Candle Lighting Times

It is customary to light candles on Friday evening when the Shabbat (Sabbath) begins, and again on Saturday night (as part of the Havdalah service) when it ends. To comply with Exodus 35:3 which states: "You are not to kindle a fire in any of your homes on Shabbat," it has become customary in much of the Jewish community to light the Shabbat candles approximately18 minutes before sundown, and the Havdalah candles approximatley 72 minutes after sundown the following day. This is the case for both the weekly Sabbaths and for the holiday Sabbaths. The candle lighting-time calculator below (courtesy of hebcal.com) defaults to this convention.

The candle-lighting times displayed are for the upcoming Sabbath, and are calculated for Ohev Yisrael's location at Lorton, Virginia 22079. To determine the times for other locations, click on the "Hebcal Shabbat Times" link, enter the ZIP Code of your interest, and then click on "Get Shabbat Times." To determine the times for future dates, click the calendar link under "More Candle Lighting" near the top of the right-hand column and select the calendar date of your interest.