Why Are We Judged on Rosh Hashana

Rosh Hashana is the main name of the Jewish New Year. But why does our New Year need to have such serious themes like a day of judgment? Why can't it be a happy day? To answer this we must look at the other names of Rosh Hashana. They are Yom Teruah, Yom HaZikaron, Yom HaDin and Yom HaRat Olam. Each one of these days explains part of the many themes on this important day.

Rosh Hashana is the easy one to translate and explain it literally means head of the year. Yom Teruah is a day of Shofar blowing. (I will talk more about Shofar blowing next week). Yom HaZikaron means the day that we remember everything that God has done for us and he 'remembers' all of our actions. 

Yom HaDin means judgment day. Each year on Rosh Hashana, God judges us but why? To answer that we must translate and explain another of Rosh Hashana's names, Yom HaRat Olam. This name means the day that the world was birthed. This is not exactly accurate. According to Rabbinic tradition the world was created on the 25th Elul but it was on the first of Tishri, the 6th day of creation that Adam and Eve were created.

What happened on that first day? According to the Talmud (Masekhet Sanhedrin) all the events of Adam and Eve until their expulsion from the Garden of Eden took place on that first day. Lets talk through those steps. Adam was created. He is put in charge of the entire garden but God warned him not to eat from the tree of knowledge (Etz HaDa'at). Then Eve is created from Adam. Adam then tells Eve not even to touch the tree. The snake convinces Eve to eat from the Etz HaDa'at and she gives the fruit to Adam too. They both realize they are naked and they 'hide' from God. God calls out to them hoping that they will acknowledge what they did. Instead Adam blames Eve, and Eve blames the snake. God judges them and punishes the snake, Eve and Adam. From that day onward this day would always be the day that God judges the whole of mankind.

It isn't all doom and gloom because Hashem does not punish us completely. The punishment for eating from the tree should have been death. Instead God gave Adam and Eve a lesser punishment. To show to them that with sincere teshuva, we can return and attain the position we were at before we sinned. So therefore when God does judge us this year on Rosh Hashana our minds should be filled with thoughts that our beloved father and king is sitting in judgment like we do with our own children. We punish our children to help them correct a behavior. The judging itself brings no joy to God. He does it because he wants to bring us closer to him. Through this time of spiritual awakening, may we acknowledge that God is king and come closer to him.

Tizku LeShanim Rabot Neimot VeTovot

May we all merit many pleasant and good years ahead.

The Deeper Meaning Behind The Yehi Ratzones/Simanim

One of my favorite customs on Rosh Hashana are the special foods that we eat in the evening meals and the prayers/requests that we say when we eat them. This custom is universally called using the Hebrew word simanim but in Seattle we call it by the Ladino - Yehi Ratzones.

Although this is mainly a Sephardic custom the idea of these special foods goes back to the Talmud. In Masekhet Horayot it mentions that certain fruits and vegetables should be seen on our tables on Rosh Hashana whereas in Masekhet Keritut these special foods should be eaten. In a third version the yehi ratzones need only be brought to the table.

The foods mentioned in the Talmud are kara, rubia, karti, silka and temarim. Kara is identified as pumpkin, karti as leeks, silka as beets and temarim are dates. However, rubia is disputed. Some consider them to be black eyed peas others identify them as fenugreek. The medieval commentator Rashi explains that all these foods grow quickly so the idea is if we see/eat or bring these foods to the table we will have a productive year ahead.

Some questioned this practice because it looks like we believe by eating or seeing these foods automatically we will have a good year and this could be a form of divination or sorcery. However, many halakhic decisors come to the defense of this beautiful custom by stating these are merely omens and our sincere wish for a good year ahead. As a result it is the yehi ratzones – the prayers or requests that are said over these items which are far more significant. It is not the eating of them that we believe will cause a good year rather it is our hope that Hashem will grant us a good year.

