This Jewish Custom Goes Back Over 1,300 Years 🐔 This Jewish Custom Goes Back Over 1,300 Years 🐔

Why do Jews perform Kapparos before Yom Kippur — and how far back does this unusual custom actually go? Our earliest surviving written reference takes us back more than 1,300 years to the Jewish communities of ancient Bavel. From there, the story travels through Tzfas, Kraków and the Chassidic world — all the way to Kapparos today. And the point isn’t that Kapparos itself erases our sins. It’s meant to wake us up to Teshuvah, giving tzedakah, and asking HaShem for mercy. Let’s see why!