Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year --

but it's not a night of revelry !!!

Rosh Hashanah (pronounced "ROSH-hah-SHAH-nah")  is a time of introspection, reflection and repentance.  It's a two-day holiday that always falls on the 1st and 2nd day of Tishri on the Jewish calendar, which  is usually in September on the secular calendar.   In fact, many secular calendars now have the first day marked.  But be aware that the holiday, like the Sabbath, begins on the night before the calendar date!   Why?  Because in Genesis it says "there was evening and there was morning..."  "Evening" is mentioned first, so Jewish days begin at sundown. 

Rosh Hashanah begins a 10-day period of repentance and reflection known as the High Holy Days or Yomim Noraim (Days of Awe), ending with Yom Kippur, the Day of  Atonement.   (Read my Guide on Yom Kippur.)  During this ten-day period, Jews try to make amends to people they might have offended, make resolutions to change their own lives for the better, pay off old debts, and generally make amends for any wrongs.

Traditional greeting

The traditional greeting for Rosh Hashanah is "May you be written for a good new year."  The word  "written" refers to the idea that, on this day, God opens the Book of Life, takes a look at all our deeds  recorded there,  and determines who shall live and who shall die in the coming year.  So everyone wants to be "written in the Book of Life" on this day, and everyone wishes their friends, family, and neighbors the same. The most common Hebrew greeting is Shanah Tovah ("SHAH-nah-TOV-ah" or "shah-NAH-toe-VAH" depending on your regional dialect.  Both are acceptable!)   It is  roughly equivalent to "Happy New Year."

Blowing the ram's horn

The ram's horn, called a shofar in Hebrew (pronounced "SHOW-far"), is literally made from the horn of a ram.  It is often mistranslated as "trumpet," but the shofar is far more primitive than that!  It has a strong, visceral, ancient sound intended to say,  "Awake, ye sleepers, from your sleep... and ponder over your deeds; remember your Creator and go back to Him in penitence..."  (Hil. Teshuvah, 3:4)

The biblical commandment for Jews to observe Rosh Hashanah is found in Leviticus:

"In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of rest, a memorial proclaimed with the blast of the shofar, a holy gathering.. You shall not do any labor ..." (Leviticus 23:24-25)

(Why the seventh month if this is the New Year?  It's the seventh month on the agricultural calendar,  but the first month on the liturgical calendar.  Even back then, they had fiscal years!)

Traditionally the right horn of a ram is used, because the right hand side signifies the "Right Hand of Mercy" and we want to evoke God's mercy on this day.  A Jewish legend says that when Abraham sacrificed a ram on Mount Moriah (Genesis 22:13), the two horns were spiritually saved by God.  The right horn was blown on Mt. Sinai when the Torah was given to Moses and the people.  The left horn -- representing the "Left Hand of Justice" -- will be blown on the Final Judgement Day. 

Wearing white clothing

In most Jewish communities, the cantor (person who chants the service) wears a long white robe called a "kittel."  In some communities, all the men wear white yarmulkes (skullcaps).  Still other communities encourage everyone -- men, women, and children -- to wear white.  The symbolism of white clothing is that we should repent of our sins and become "pure as snow."   Many people also have white flowers on the table, and white tablecloths are also used.

Dipping apples in honey

Greeting cards for Rosh Hashanah often depict an apple with a jar of honey.  This is because of the tradition to dip apple slices in honey for "a sweet new year."  Jewish communities around the world have many other food customs associated with this holiday.  Some eat round loaves of bread, representing the shape of the Earth or the cycle of the year, because Rosh Hashanah is the anniversary of Creation -- the "birthday of the world."   Others eat fish on this day because fish are regarded as sinless (they were not killed in the Great Flood) and because they are very fruitful and multiply -- representing the wish for many children.  Jews of Eastern European descent often eat a sweet cooked fruit dish called a tsimmes.  Middle Eastern communities eat round carrot slices representing coins -- for a prosperous new year.  Sephardic Jews eat sweet dates and also pomegranates, because the Talmud says that even the worst sinner is still "as full of good deeds as a pomegranate is full of seeds." 

Casting your sins into the sea

On the afternoon of Rosh Hashanah, there is a tradition to go to a body of "living (natural) waters" and symbolically "cast your sins into the sea"  (based on Micah 7:19) in a ceremony called tashlich.  (Pronounced "TASH-leekh.")   Water symbolizes purification and all water eventually ends up in the ocean, so a river, lake, or even a well is acceptable.    In areas where there are Jewish communities, you will sometimes see large gatherings doing this ceremony, often dressed in traditional garb, rocking back and forth as they chant prayers in Hebrew.   The prayers ask God for forgiveness and a good year for the whole world.

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