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B'nai Emet -> Messages -> Conservative Jewish Commitment -> 2002After the High HolidaysStrengthen and deepen your personal observance of this year’s High Holy Day season beyond the specific days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. September 9, 2002, 3 Tishrei 5763: Fast of GedaliahThe day after Rosh Hashanah is observed as a fast (not for reasons of overindulging on the previous two days). The fast is named for Gedaliah. Why? Who? When Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, destroyed the city of Jerusalem in the year 586 B.C.E., he appointed a prominent Jewish leader Gedaliah as governor of Judah. Gedaliah made a sincere effort to save the Jewish nation. His rule, however, lasted for only 2 months. On the third of Tishrei he was murdered by men who were jealous of his position. With this terrorist treachery, all organized Jewish life in Eretz Yisrael halted completely. The fast is limited in time from sunrise to dark–but it is a good “prep” for Yom Kippur! September 13/14, 2002: Shabbat ShuvahThe Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is called the Sabbath of Return/Repentance (Shuvah). The name is derived from the first word of the Haftarah...Shuvah Yisrael...”Return O Israel to the Lord your God.” We devote the Shabbat before Yom Kippur to the main theme of deep regret for past wrongdoings, and a determination to correct our ways. September 20-27, 2002: Sukkot; September 28 Shemini Atzeret; September 29 Simchat TorahThe Rabbis interpret the words in the Torah “ach sameach” to mean that Sukkot is the quintessential high celebration. Days devoted to coming closer to God by dwelling in the sukkah symbol of our 40-year journey in the Sinai Wilderness, by taking the lulav-etrog species during the daily Hallel psalms and waving them to acknowledge God’s omnipresence; by welcoming Biblical guests spiritually and hosting your family and friends. And whether or not a sukkah is not yet on this year’s agenda, be sure to eat in B’nai Emet’s sukkah! The High Holy Days truly end with Shemini Atzeret, assembling for a final time as a congregation in Israel before dispersing to our homes, and Simchat Torah to mark the end of the cycle of reading the Torah. And when we coplete Deuteronomy we immediately return and renew the learning and reading cycle with Genesis. September 29, 2002, is a good day to begin a regimen of regular study.
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