Religion & Public Life
A weekly digest of the Center’s latest research on religion and public life in the U.S. and around the world · Subscribe ↗
The Jewish High Holidays
Friday night marks the start of the Jewish High Holidays. This 10-day period begins with Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) and ends with Yom Kippur (the Jewish day of atonement, which traditionally includes fasting for adults). In a 2020 Pew Research Center survey, 46% of Jewish Americans said they fasted all or part of the previous Yom Kippur.
Orthodox Jews (97%) were more likely than Jews who identified with Conservative (68%) or Reform Judaism (45%), or with no specific branch of Judaism (24%), to say they fasted the previous Yom Kippur. And the youngest Jewish adults (those under age 30) were more likely than the oldest ones to have fasted on Yom Kippur.
Media mentions
Republicans are making Muslims a campaign issue in the 2026 U.S. midterms
Sept. 8 – Reuters *
Missionaries are still going to Africa. But for African Christians leaders, it is the West that needs help
Sept. 4 – CNN
In the news
U.S. Jews feel ‘precarious’ as High Holy Days approach amid antisemitism fears and internal divisions
Sept. 9 – The Associated Press
Supreme Court turns away religious vaccine appeal for kindergartener
Sept. 8 – USA Today *
Citing ‘ethnic cleansing,’ UK bars imports from Israeli West Bank settlements
Sept. 8 – The Washington Post *
Japan’s empty temples seek new ways to survive
Sept. 8 – Deutsche Welle
China ordains 18th bishop under Vatican agreement
Sept. 8 – EWTN News
30 years after her death, Gilda embodies Argentina’s enduring faith in folk saints
Sept. 8 – The Associated Press
Paris investigates claim women were hidden from Hindu delegation at Eiffel Tower
Sept. 7 – Reuters *
Thousands from Sikh community gather in downtown Winnipeg for Nagar Kirtan
Sept. 6 – Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
25 years after 9/11, many Muslims fear a new backlash
Sept. 6 – USA Today *
In Utah, a long-shrouded temple flings open its doors
Sept. 3 – The New York Times *
