Prayer – Lord Jesus, we are listening for the piercing sound of the shofar horn, bellowing from synagogues and from Heaven announcing the coming of the New Year—the new life. We don’t know the hour or the day, but we wait expectantly for Your return, as all Christians have since Your resurrection and ascension.
"Give
the following instructions to the people of Israel. On the first day of the
appointed month in early autumn, you are to observe a day of complete rest. It
will be an official day for holy assembly, a day commemorated with loud blasts
of a trumpet. You must do no ordinary work on that day. Instead, you are to
present special gifts to the LORD." Leviticus 23:24-25
Meditate.
How do
you celebrate a New Year? Staying up on New Year’s Eve? Favorite foods?
Fireworks?
This day in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred in September or October. This festival is celebrated today as Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. This year it begins at sunset on October 2nd and ends at sunset on October 4th. It is a time of introspection—of a reminder to come back to God. It is also a time of celebrating the birthday of the Universe and conveying wishes for everyone that their names will be sealed in the Book of Life for another year. That is important for the Jews.
There
are a few specific customs associated with the holiday. The first being the
blowing of the shofar horn 100 times. Another is reading of scripture from
Genesis 22 where Abraham begins to sacrifice his son Isaac, but God provides a
ram instead. Great lessons in faith—read it for yourself. The foods that are served
during the first day of Rosh Hashanah include apples and honey, to wish
sweetness for the coming year. They also eat pomegranates, fish, and round
loaves of bread. I think that the roundness of the bread, sometimes also served
with honey, is interesting in that it is to remind the Jews of the circle of
life, coming back to God. Another tradition involves throwing bread crumbs…and
the lint from their pockets…into a lake, stream, or river as if they were
casting their sins into the sea as noted in Micah 7:19.
Throw your breadcrumbs into the Columbia River.
Cable Bridge at Kennewick-Pasco
Where is another God like you, who
pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people?
You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in
showing unfailing love. Once again you will have compassion on us. You will
trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean! Micah 7:18-19 NLT
Christians
can celebrate any Jewish holiday since the Christian heritage is deeply entrenched
in the Jewish roots. Have you ever considered researching Jewish customs and traditions
and celebrating those festivals? The choice is yours. Steep yourself in a long
and rich heritage of the Jews or continue to live day by day only celebrating
the mainly westernized Christian holidays. Will you be celebrating this Jewish
New Year? Please pass the apples and honey!
Verses
of Salvation ~ But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law.
When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our
wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, "Cursed is everyone who
is hung on a tree." Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles
with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers
might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith. Galatians 3:13-14
© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
Books by Mickey M.
Hunacek
Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com
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