BRATTLEBORO — At sundown on Wednesday, Sept. 8, Jewish people will welcome Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year 5771.
Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of a sacred period known as the Days of Awe, a time of reflection and introspection that culminates 10 days later on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, observed this year on Sept. 17.
During these days, marked by contemplation, confession and prayer, Jews around the world assemble in synagogues to pray and reflect upon the past year. Individuals ask for forgiveness from family and friends and seek reconciliation for any wrongful acts they may have committed. Tradition teaches that once this is accomplished, forgiveness from God will follow. The Days of Awe are regarded as a time of judgment, when Jews seek atonement and pray to be inscribed in the Book of Life for another year.
The Yom Kippur service begins at sundown with the beautiful and haunting Kol Nidre prayer, and continues for 24 hours spent in prayer, contemplation, repentance, and fasting.
One part of the day's prayer on Saturday is Yizkor, a special service during which people remember their departed loved ones as well as those lost in the Holocaust. The final service, Ne'ilah, speaks of the Gates of Heaven slowly closing as the last prayers of atonement are offered to God. Like people throughout the ages, Jews are comforted by the belief that if they really strive to make themselves better than they were in the past, God will forgive them and grant them life.
Congregation Shir Heharim (the Brattleboro Area Jewish Community) will hold these services at the West Village Meeting House off South Street in West Brattleboro. Rosh Hashanah services will begin at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night, Sept. 8, and will continue the next day at 9:30 a.m.
Yom Kippur services begin at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 17, and continue the next morning at 9:30. A light break-the-fast will follow the 6 p.m. Ne'ilah service that closes Yom Kippur on Saturday night. Rabbi Tom Heyn, the newly installed spiritual leader of the congregation, will lead all the services. All are welcome to attend.
Although tickets are not needed for admission and no one will be turned away for any reason, the congregation depends upon donations to help cover the costs of the services. Guests are asked to make a donation of $100 for each person attending for one holiday or $180 for each person attending both. Donations are not requested from children under the age of 18 or students in residence at area schools.
Guests who make donations and later decide to become members will have their donations credited toward their dues. To register, donations can be sent to BAJC, P.O. Box 2353, Brattleboro, VT 05303. For more information, visit www.bajcvermont.org, call 802-257-1959, or e-mail info@bajvcermont.org.