Content
Jewish New Year 2020 is a time of prayer and repentance. It has nothing to do with the holiday, which is celebrated in European countries or America. Rosh Hashanah (as the Jews call the New Year) has a deep meaning. Long ceremonies and traditions emphasize the peculiarity and importance of the holiday.
Celebration Dates
Rosh Hashanah does not coincide with the European New Year. The date of the holiday of the Jews calculated on the lunar calendar. Due to discrepancies with the Gregorian calendar, it becomes unclear when the Jewish New Year will be in 2020. Usually celebrations fall in the autumn. Rosh Hashanah is two days of the new moon of the seventh month of Tishrei.
Important! In 2020, the Jews will celebrate the New Year from the evening of September 18 to the evening of September 20.
And although the start of the holiday falls on Friday, two days will be an official weekend. According to traditions, it is forbidden to do any work on the holiday (even women try to cook food in advance), and all free time should be devoted to prayers, meditation on life, repentance of sins committed.
The essence and features of the holiday
Rosh Hashanah is a special period in the life of Jews. It is believed that on this day the creation of the world by God took place. In addition, other important biblical events happened on this day:
- the expulsion of Adam and Eve from paradise for committed sins;
- Noah's exit on solid ground after the Flood;
- the sacrifice of a lamb by Abraham instead of a son;
- the liberation of Jews from Egyptian slavery, etc.
According to long-standing beliefs, it is believed that the New Year is the Day of Judgment. God studies the actions of each person in order to decide on his future destiny - to grant happiness and prosperity, to send trials or even take away from this world. For this reason, the Jews pray a lot for the feast in order to repent of their sins and receive a blessing from God.
This is the day of summing up for the past year. The Jews are engaged in introspection, work on the correction of errors and reflect on how they deserve the favor of God. Jews believe that the fate of man may depend on this holiday. This is a test of the readiness of the sacrifice that Abraham once proved. He was ready to sacrifice his son to God.
Interesting! Hasidim on Rosh Hashanu make a pilgrimage to the Ukrainian city of Uman, where the grave of the founder of their religion, Nachman bin Simha, is located. Annually, 30-40 thousand Jews come to the city.
Traditions and customs
New Year comes after sunset, although the main celebrations are held the next day. Before sunset, women must light candles. They indicate that a holiday has come to the house. Candles should burn all night and the next day. With the advent of Rosh Hashanah, everyone must pray.
The family gathers at the festive table. Father over the round butter bread, which is called challah, pronounces blessings, and then dips his pieces in honey and treats the household.
Festive table
In addition to challah, other traditional dishes will be prepared for the festive feast on the Jewish New Year 2020. Be sure to serve:
- apples, pomegranates and other fruits, which symbolize wealth and rich harvest;
- honey (eat it with bread and fruit) is a symbol of a sweet and carefree life, satiety and wealth;
- boiled lamb head, indicating superiority and success in business;
- fish (necessarily with a head), which brings fertility.
Be sure to have carrots cut in circles on the table.It is a symbol of wealth and success, because outwardly carrot circles look like coins. Mistresses will surely prepare hearty meat dishes and other treats.
Shofar
One of the old and obligatory New Year traditions among the Jews is blowing into the shofar. This is the name of a musical instrument made from a horn of a ram, goat or antelope. Every Jew should hear its sound, since it is believed that then in the next year a person will be happy and lucky. Trumpet exactly 100 times.
The origin of this custom is explained in different ways. Some say that the sounds of the shofar indicate to God that people are ready to make sacrifices and repent. Others claim that the musical instrument drowns out Satan, who tells God about the sins of people.
Important! Listen to the shofar must be standing. Between the sound of a musical instrument, you cannot pronounce words that are not related to prayer.
Tashlich
In the afternoon of the first day of the celebration of Rosh Hashanah, all Jews perform a ceremony called tashlikh. Its essence lies in the fact that adults and children go to the nearest body of water, where fish live. They throw bread crumbs into the water, which they take out of their pockets. This rite symbolizes purification. People so get rid of their sins and ungodly acts committed throughout the year. After that, everyone bathes and dresses in festive garments, usually white.
Read also:
(No ratings yet)
Loading...
