On the Shelf

This Week

Over the next four days (Thursday to Sunday), at least three major things will happen: International Peace Day; the autumnal equinox; and, Yom Kippur. Let’s take a brief look at each of them.

International Day of Peace

Also known as World Peace Day, this United Nations-sanctioned holiday is observed annually on September 21. The U.N. General Assembly has declared this as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, through observing 24 hours of non-violence and cease-fire. The official U.N. website for the day says, “Never has our world needed peace more”.

The day was first established in 1981, and first observed in September, 1982. The resolution establishing the day was sponsored by the United Kingdom and Costa Rica. The date initially chosen was the regular opening day of the annual sessions of the General Assembly, the third Thursday of September. In 2001, the General Assembly was scheduled for September 11, and Secretary General Kofi Annan drafted a message recognizing the observance of the day on September 21, to take effect in 2002. A new resolution, sponsored by the original sponsors, gave the International Day of Peace a fixed calendar date of September 21.

To inaugurate the day, the United Nations Peace Bell is rung at the U.N. Headquarters in New York City. The bell is cast from coins donated by children from all continents except Africa, and was a gift from the United Nations Association of Japan, as “a reminder of the human cost of war”. The inscription on its side reads, “Long live absolute world peace”.

Autumnal Equinox

Another annual event, autumnal equinox, may occur anytime from September 21 to 24. It happens when the sun appears to cross the celestial equator, heading southward. At the equinox, the sun, as viewed from the equator, rises due east and sets due west. Before the equinox, the sun rises and sets more northerly, and afterwards, it rises and sets more southerly. In the northern hemisphere, this event marks the end of the astronomical summer, and the beginning of the astronomical autumn (no matter that many people think summer ends with the Labor Day celebration). In the southern hemisphere, the event marks the end of astronomical winter and the start of astronomical spring.

The word “equinox” is kind of a strange-sounding word. It dates back to about 1400 CE. According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, there are two possible derivations of the word: (1) from Old French equinoce, meaning “point at which the sun crosses the earth’s equator, making day and night of equal length everywhere”; or, (2) from Medieval Latin equinoxium, meaning “equality of night and day”.

This year, in the Pacific time zone, the equinox happens at 11:49 PM on Friday, September 22.

Yom Kippur

This holiest day of the year in Judaism and Samaritanism occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei (beginning at sunset), in the Hebrew calendar — which this year falls on September 24, in the Gregorian calendar. It is one of the two components of the High Holy Days of Judaism, along with Rosh Hashanah (which happens nine days previously). The formal Hebrew name of the holiday is Yom HaKippurim, “day of atonement”.

The establishment of Yom Kippur is found in the Torah, specifically in laws commanded by God to Moses in three passages: Leviticus 16:1-34; Leviticus 23:26-32; and, Number 29:7-11. The focus of the day in on atonement and repentance, with observances consisting of full fasting and ascetic behavior, accompanied by prayer services in synagogue, as well as confessions of sin. In Judaism, repentance consists of regretting having committed the sin, resolving not to commit that sin in the future, and confessing that sin before God. According to the Talmud, “Yom Kippur atones for sin done against God, but does not atone for sins done against other human beings until the other person has been appeased”. Therefore, it is considered imperative to repair the harm that one has done to others before or during Yom Kippur.