Prayer recited at the beginning of a festive meal on the Shabbat or the Holidays. The prayer describes the specific symbolism of the holiday – e.g. Pesach is the “Time of our Freedom,” Shavuot is the “Time of the Giving of the Torah,” Shabbat is the “Day which was first to be called ‘Holy,’ commemorating both the Creation of the Universe and the Exodus from Egypt. The Kiddush contains, as well, information as to who is responsible for the conferring of the quality of “holiness” upon the day. In the case of Shabbat, on one hand, it was G-d Himself, Who made the Day holy, whereas it is the Jewish People that has been charged with the responsibility by the Torah and by its Author, to confer the holiness upon them, by means of establishing the calendar.
