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OCTOBER 2016 BLUFFTON SUN RABBI DR ARTHUR SEGAL
Shalom and greetings:
In our tour through the Jewish calendar this year, October yields many holidays: Sundown 9/2, and days of 9/3 and 9/4 are Rosh Hashanah, Sundown 9/11 and day of 9/12 is Yom Kippur, and from Sundown 9/16 to 9/24 is Sukkot, followed by Simchat Torah on 9/25. It is impossible in this short article to discuss every detail of the above. I will touch on some this month. Because November has no holiday, I will discuss more then.
Rosh Hashanah, [Head of Year] is the 4th of four New Years on the Jewish calendar. People wish happy "Jewish New Year" to each other. They are slightly incorrect. The First of Tishrei, when September's Rosh Hashanah occurs, is the Hebrew year's seventh month. The Talmud teaches this spiritual message, to remember each day, but especially on Rosh Hashanah: This is the New Year of the World and of All Humankind! This is the day God created Adam and Eve, who were neither Jewish nor Hebrew (Talmud Rosh Hashanah 10b-11a).
The rabbis teach that on Rosh Hashanah we should remember that we all the same set of human parents and one Divine parent, and no one individual, people or religion is better than the next. We are all created in God's image. "Humanity was produced from one man, Adam, to show God's greatness. When a man mints a coin in a press, each coin is identical. But when the King of Kings, the Holy One, blessed be He, creates people in the form of Adam, not one is similar to any other, but all are equal," (Talmud Sanhedrin 4:5).
On Yom Kippur most will pray for forgiveness, but without a moral inventory {chesbon ha nefesh}, many aren't aware of their character defects, nor of whom they have hurt, nor have they found their flaws objectionable. The sages teach that the day is better spent in soul-searching, making amends to those we have harmed, and not in the pews. God forgives us for sins against Him (e.g. breaking Shabbat), but for harm done to others, we must make direct amends, [Talmud Yoma 85b]. To be forgiven for our sins, we must forgive all others and do away with resentments, [Talmud Rosh Hashanah 17a].
Rabbi Arthur Segal is an international lecturer, author, and teacher. Visit him at www.JewishSpiritualRenewal.org . Email at RabbiASegal@aol.com .
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Hilton Head Island, SC; Bluffton, SC; Savannah, GA
