|
Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur
by W.Holidays
"In the seventh month, in the
first day of the month, there shall be a solemn rest for you, a sacred
convocation proclaimed with a blast of ram's horns, you shall not do any
work."
Leviticus 23:24-25
The High Holy
Days, The High Holidays, and The Days of Awe are all names for the
Jewish Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Rosh Hashanah, which
translates as "head of the year", begins at sundown on the first day of
the seventh lunar month, known as Tishri. It may seem confusing
celebrating the beginning of the year during the seventh month,
however, in ancient times the Jewish calendar honored four new years:
The New Year of the Kings (to keep track of the current king's reign);
The New Year for the Tithing of the Cattle (when a specified amount of
cattle were sacrificed); The New Year of the Trees; and The Start of
the Agricultural Year, this is the one when Rosh Hashanah is celebrated.
The start of Rosh
Hashanah begins with a candle blessing, a Kiddush, and a special meal. A Kiddush
is a blessing recited over wine. The meal includes challah, an egg bread
that is usually braided but for the new year is baked round, symbolic of the
hope for a smooth new year and shaped like a crown, symbolic of God, the
king of Heaven. Apples dipped in honey are also served with wishes for a sweet
and fruitful new year. Nuts are not usually consumed during this time as the
Hebrew word for nut is egoz and has a numerical equivalent to the Hebrew word
for sin.
Jewish people worldwide attend services at their
local synagogue and hear the sounding of the shofar (a ram's horn).
The days that follow are known as the Ten Days of Repentance. This is an
introspective time when people look at what they have done and ask forgiveness
of God and of those they have wronged throughout the year.
Within the
first two days it is customary to visit a body of water such as a river, a lake,
or the sea and throw breadcrumbs onto the water, symbolic of casting ones' sins
away. This is know as Tashlich and is accompanied by reciting verses from the
Prophet Micah as well as various Psalms.
Ten days after the start of Rosh
Hashanah is Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement. This is a day of fasting and
prayer. It is customary to wear white garments on Yom Kippur symbolizing the
angles in heaven and purity. During Rosh Hashanah God passed judgment over
mankind. It is recorded in the Book of Life and on Yom Kippur the book is closed
and sealed. There are Five Prohibitions of Yom Kippur:
- No eating or drinking
- No wearing of perfumes or lotions
- No marital relations
- No washing
- No wearing of leather shoes
On the last hour of the last service on
Yom Kippur the shofar is sounded again announcing
the end of the High Holidays.
|
