According to tradition, the names of the righteous are written in the Book of Life and names of the wicked are written in the Book of Death. For everyone else — most people — you have 10 days to repent before your fate is sealed in one of the two books.
Ancient Jews relied on a calendar based on actual cycles of the moon, not one arbitrarily set. Thus, the key to determining the first day of each month was the sighting of the new moon.
It was so important that it required confirmation by two or more witnesses. Because of difficulties in determining the new moon it could be obscured by clouds, etc. Jewish leaders inside Israel had less difficulty determining the start of the holiday — but still celebrate it over two days for consistency. However, it also is a time to share meals and prayer with family and friends. Rosh Hashanah is largely indistinct from Shabbat and other major Jewish festivals in terms of the activities that are prohibited by traditional law.
Indeed, the language used in the Torah to describe the prohibitions on Rosh Hashanah are very similar to those used to describe the prohibition to work on Shabbat. The Bible declares in Leviticus that Rosh Hashanah should be a shabbaton on which no work should be performed, language much akin to the way the Torah describes Shabbat prohibitions in Leviticus There are, however, some important distinctions. Cooking is the principal difference between traditional Shabbat observance and Rosh Hashanah, though there are still some limitations.
Most Orthodox authorities permit one to adjust the flame on a stove, but not to light a stove from scratch. Unlike Yom Kippur, which comes just a few days later, this fast lasts only from sunrise to sundown. It might be the best known of them all, but Rosh Hashanah is not the only Jewish new year.
According to the Mishnah, there are three others. The first of Nisan, the springtime month when Passover falls, is the beginning of the year, according to the Book of Exodus. Jewish tradition also marks Tu Bishvat the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Shevat as the new year for trees and the first of Elul usually in August as the new year for the tithing of animals.
In , the Western Union Telegraph Company reported that Jewish people sent telegrams of congratulations and well-wishing much more frequently than members of any other group. In particular, they exchanged thousands of messages for Rosh Hashanah.
In the Torah, the beginning of the year was clearly set at the beginning of the month of Nisan, in the spring. Click here to find out. Is it true that you are supposed to throw bread in the water on Rosh Hashanah? What is the prayer book for the High Holidays called, and are there any other special Hebrew terms I need to know during the holidays? Rosh Hashanah the Jewish New Year is simultaneously a time of great celebration and subtle trepidation.
It is a day to celebrate our creation, but also a day of accounting and judgment for our actions. On Rosh Hashanah, we relate to God as the ultimate judge. The symbolic Book of Life is opened and we become advocates for our personal inscription in it. We review the choices we have made over the past year, our actions and our intentions, as we attempt to honestly evaluate ourselves.
You may want to consult this list of questions to help in your introspection. The four sounds of the shofar — tekiah, shevarim, teruah and tekiah gedolah — remind many people of a crying voice. Traditionally Jews eat sweet foods — like apples and honey, challah and tzimmes — to symbolize a sweet new year.
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