ROSH HASHANAH

Rosh Hashanah begins this year (2001) on the evening of September 17th.

Rosh Hashanah celebrates the creation of the world and is a time for reflection and self evaluation. It is one of the Jewish tradition's holiest days, the days when Jews most commonly attend services at synagogue.

YOM HAZIKARON - DAY of REMEMBERANCE

One of the alternate names given by the rabbis for Rosh Hashanah is Yom Hazikaron, which literally means day of rememberance. The events of the past are, after all, an intergral part of our Jewish identity. Our liturgy and customs have evolved over centuries and millenia from the Holy Land into the diaspora. Our cultural memory provides the foundation for Jewish action and identity. So why, on the New Year of all days, is there little in the way of a history?

Rosh Hashanah of course has a profound emphasis on the past, but in a different way than holidays like Hanukah and Passover, both which have easily summarized stories. Instead, the beginning of the story of Rosh Hashanah is the original beginning. In the section of the morning service called Zichranot, the cantor (chazzan) thanks the Divine for the creation of the world and humanity.

The events of the past are then tied in with the committments of the present. The chazan recalls the sparing of Noah and G-d's covenant with the first Jews. Just as we are to remember the covenant with our patriarch, the Divine recalls the faith with which the Israelites followed G-d in the desert.

But this committment to covenants of the past does not solely define the tone of Rosh Hashanah. When we practice customs that originated in the shtetl or the Holy Land, we acknowledge both ties to the past and hopes for the future. The telling (and retelling) of stories and the reading of the Torah portion connects us with our ancestors of yore and grants us the wisdom of the past to be active Jews in the world today.

Yom HaDin & TESHUVA - DAY of JUDGEMENT & Repentance

Another name for Rosh Hashana is Yom Hadin, or the Day of Judgement. That notion of "judgement" is based on the fact that everyone makes mistakes. We don't have unlimited energy and can't always live up to our own expectations, much less those of others. Teshuva or repentance, allows us to resolve these conflicts throughout the year but is focussed on during Rosh Hashana. Repentance consists of several steps in the Jewish tradition, including recognition and admission of the wrong doing, and renunciation of the action. Teshuva also requires restitution to the wronged party and a promise not to repeat the offense.

The theme of repentance figures into most all of the rituals and prayers of Rosh Hashana. In the synagogue, we modify some of the usual holiday prayers and add additional sections to highlight the importance of teshuva on Rosh Hashahna. In Unetaneh Tokef, the cantor (chazzan) prays that through repentance, prayer and charity, our lot with be cast with the good of the world. Before a final declaration of faith, the chazzan sings about the transience of life, reminding us that all members of humanity have the same origins and the same fate.

But while prayers allow us to feel closer to G-d, teshuva demands that we also seek the forgiveness of people we have wronged in the past year. It is traditional for Jewish people on Rosh Hashana to reflect upon the events of the past year and apologize to those people they have hurt. The hope is that we can start the new year with a clean slate and avoid some of the past mistakes that hurt other people and ourselves in the past.

Repentance is also the important concept in the ritual of tashlich, where we symbolically cast our sins away.

Though repentance is central to Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, and the ten days in between, the hope of all of our prayers and apologies is that we will truly take steps towards becoming a better person in the year to come.

Yom Teruah - SHOFAR

The shofar is an animal horn we blow like a trumpet. It is usually a ram's horn, but a shofar can be made from the horn of any kosher animal except a cow. Today the use of a long and beautiful antelope horn is popular. Unlike a trumpet, the shofar has no mouthpiece. It is difficult to blow. Shofar blowers spend many hours practicing before Rosh Hashana.

The shofar blower should be someone who is admired in the community, a person who is well liked and does good deeds. The shofar blower is called the ba'al tekiah. Another person stands next to the ba'al tekiah and calls out the notes.

There are three kinds of notes.

The teruah is a set of nine very short blasts.

During the shofar service the ba'al tekiah blows three notes in different combinations as they are called out. At the end of the shofar service, a very long tekiah, the tekiah gedolah is blown.

When it is time to blow the shofar, the whole congregation stands. They recited the blessing for the mitzvah of hearing the shofar.

There are many reasons why we blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah. According to Maimondies, the great Jewish scholar, we blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah to say, "Wake up! Wake up, everyone who is asleep! Remember G-d, your Creator! Instead of going around doing things that are not important or worthwhile, take some time to think about what you can do to make yourself into a better person. Give up doing bad things!"

Rabbi Saadia Gaon gave some reasons for blowing the shofar:

• Rosh Hashanah is the birthday of the world.
• The shofar reminds us of the ram that Abraham sacrificed in the place of his son Isaac.
• When G-d gave us the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai, the Israelites heard the sound of a shofar. The shofar reminds us that G-d gives us laws and rules to obey.
• The shofar is the call of redemption. The shofar reminds us that G-d redeems the Jewish people.

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Prepared by team of Jewish Outreach Institute

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High Holidays resources:

Month of Elul	What is it? (Russian) About Teshuvah (Russian) Fall Holidays (Russian)	Teshuva & Simcha: Can They Coexist? (English) Why Slichoth? (Russian)
Rosh HaShanah	What is it? (Russian) Traditions (Russian) Hearing the Shofar (Russian) Apple in the Honey (Russian)	What is it? (English) Traditions (English) Laws of Rosh HaShanah (English) Rosh HaShanah recipes (English)
Yom Kippur	What is it? (Russian) Preparing to Yom Kippur (Russian) The Jewish Prayer (Russian) Elegy about Yom Kippur (Russian) The book of Yonah (Russian)	What is it? (English) Preparing to Yom Kippur (English) Kol Nidrey & Yizkor (English) Day before Yom Kippur (Russian)
Sukkoth	What is it? (Russian) Themes of Kohelleth (Russian) Shmini Atzereth & Simchath Torah (Russian)	What is it? (English) Arbah Minnim - 4 species (English) Ushpizen (English) Simchas Bais HaShoevah (English)

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Last update: September 1, 2001
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