This festival is a very unique one because it is also known as the Jewish New Year and the Feast of Trumpets. It is also the only holiday that falls on the first day of the month celebrated along with the monthly festival of Rosh Chodesh (head of the month, also known as celebration of the new moon).In Leviticus 23:24 in the NKJV it states: "...In the seventh month [Tishri], on the first day of the month you shall have a sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing trumpets, a holy convocation." Also Numbers 29:1 calls it a "...day of blowing the trumpets.” Yet, how can the authors state this when we already said that the word trumpets does not exist in the Hebrew? The Hebrew word t’ruah means an acclamation of joy or a battle cry especially with trumpets as an alarm. The basic idea is to be noisy, and the root word for this means to be ear splitting loud, or excessively noisy.
Well that is great, but how do we get that this is also the Jewish New Year? Before 70 A.D., when the 2nd temple was destroyed, on this same day was the civil celebration of the Jewish New Year also known as as Rosh Hashanah (Head of the Year). After the destruction of the temple the two feasts become one. That is why there is more than one name for this feast.
It also mentions in Leviticus and Numbers that it is to be a holy (kodesh) convocation (mikrah), a calling together for a meeting as an assembly. The root meaning is to call together for an event or a reading such as from a scroll, or as the KJV describes it, a dress rehearsal. It also states in both books that it is to be a Sabbath-rest, a memorial (remembrance) of blowing the trumpets a day for no customary work.
According to rabbinic tradition, this feast is to last for two days rather than one day as told in the scriptures. The purpose of this was so that those living in the outlying areas (diaspora) they could have a chance to celebrate it as well.
So what is the big deal about this festival. On this special day the shofar is blown 100 times. Some of the reasons as to why it is blown:
- Symbol of revelation (Exodus 19:16, 19) – we are reminded of the awesome power of God and the shofar blasts on Mt. Sinai
- Symbol of God’s coronation (Psalm 98:6) – It is a reaffirming and sovereignty of God’s kingship over us
- Symbol of the binding of Isaac (Genesis 22) – when the ram became the sacrifice for Jacob
- Symbol of humankind’s need for repentance (Genesis 3:9) – it is to remind us to confront the sin within us, just as God confronted Adam
- Symbol of the Messianic Age (Isaiah 27:13) – when the Messiah will redeem us and the “…great trumpet will be blown.”
In the evening of the first night the candles are lit, and some family members will take a piece of challah, or apple and dip it in honey and say a short pray asking God for a “good and sweet year.” With the challot (plural for challah) it is either made as a round loaf to represent a “good well rounded year”, or in the shape of a ladder to represent one’s year toward God.
To be continued...
