always takes place on the last Wednesday of the church year, i.e. before the Sunday of eternity. On this day Christians reflect on their sins, show repentance and reflect on their faith.

The eight-day temple consecration is a joyful day of remembrance and does not belong to the biblically prescribed holidays. It commemorates the successful uprising of the Maccabees against Hellenistic rule and the reunification of the desecrated temple in Jerusalem in 165 B.C.E. It is said that in the sanctuary desecrated by the Syrians only one intact oil jar was found, the contents of which would normally have been enough fuel for the seven-armed temple lamp only for one day. But by a miracle this small quantity of oil is said to have lasted for eight days, so that new pure oil could be produced in the meantime. Usually an eight-armed candlestick (menorah) is used today. On the first evening a light is lit, on the second two lights, until then on the eighth day all lights burn.
 

On the two Christmas holidays the birth of Jesus is celebrated as well as the spreading of the message of his birth. An angel announced the birth of a new king to the farmers in the field (Bible, Lk 2, 8-12).