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The Shofar Rosh Hashanah begins with the blowing of a shofar, or ram’s horn, to signal the start of holiday observances. An evening service is held during which the rabbi or other church leader reads from the prayer book called the Machzor , used exclusively on the Jewish High Holy Days. The evening service is not usually long. Afterward, families go home to eat together and sometimes invite others to eat with them. Sweet and Round Foods For Rosh Hashanah, foods have special significance. Many of the foods should be sweet for a sweet year, round to symbolize the year’s cycle, and abundant for prosperity and

The Ancient Call The shofar has a long history in Judaism that began thousands of years ago and continues today. It was used to signal Shabbat. It was also used to declare the crowning of a new king. Today the shofar is still sounded at the swearing in of a new Israeli president, and on Rosh Hashanah it signifies a call to repentance and awaken- ing. Each day of Rosh Hashanah, the shofar is blown 100 times. However, if a holiday falls on Shabbat it is not blown.

productivity. Families traditionally prepare for the day by making and praying over loaves of sweet, soft challah—round braided bread made with eggs to symbolize the cycle of life. At holiday meals they eat the challah with apples dipped in honey, signaling their hope for a sweet new year. Listen to a shofar being blown on Rosh Hashanah.

As part of the Rosh Hashanah feast, Jewish families will prepare and serve a stew or casserole called tzimmes made of carrots, cinnamon, yams, prunes, and honey. The carrots are an important ingredient of the recipe, since the word for carrots in Yiddish (a Judeo-German language), merren , also means “more.” Everyone yearns for more of something on the Jewish new year: more wealth, more knowledge, more good deeds, and even more children. The carrots in this tasty dish are sliced into small round coin-like shapes, and eating them is thought to be a good forecast for prosperity. Another popular food tradition is to eat a fish or sheep’s head. The head stands for the desire to be at the head of whatever one does, as opposed to the tail.

Origins and Celebrations of Rosh Hashanah n 15

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