*Jewish holidays are based off a lunar calendar, so the date varies drastically from year to year. It begins 10 days before Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement). Together, these holidays are known as the Days of Awe.
In addition, the Jewish day lasts from sunset to sunset, so Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on September 16 and ends at sundown on September 18.
Rosh Hashanah (“head of the year”) is typically referred to as the Jewish new year. Tradition holds that Rosh Hashanah is actually the day that God created Adam and Eve, and thus, the birthday of humanity. This new year is a very joyous, but very serious time when compared to typical January 1st celebrations. The time is used to review the past year, repent, and make plans and resolutions for the coming year.
During Rosh Hashanah, no work is done, and the shofar is blown one hundred times during worship. Traditional foods include apples dipped in honey, round (instead of braided) loaves of challah, and pomegranates.
Many people also participate in the tashlikh or casting off, where they symbolically cast bits of food from their pockets into moving water to symbolize casting off old sins.
“You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.
You will be true to Jacob,
and show mercy to Abraham,
as you pledged on oath to our fathers
in days long ago.”Micah 17:20
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