Rosh Hashanna, a primer

RELIGIOUS LITERACY ROSH HASHANA
We Celebrate the World's Birthday

Wednesday, Sep 12, 2007
By JONATHAN CASE
TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST

The teacher was standing at the front of the room. He asked, "Does anyone know why we celebrate birthdays?' No one answered. It seemed too simple and must therefore be a trick question. An uncomfortable silence enveloped the room.

Gazing around at the averted eyes the teacher went on. "We celebrate your birth date to show that the world changed for the better on the day you were born. That is a reason to celebrate! The people who love you throw a party once a year just to show how much richer their lives are because you are in them."

For Jews, Rosh Hashana is a birthday, of a sort. It celebrates the emergence of the universe. Tonight is the anniversary of that birthday. One of the oldest prayers that Jews recite as the Holy Day begins, "Today is the birthday of the world!" Like any other birthday party, this one celebrates the anniversary of the Artist having completed the canvas.

One of the traditions of Judaism is that we eat apples dipped in honey and often hallah dipped in sugar on Rosh Hashana. This is the "cake" of the party. We eat these foods as a celebration of the Earth while thanking God for the sweetness that inheres in the world and in our life.

THERE IS more, however, as the prayer continues, "On this day every creature of the universe awaits judgment." Rosh Hashana is also a time when the Artist reviews His work and closely examines it for imperfections, discoloration, and deterioration. Peering at every living being, God makes a determination whether His creations are responsible stewards or reckless destroyers. The evidence is scrutinized. Judgment is made.

A medieval scholar pondered, "Why does the Bible bother to tell the story of creation?" After all, the first chapters of Genesis do not reveal anything meaningful about the role and task of humans in the universe. It does not tell us much about God either. All Genesis really tells is a rather frugal, hard-to-follow narrative about the formation of the cosmos culminating in the creation of life on Earth. "Would it not have been a much better story if we skipped to, say, Exodus?"

"Yes," they answer. But then we would miss a subtle and critical point: We would overlook the gestation process and, more important, the ultimate goal of creation. Humanity is the pinnacle of all the Master's actions. The final achievement of God, man and woman were endowed with qualities that the psalmist later labeled "little lower than angels."

In fact, in one ancient source, God asked His ministering angels how they thought He should infuse His breath into the primordial man. Finally, God decided to blow His animating "breath of life" into the nostrils of the nascent being. The act is deliberate and powerful. This man now has a soul, a part of God, placed into him. With that act came responsibility. We are not mindless creations. We have a conscience that takes direction from our soul. That is why once a year the Holy One comes to examine us. He evaluates what we have done with our gift.

If all our actions were to be placed on two sides of a balance, which side would be heavier? Have we given or caused more evil than good? Have we become purveyors of lies or have we trafficked in honesty? Have we wreaked havoc upon God's canvas by destroying large swaths of our garden? Or have we tilled and nurtured the soil? Have we made our Father in heaven proud? Or ashamed? The Master looks at the evidence and makes a determination.

FOR MILLENNIA Jews have passed before God, coming to synagogues in droves for the Holy Days. Knowing that we stand before God with our deeds splayed before the Master, we also judge ourselves. If, after fiercely and bravely looking at ourselves, we do not like what we see it is time to (1) throw ourselves on God's mercy and (2) make a vow to change our behavior.

With all the introspection, Rosh Hashana is also a festival celebrating our universe. The tone of the service is at once serious and joyful. The ram's horn is sounded to bring our soul closer to God. Exchanges from people we have not seen in a year are full of love and goodness. We wish one another a "good and sweet New Year" and, at the same time, look around for the faces that were here last year but are no longer in the land of the living.

The ultimate goal of Rosh Hashana is wishing God a happy new year and behaving in such a way that will make Him proud of His children. God then rejoices.
Rabbi Jonathan Case is the spiritual leader of Congregation Or Atid in Richmond.