F2: Rosh HaShanah & Yom Kippur

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For many Jews, Rosh Hashanah is synonymous with standing uncomfortably in Synagogue for hours on end. Yet, together with Yom Kippur, these days are the most important ones in the Jewish calendar. It's time to find out why.

Introduction

Three times all Jews are religious. So, there we are, every September, standing with our families, listening to the long mournful prayers, understanding a little and minds wandering a lot. The mood is sombre and the sermon is serious, but what's going on? What's the point of this annual pilgrimage when most of us treat it as a tiresome obligation? In this chapter we reveal the shocking truth about the most awesome days in the Jewish Year: Rosh Hashanah & Yom Kippur. Your life will never be the same again...

Just the Facts

Rosh Hashanah = New Year

Date: 1-2 Tishrei (14-15 Sept. 1996; 2-3 Oct. 1997)

What to do: Say special prayers, eat apple & honey and other special foods, hear the shofar (a ram's horn)

Yom Kippur = Day of Atonement

Date: 10 Tishrei (23 Sept. 1996; 11 Oct. 1997)

What to do: fast for 25 hour (children do as much as they can), starts at sunset of 9 Tishrei, say special prayers, attempt the process of Teshuvah. Spent as much of the day as possible thinking about these issues.

Yamim Nora'im = Days of Awe

Collective name for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the most awesome days in the year. The Hebrew word "Nora" (stress on the a) literally means "terror." These days are terrible and terrific at the same time. This double-sided word reveals a double-sided feeling that is always associated with important events and moments in our lives. On one hand we value them and want them to be there, and on the other hand they make us scared and we wish they were already over.

Aseret Y'mei Teshuvah = Ten days of Repentance

The ten days from the beginning of Rosh Hashanah until the end of Yom Kippur. (Tishrei 1-10) An opportunity for reflection and Teshuvah in the lead up to Yom Kippur.

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