The Jewish High Holidays For Non-Jews
By
Leonard Zwelling
It feels like I’ve been writing this blog all of my life. From my earliest school days as one of the only Jews in my kindergarten class in Stratford, Connecticut to the present day, I have had to explain these holidays and their importance to the Gentiles of the world around me.
Fair enough.
The Jewish High Holidays are Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. They bookend a period of ten days called the Days of Awe.
Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish new year, but it bears no resemblance to the secular holiday on January 1. It is a day in which we go to synagogue and a begin a period of introspection. Over the next ten days God will decide our fate for the following year. That fate is sealed on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, a fast day. And I mean a total fast day. Not even water from sundown on the evening before to sundown on Yom Kippur itself.
These are not really celebratory holidays other than to be grateful that you had been inscribed in the Book of Life the previous year.
At our synagogue, it is a most solemn occasion. Sermons will address things like personal growth and self-reflection. This is the time in which you ask forgiveness for ill things you might have done, not just from God alone, but from those you have wronged.
On Yom Kippur at our synagogue, after the day service, there is a symposium at which four members of the congregation speak about “what Judaism means to me.” Both the BW and I have had the honor of giving these talks in past years. The stories are always moving and profound.
That is what the Days of Awe are about. No party hats, no Guy Lombardo, no glass ball descending, no champagne, and no mirth. This is our time to meditate and consider the state of the world and our place in it.
Thus, when the secular world wants to work on these days, we have to protest and explain that that is not an option for Jews.
Many years ago, Dr. LeMaistre, the then MD Anderson president, scheduled the annual PRS meeting on one of the high holidays. Josh Fidler protested loudly and Dr. LeMaistre, to his credit, moved the day of the meeting. Dr. Fidler sent Dr. LeMaistre a Jewish calendar each year after that.
It is very important for us Jews, that the Gentile world appreciate what these days mean to us and take it into consideration when scheduling important events. It’s not like we have a choice between going to synagogue or working. We have no choice. This is who we are. It defines us like little else can.
I have found that most e-calendars include Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur on their apps. Leaders, please consult your phones before scheduling critical events in the early fall.
Thank you.
