The Hebrew calendar advises us that here in the northern hemisphere, the Ten Days of Awe, when we practice Teshuvah, occur during the fall (or in some years, late summer).
Sukkot also occurs in the fall. And on the secular calendar, students go back to school as fall begins.
This year, many of the seasonal celebrations have occurred virtually and parents, students and teachers are coping with online education.
Nevertheless, fall remains a time of new beginnings, even in a virtual environment.
A few weeks ago, I sat on a Zoom call with our rabbi and four other rabbinical and cantorial students from my childhood synagogue to talk about teshuvah.
You might ask, “what is teshuvah and how do we do it?”
Teshuvah, which literally means “repentance” and comes from the word “turning”, is the process that we are called to undertake during the High Holidays, especially Yom Kippur.
While we can’t be physically together Rosh Hashanah afternoon for Tashlich (the throwing of bread or birdseed into water to represent the casting off of our sins), here are some resources that will help you observe on your own.
This holiday season may be very different than the ones that you have experienced in the past, and that is OK. Do your best to create sacred space and time in any way that works for you.
Shalom, all!
My name is Emily Dana, and I am overjoyed to be joining your community for the coming year as United Hebrew Congregation’s rabbinic intern.
What do you need to know about me? I was born in Boston and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, where I attended Beth Emet Synagogue in Evanston.
Growing up, I went to Camp OSRUI in Oconomowoc, Wis., where I also served on staff for a number of years.
