Going around the world to break the fast

Published on September 28, 2011

Breaking the fast has its own set of traditions. Ashkenazim usually break the fast with something salty, like herring, because they believe fish restores salt lost by the body while fasting. Herring also was the cheapest fish in Eastern Europe, where the custom originated.

No Wrong Way to End Yom Kippur Fast

By Linda Morel
Published on September 23, 2004

I grew up in a family that never seemed to do anything right. Our approach to Yom Kippur, for example, was mixed: My father and I observed it; my mother and brother did not. Returning from synagogue at the end of the day, Dad and I were starving, so we grabbed a couple of slices of challah and spread chopped liver on top. Without ceremony, we leaned over a kitchen counter inhaling this snack.

Although the experience was a bonding one, by high school I realized that something was wrong with this picture, that something made me feel uncomfortable. Standing on linoleum, I'd pivot on one of my high heels and contemplate what routine other families followed when they came home from synagogue. How and when did they resume eating?

Roll Away Hunger

By Beverly Levitt
Published on September 23, 2004

Yom Kippur's break the fast is the most anticipated meal of the year. Of course, it's because we're starving; we've been fantasizing about that first bite for the last 25 hours.