By Julie Masis
Staff Writer

At sundown on Monday, Oct. 3, the Jewish people welcomed the New Year, called Rosh Hashana, marking the beginning of 5,766th year since the creation of the world, according to the Jewish calendar.

The shofar, often a ram’s horn, is sounded hundreds of times during Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur.

The Bible says that on Rosh Hashana “all inhabitants of the world pass before G-d like a flock of sheep,” and it is decreed in the heavenly court, “who shall live and who shall die, who shall be impoverished, and who shall be enriched, who shall fall and who shall rise.” At this time of the year, the Jewish people connect with their own community, reach out to the community at large by giving extra charity, and pray to God for a new year of life, health and prosperity.

On Rosh Hashana, Jews eat apples and honey to symbolize their desire for a sweet year, and sound the shofar, a ram’s horn, to proclaim God as King of the Universe. A curious ritual called Tashlich is also a part of Rosh Hashana celebrations. People go to a body of water to say a special prayer in evocation of the Biblical verse,” And You shall cast their sins into the depths of the sea.” Children throw bread crumbs to the fish to remind themselves of God’s constant protection, because the eyes of the fish never close, since they don’t have eyelids.

Rosh Hashana marks the first of the 10 days of repentance that culminate in Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and the holiest day of the year for the Jews. According to Rabbi Beth Davidson, of Manchester’s Temple Adath Yeshurun, during these 10 days Jews are supposed to make amends with people.

“Because you cannot approach God for forgiveness on Yom Kippur until you have asked for forgiveness from people you may have wronged,” she said.

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It is customary to generously give to charity during the 10 days of repentance. Davidson said that Temple Adath Yeshurun uses this time as an opportunity to do a food drive. Bags are handed out to members of the community at Rosh Hashana, and after Yom Kippur the collected food goes to the New Horizons Food Pantry and to other places around the state.

Yom Kippur is a 25-hour fast during which Jews take no food or drink.

“When we go without food by choice, we want to help the people who don’t have that choice,” Davidson said.

Although New Hampshire does not have a large Jewish population – estimates range at around 13,000, or 1 percent of the state’s 1.3 million people –Temple Adath Yeshurun and Chabad Lubavitch in Manchester offer the Jews of the Queen City several worship options.

Temple Adath Yeshurun is a reform synagogue, which means that services are shorter and prayers are recited in both Hebrew and English. Men and women do not sit separately and the rabbi is a woman, which is new for Judaism. Adath Yeshurun is a community-based synagogue and Rosh Hashanah services are closed to the general public.

Chabad Lubavitch services are open to the public, though. Chabad is an outreach program that encourages non-religious Jews to return to their religious roots. This year, Chabad held their Rosh Hashana services at the Walker Auditorium in Robert Frost Hall at Southern New Hampshire University, hoping that some students will see the posters and decide to stop in.

“If they’re new and they just started school last month, it’s a great time for them to connect with their Jewishness,” Chabad Rabbi Levi Krinsky said.

Chabad offers a more traditional, religious experience, with men and women sitting on separate sides of the synagogue, and the observance of certain holiday laws, like not driving or turning electric appliances on and off.

Despite their differences, both rabbis said their New Year’s wish is for a world full of health, happiness, prosperity and peace.

“We may disagree about some things, but there will always be those things that unite us,” Rabbi Davidson said, “High holidays are an opportunity for us to stop what we’re doing, look at the world and see what we can do to make it a better place.”

An orthodox Yom Kippur service will be held on Thursday, Oct. 13, at the Merrimack Hotel, off exit 11, on Route 3. Prayers start at 10 in the morning, and the congregational will break fast after sunset. Everyone is welcome and there is no charge involved. For more information, e-mail rabbi@lubavitchnh.com or call 647-0204.

For information on how to obtain tickets for High Holiday services at Temple Adath Yeshurun, call 669-5650. Services begin Wednesday at 8 p.m. and resume on Thursday morning at 10:30.

Yom Kippur begins at 5:50 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 12, and concludes at 6:50 p.m. on the following day. Sukkot, the Fall Harvest Festival, during which Jews live in an impermanent dwelling to remind themselves of Israelites’ travels in the desert, begins on the evening of Oct. 17 and concludes Monday, Oct. 24. The last day of Sukkot is the Simhas Torah holiday, which celebrates the end of the reading of the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. Jews read a portion of the Bible each week during the year.