...In the seventh month, on the first of the month, there shall be a sabbath for you, a remembrance with shofar blasts, a holy convocation. -Leviticus 16:24

Religious services for the holiday focus on the concept of God's sovereignty. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is on the first and second days of Tishri. In Hebrew, Rosh Hashanah literally means, "head of the year." This High Holy Day is a time to look at our mistakes of the past year and to plan the changes we wish to make.

"Rosh Hashanah" is not referenced in the torah to discuss this holiday. The Bible calls this day Yom Ha-Zikkaron, the day of remembrance, or Yom Teruah, the day of the sounding of the shofar. Read Leviticus 23:24-25 for where this holiday is instituted.

A ram's horn, the shofar, when blown sounds a little like a trumpet. A significant observance is hearing the sounding of the shofar during services. One hundred notes are sounded each day. The shofar makes four different kinds of notes: tekiah, a 3 second nonstop note; shevarim, three one-second notes rising in pitch; teruah, a string of staccato notes played over a three second period; and tekiah gedolah, the final set which lasts 10 seconds or more. No reason for this practice is specified in the bible. One theory is that the shofar's sound is a call to repentance. If Pesach falls on Shabbat, the shofar is not blown.

Work is not allowable on Rosh Hashanah. We spend most of the day in synagogue. The machzor, a special prayer book, is used for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur because of the prescribed prayers for these holidays.

We eat apples dipped in honey as they represent our wishes for sweetness in the New Year. Another practice, not in the Bible, is a long-standing custom ritual: Tashlikh, casting off. On the afternoon of the first day, we go to flowing water, like a creek or river where we empty our pockets, representatively casting off our sins.

The common greeting at this time is L'shanah tovah, for a good year. This is short for L'shanah tovah tikatev v'taihatem, or to women, L'shanah tovah tikatevi v'taihatem), meaning "May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year."

The Bible speaks of Rosh Hashanah occurring on the first day of the seventh month. The first month of the Jewish calendar is Nissan, which occurs in March and April. Why does the Jewish "new year" occur in the seventh month, Tishri? We have more than one "new year." This may seem strange until you look at what we do in America. The calendar new year starts in January; the school new year starts in September; many businesses have fiscal years so their new years start in July… or any other month of the year. Nissan 1 is the new year for the Jewish calendar. Elul 1, in August, is the new year for the tithing of animals. Shevat 15, in February, is the new year for trees. Tishri 1, Rosh Hashanah, is the new year for when we increase the year number.