HAPPY SIGD

Ethiopian Israelis Commemorate Sigd Holy Day in Jerusalem (Ha'aretz)
Ethiopian Israelis traveled to Jerusalem on Thursday to mark Sigd, a holy day unique to the Ethiopian community marked every year on the 29th of Heshvan on the Hebrew calendar. The day commemorates both the giving of the Torah and the communal gatherings held in Jerusalem in the days of the prophets Ezra and Nehemiah. In Ethiopia, the day was marked with a half-day fast and a pilgrimage to the top of the nearest mountain. There, the community's religious leaders would chant from the Torah and lead the community in prayer. About 80,000 Ethiopian Jews live in Israel.