Rosh Hashanah means, head of the year, of the Jewish month of Tishrei. This year it is Wednesday evening, September 12, through Friday, September 14. Rosh Hashanah symbolism includes slices of apple dipped in honey, expressing hopes and prayers for a sweet, good new year. Services are well attended, but the heart of the holiday lies in the home, at a table surrounded by family and friends.
The Biblical name for Rosh Hashanah is “the Day of the Blast, of the Shofar.” The primary, ancient religious symbol, the shofar, or ram’s horn, awakens us from complacency, and reminds us that we must right the wrongs we have committed. Rosh Hashanah is also the birthday of the world and the shofar celebrates God’s coronation as the Creator. The blast recalls the binding of Isaac on Mt. Moriah, the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, and the revelation at Mt. Sinai.
In the “Ten Days of Repentance,” initiated by Rosh Hashanah and culminating on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, the focus is on teshuva (repentance), tefilla (prayer) and tzedaka (righteous acts, especially charity). It is customary to reach out to friends and family to ask forgiveness.
Yom Kippur begins in the evening, Wednesday, October 12, with the chanting of Kol Nidre, sung to a haunting ancient melody, and ends the evening of Thursday, October 13. The fast reminds us that life is not totally physical, nor is worldly enjoyment its ultimate goal; that there are higher things by which we live. “Man does not live by bread alone, but by all that cometh out of the mouth of the Lord does man live.”
The congregation recites the Confessional together, one of the basic concepts of Judaism: each of us is responsible for all the sins of our society, either by our own acts of commission or by passively accepting the unacceptable. We include the Yizkor memorial service for the deceased. As the sun sets, the fast closes with the Ne’ilah service, evoking an image of the gates of repentance being shut, but reminding us that we still have the opportunity to reconcile ourselves with God through sincere atonement.
We are asked to use our free will to make the right choices, affecting the course of our lives in the coming year. The choice is ours. In a complex, sometimes troubling world, it is important to have a community to celebrate with, to grieve with, to learn with, to grow with. Our temple family is something special, from musical services, to our Hebrew school, our special programming, events and community service.
We invite all who are seeking a joyful, thoughtful, musical and spiritual celebration of these beautiful holidays to join our Emet community. We wish a good, sweet and healthy year, filled with love, peace and prosperity to all of our friends and neighbors. B’shalom, Rabbi Jay Levy
For more information, call 661-253-0596.