L’shanah Tovah! Today we celebrate the Jewish New Year with Rosh Hashanah. Technically, we ushered in the New Year last night at sunset, but we’re still celebrating! Believe it or not, we’re kicking off year 5776, which is the anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve.
There are many Jewish traditions that help us ring in the New Year:
– The blowing of the shofar, which is a ram’s horn. This is to represent the trumpet of a people’s coronation of their king and also a time to begin repentance.
– Bless one another to be inscribed and sealed for a good year. It’s a time of reflection and to ask for forgiveness, as we head into the Ten Days of Repentance, which concludes with Yom Kippur, a Day of Atonement.
– Eating sweet foods, such as apples dipped in honey, with the hopes of a sweet year.
– Enjoying challah, a circular (and delicious!) bread, that symbolizes the circle of life. This sweet bread is also enjoyed on Shabbat, every Friday evening.
Even if you don’t celebrate Rosh Hashanah, look at it as an opportunity to start anew. Welcome Rosh Hashanah as an opportunity to let those bygones be bygones. Call up an old friend and offer to buy them a cup of coffee. Learn about some additional volunteer opportunities in Charlotte. Now’s as good a time as ever to ring in the New Year! So grab your apple slices, dip them in honey and welcome a sweet year ahead.
