While on vacation this summer, one morning my husband and I awoke to a loud alarm. Within seconds we realized the sound was coming from outside and was a fire alarm. We quickly left our room and went to the hotel front desk. We were safe and someone was on their way to reset the alarm. But we were wide awake.
The fall season on the Jewish calendar is a time of turning and introspection. The Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, arrives on Monday night, Sept. 22. It begins a 10-day period of the High Holy Days whose focus is on repentance, repair, returning to the best version of ourselves, and to God.
One of the significant symbols of the holiday is the Shofar, a ram’s horn. The sound of its blast is meant to be a spiritual alarm clock to awaken to the work of this season.
Traditionally, the shofar is blown each morning (except for the Sabbath) in the month leading up to the New Year to begin the preparation. It is sounded in the synagogue during the Rosh Hashanah service. Rabbi Dalia Marx teaches in her book, From Time-to-Time, “The shofar is capable of touching hidden strands of our being. The shofar is not a human voice but a primal sound that precedes all words…”
The mitzvah or commandment is to listen to the sound of the shofar. In other words, if someone blows the shofar and we don’t pay attention to it, then we have not fulfilled the commandment. In Judaism this is known as having kavanah, intention, for what we are doing. In society today, there are many sirens sounding.
There are a few different notes the shofar blows. The first blast is called tekiah. It is one short blast. This initial blast is a wake up call to pay attention. The new year is here. What is the work that we need to be doing to engage in Heshbon Hanefesh, spiritual accounting?
The next call is shevarim. The root of this word shever means broken. These three broken sounds are a call to us to look within at what is in need of repair in our souls. As well, the repeated sounds raise the alarm for us to look at what is broken around us.
T’ruah are nine short blasts. They are blown quickly, emphasizing the urgency of now. As the new year arrives, our hopes for a good and sweet new year are met by the challenges we face.
The work of repentance or teshuva, is approached as individuals between one person and another and between individuals and God. The work of repentance means turning to the best version of ourselves. And, the work is done not only by individuals but as a community to support one another and recognize that we are responsible for one another.
Living in a time of deep polarization, the shofar calls us to recognize the humanity within everyone created in God’s image. When we dehumanize others, hateful words beget violent actions as we have seen in political violence last week and in recent months.
Today, it is overwhelming to address the challenges facing us each day. But we cannot ignore them either. As we listen to the call of our inner shofar, it urges us to respond internally and spread the work of repair in our world.
The final blast is a T’kiah gedola—a long blast. This is a shofar call where we pay attention to how long the sound resonates and can be seen as a sign of encouragement for us to engage in the long work of teshuva, repentance.
The person who engages in honest reflection is better prepared to respond to the needs of others, to stand against injustice, to show up with courage and compassion. Jewish tradition teaches that we should “repent the day before we die.” Since none of us knows when that will be, the message is simple: begin now.
The first step is to pay attention to the shofar’s call. And respond.
Rabbi Faith Joy Dantowitz is the rabbi of Congregation Emeth, located in Morgan Hill and serving all of South County. Rabbi Dantowitz can be contacted at ra***@***th.net. Join Congregation Emeth for the High Holy Day! Reservations required. Email Ad***@***th.net for more information and to reserve your place!
