No Classes - Rosh Hashanah

No classes - Rosh Hashanah.

Rosh Hashanah Building and Library Schedule: The building and library will close at 2 p.m. on Sunday September 25 and remain closed Monday-Tuesday, September 26-27.

 

Rosh Hashanah, commonly known as the Jewish New Year, falls on the first and second days of the Jewish month of Tishri (this year, sundown Sunday, September 25-sundown Tuesday, September 27). In Hebrew, Rosh Hashanah means "head of the year" or "first of the year." Unlike the American New Year, which we celebrate by going to parties and watching football games, Rosh Hashanah is one of the holiest days of the Jewish calendar. There is one important similarity between Jewish and American New Year observances, though: many Americans use the New Year as an occasion to plan a better life, making "resolutions" for the coming year. The Jewish New Year is also a time of introspection, for looking back at the mistakes of the past year and for planning changes for the New Year. No work is permitted on Rosh Hashanah; observant Jews spend much of the holiday in synagogue, where one highlight is hearing the sounding of the shofar, above left, a ram's horn which is blown like a trumpet, see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbyIDsh7t6o  A holiday food tradition is eating apples dipped in honey, a symbol of a wish for a sweet new year. Another custom is Tashlich, a symbolic casting off of sins, following Micah vii. 18-20, "Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” On the afternoon of the first day, observant Jews walk to flowing water, such as a creek or river, and empty their pockets into the current, symbolically casting off the sins of the past year. The traditional holiday greeting is L'shanah tovah ("for a good year").