An Ultra-Orthodox Jewish man holds a chicken as a boy prays during Kaparot in the Israeli city of Ashdod October 8, 2008, ahead of Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, which starts at sundown on Wednesday. Kaparot is an ancient custom connected to Yom Kippur, where white chickens are slaughtered as a symbolic gesture of atonement. The slaughtered chickens are then donated to the poor. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL)