This past Sunday at sundown the Jewish community began the practice of Rosh HaShanah
Significant symbols of Rosh HaShanah include apples, honey and round loaves of challah. Apple slices dipped in honey represent our hope for a sweet new year and are traditionally accompanied by a short prayer before eating that goes: "May it by Thy will, O Lord, Our God, to grant us a year that is good and sweet." Challah, which is usually baked into braids, is shaped into round loaves of bread on Rosh HaShanah. The circular shape symbolizes the continuation of life.
On the second night of Rosh HaShanah it is customary to eat a fruit that is new to us for the season, saying the shehechiyanu blessing as we eat it to thank God for bringing us to this season. Pomegranates are a popular choice because Israel is often praised for its pomegranates and because, according to legend, pomegranates contain 613 seeds – one for each of the 613 mitzvot. Another reason for eating pomegranates on Rosh HaShanah has to do with the symbolic hope that our good deeds in the coming year will be as many as the seeds of the fruit.
Rosh HaSanah is also a time of self reflection a time of looking at ones life and how one has been living. It is a time of repentance, forgiveness and making decisions if one wants to change the way they have been living or acting. We all could spend a week in such manner and I believe the world would be a more peaceful kinder place to live.
Let us remember our Jewish friends this week as they begin their New Year and observe this week.
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