There are other items we have for the yehi ratzones that are quintessentially considered to be Rosh Hashana. Apples and Honey, eating fish and having a fish or lamb’s head. On the 2^nd night we have a pomegranate. All of these items have similar meanings to those identified in the Talmud. The fish or lamb’s head represents our hope that we be at the forefront of things and not in the background. Lambs' heads are very rarely seen these days, but my father recalls that his Grandfather always had a piece of meat from a lamb’s head at his Rosh Hashana and it was a great delicacy. Whether it is a fish head or a lamb’s head I’m very happy to fulfill the custom of just seeing it and not having to eat it!

These special supplications or bakashot are very poetic and are generally word plays on the fruits. Jerry Adatto brought to my attention the flowery language that Reverend David de Sola Pool used in the Spanish and Portuguese Rosh Hashana Prayer Book for these supplications. He doesn’t just translate the Hebrew supplication he uses beautiful artistic license too. For example on leeks he says “like as we eat this leek, may our luck never lack in the year to come”. Even though the Hebrew talks of our enemies being cut down from before us. On beets he writes “As we bite this beet, may those who in the past have beaten us or sought our harm beat to cover in the coming year”. On this occasion this is a paraphrase of the Hebrew but it shows you his literary style.

It has become a great game which I love to play using word plays in different languages not just in Hebrew. For example Rabbi Heinemann introduced a now famous custom throughout the Jewish world to take lettuce, half a raisin and celery as an indication to “let us have a raise in salary”. The Rubissa likes to put out cinnamon cookies and say “may our sins be kept to a minimum”. I am sure that you can all come up with your own funny puns for your own tables.

Wishing you and your families not only a good year ahead. But a year of finding the deeper meanings behind our beautiful customs. May we all grow together and invigorate our wonderful community.

Tizku LeShanim Rabbot Neimot VeTovot

The Power of Elul

This Tuesday and Wednesday are Rosh Hodesh Elul which means starting Thursday Sephardim will be saying Selihot every morning except for Shabbat until Yom Kippur. At SBH we will be starting at 6:00 AM every day. Elul is the last month of the year and starts our preparations for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. 

Why do we say Selihot during this time period? 
What unique power is in this special month of Elul?

After the Jews sinned with the Golden Calf, Moshe smashed the two tablets that Hashem had given him. Two days later Moshe went back up the mountain for another 40 days to atone for the Jewish people. Moshe went up for a third time on Rosh Hodesh Elul and came down 40 days later on the 10th of Tishri with the Second Tablets. This 10th day of Tishri became Yom Kippur, the day that God forgave the Jewish people for the Golden Calf. This day became the annual day of forgiveness for the Jewish People. So too, the 40 days before Yom Kippur became an essential period of God coming closer to us. A time of rahamim - divine mercy, where Hashem is considered closer to his children than at any other time of the year. The month of Elul, therefore, which is the last month before Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur – is a time when we should dedicate our thoughts to teshuva - repentance in all things and examine our deeds.

One of the most famous acronyms that we have to show this closer relationship with God at this time is Ani Ledodi Vedodi Li - I am for my beloved and my beloved is for me, a verse from Shir HaShirim - Song of Songs. The linkage to this verse implies that both we should all spend Elul thinking about our special relationship with God and how to improve it. Elul is a time to reflect on the year and prepare ourselves for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. If we truly want to be ready for these Days of Awe we must put in the hard work before hand.

The Selihot that we recite are very powerful prayers. And the melodies that we sing them to are wonderful. I marvel every year at the excitement we Sephardim have to get up super early for a month to sing Selihot. But the powerful melodies and tunes carry us through for the month. At the end of Selihot we blow the Shofar to awaken in ourselves the call to teshuva. Here's an audio of SBH Hazan, Rabbi Frank Varon singing Kamti BeAshmoret and Ben Adam Ma Lecha Nirdam. 

May we use this month of Elul to work on ourselves, to get closer to God and start our teshuva process.