At sunset on September 11, the Jewish calendar marks the beginning of the New Year, 5787. Rosh Hashanah literally means “Head of the Year.”
It is a time when Jews gather in our synagogues to pray, meditate, and reflect on our lives and our actions—to recognize our mistakes and ask forgiveness from our fellow human beings and from God.
We also gather in our homes to celebrate the beginning of a new cycle with our families. We share festive meals and wish one another a good and sweet year. That is why we eat apples dipped in honey and enjoy a round challah, both of which have become beloved symbols of the holiday.
We are commanded to hear the sound of the shofar, a ram’s horn from a kosher animal, which we blow in our synagogues as a symbol and a call for our souls to awaken, as explained by the great sage Rabbi Maimonides in the 12th century.
The shofar may be one of the oldest musical instruments in the world, but its message is completely relevant and contemporary. It is a call to return to our origins, to our state of purity, and to a collective encounter with one another.
It is also a time for studying various passages from our Torah, allowing us to better understand life, the fulfillment of the commandments, and what it means to be closer to God and to one another.
Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of a period of celebrations during the Hebrew month of Tishrei. These holy days will lead us to Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement; to Sukkot, the Festival of Booths; and finally to Simchat Torah, which marks both the culmination and the renewal of the annual cycle of Torah reading.
We are about to enter spiritually intense and deeply meaningful days—days that invite us to pause, meditate, and reflect, something that has become increasingly difficult to do in the fast-paced world of the 21st century.
Let us renew our commitment to peace and to building a better world.
We wish everyone a Shanah Tovah U’Metukah — a good and sweet year!
By Rabbi Guershon Kwasniewski of Temple Beth El Riverside
