Holidays and Observances: Summer

Shabbat occurs once every week, all year long. In Judaism, Shabbat is a 25-hour day of rest and reflection from sundown on Friday to an hour after sundown on Saturday. Shabbat symbolizes the creation story in the Hebrew Bible where God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. Shabbat is observed differently, according to various Jewish communities and sects, but traditionally, Jews refrain from doing 39 types of work or activities, including using electricity. Shabbat begins with a festive meal on Friday night, and ends with a ceremony called 'Havdalah' on Saturday night.

Hajj is the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city in Islam. Pilgrimage to Mecca is one of the Five Pillars of Islam to be carried out at least once in a lifetime. Millions of Muslims from around the world travel to Saudi Arabia to the city of Mecca. Hajj lasts for five to six days, depending on the lunar calendar.

Eid al-Adha is the second major holiday in Islam (after Eid al-Fitr) which commemorates the willingness of Abraham to follow God's command to sacrifice his son Ishmael. In Islam, it is Ishmael, not Isaac (per Jewish and Christian tradition) who is to be sacrificed. Animals such as goats and lambs are ritually sacrificed to commemorate the lamb God provided in place of Ishmael. The holiday is observed by wearing new clothes and cooking special meals. Eid al-Adha lasts for four days and falls at the end of the Hajj season, or pilgrimage to Mecca.