The Power of Words. A time to reflect on the past

10/1/97
A time to reflect on the past
The Jewish New Year begins today at sundown, with 10 days of religious reflection and renewal.

By W. ZACHARY MALINOWSKI
Journal-Bulletin Staff Writer

       BARRINGTON -- Rabbi James B. Rosenberg places the black gnarled ram's horn in the corner of his mouth and blows. A series of screeching blasts reverberate in Temple Habonim, a 19th-century schoolhouse that has been transformed into a sunny synagogue.
       The smooth horn, better known as the shofar, is sounded to alert celebrants to repent on Rosh Hashanah, the start of the Jewish religious new year that begins today at sundown.
       The ritual dates back thousands of years.
       Rosh Hashanah begins today at sundown, kicking off the High Holy Days, a 10-day period of reflection on the year past and a look forward to the next. It culminates in a day-long fast on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.
       The observance is considered the most important in the Jewish faith.
       "I think it is fair to say that if Jews come to synagogue at all during the year, it would be on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur," said Rosenberg. "It's sort of like having Christmas and Easter 10 days apart."
       The shofar is a big part of the celebration. Last month, classes were held at Temple Beth-El in Providence to teach people how to blow the horn, one of the earliest instruments used in Jewish music. And in Warwick, more than 50 adults and children attended a workshop at the Chabad Center to learn how the horn is made and played.
       Unlike the Christian holidays, which have been commercialized by Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny, the High Holy Days are much more subdued.
       They are marked by prayer, contemplation and soul-searching.
       Celebrants seek forgiveness from their loved ones for wrong and hurtful acts they have made against them.
       In Hebrew, it's known as teshuvah, meaning turning or returning to God.
       Rosenberg says it's difficult to confront people you've slighted and ask them to absolve you. The belief is that one must first repair relationships with other people before asking God for forgiveness.
       At Rosh Hashanah services, the celebrants publicly seek forgiveness for all types of sins, from abuse of power to murder. The idea is that everyone is part of the community, and if something horrific happens, the community comes together and takes responsibility for the actions of others.
       The Temple Habonim community reaches across East Bay and into southeastern Massachusetts. Rosenberg said the synagogue, with 180 families, is the only one with a rabbi between Providence and Middletown, and many of its members are from Fall River and New Bedford.
       After services at the temple tomorrow morning, the celebrants return in the afternoon for another ritual - tashlich, or the casting of one's sins. About 100 members of the congregation gather on the banks of the Barrington River to recite prayers and toss bread in the water, which must contain live fish, symbolically casting away their sins.
       Rosenberg said conservative and Orthodox Jews walk to the body of water, but members of Temple Habonim, a reform congregation, are allowed to drive to the ceremony.
       Food plays a central role in the Rosh Hashanah celebration. Families gather for traditional foods sweetened with honey, apples and carrots. The sweetness symbolizes the desire for a sweet year ahead.
       The first night's meal begins with apple dipped in honey. The bread, Challah, is baked in a braided circle with the hope that the coming year will arrive smoothly without unhappiness or sorrow.
       But, the blowing of the shofar is what attracts the most attention. Rosenberg says youngsters are fascinated with the instrument. That's until they give it a go, turn red in the face, and learn it's a lot harder to play than it looks.
       Tonight, Rosenberg will have a rapt audience. He will sound the horn toward the end of the 8 o'clock service.
       "I don't need to practice a lot," he said with a smile. "I've been blowing the shofar since 1966."

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