Rosh Hashanah

Honey drizzling into a dish near two red apples on a red surface.

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, is the first of the High Holy Days or Yamim Noraim (Days of Awe). It weds seriousness with celebration and begins the 10 days of repentance that culminate in Yom Kippur. The new year focuses our attention on themes of judgment, repentance, memory, and the divine presence in the world. At the same time, Rosh Hashanah invites us to celebrate birth and creation on many levels. The liturgy suggests that Rosh Hashanah commemorates the creation of the world. Family-oriented services often include a birthday cake for the world—a big hit for kids of all ages! We dip apples in honey to emphasize the sweetness of starting the cycle of seasons once again, and eat round challot to remind us of the cycles of life. The Torah and Haftarah readings for the holiday also address birth and the preciousness of all human life. These stories remind us that the arrival of every child—each and every one of us—is a promise for a renewed world. We renew ourselves at Rosh Hashanah in order to reconnect with this promise and to help ourselves fulfill it in the year ahead.

Latest Rituals

“Gift me with good health, love, blessings and peace in this New Year.”

A hand holding a lit sparkler against a blurry background with soft candlelight.

“Now there’s another threshold, and this time we cross together.”

Person wrapped in a prayer shawl blowing a shofar against a sunset sky.

“We forgive to heal ourselves”

a blurry shot of the backs of two people walking in a field with flowers in front

“Please, Adonai, bring about new beginnings”

a person with medium length hair sits at a desk and looks away out a window

Shekhinah, our Mother, would understand”

a person wearing a long white dress and bracelet stands in a shallow, murky body of water

Tofu, ice cream, beer, and liquor are new symbolic foods that reference this past year

a picnic basket in a field of grass and flowers, on top is a thermos, mug, apples, and cookies.

“Blessings so beyond our hopes for this world”

a rainbow overlooks a road surrounded by grass and a few trees

A journey of art making, writing, and meditation

a white bird flies through the sky

Ritual to do at home with a bowl of water and ice

drops of water come down onto a surface of water, creating a circular ripple

“I am forgiven because I dance”

silhouette of a person with outstretched arms in the middle of a field

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