In Jewish time, a new day begins in the evening, as it becomes dark. So too, a new year begins in the fall. There is a deep wisdom to this: before we can grow – with a new dawn, a new spring – we need to find ourselves rooted. We need to get ready to begin again.

Who do you want to be in 5786? How will you find yourself? 

Part of how we find ourselves is by repotting ourselves into the nourishing soil of Jewish community. From the forgiveness prayers of Slichot through Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot – culminating in Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah – we deepen our roots. That will be what enables us to grow into our best next selves this year. That is what will enable us to refurbish our relationships and our spirits.

It is easy to get lost in the vast array of options the Jewish calendar offers us at this time of year. Below is the full list. Cantor Kissner and Rabbi Treu will be with us through it all, and invite you to go deep with us for the journey. And for those trying to decide how to navigate through it, how to find yourself here, here’s our advice: give yourself the gift of being part of the build.

What does that mean? It means that for each of these services, there is a build – over the course of the month, and also over the course of each one individually. Decide how long you want to be at synagogue for, and work backwards from the end of the service time listed. Only have an hour in you before you get ants in your pants? Come for the last hour of services. That way you feel rooted: you arrive, you choose a seat, you settle in, and then enjoy the ride, the rootedness of giving yourself the gift of this time. And that we, the whole community of people gathered, feels rooted, too. We feel the build, the swell of the crowd lifting all of us. With the build, we can collectively sense that we are in this together, that each of us is seeking to be found, is seeking our roots, is seeking to sow new branches in the new year ahead. 

“For it is a tree of life for all who hold fast to it.” May we all be inscribed and sealed in the Book of Life, the tree of life, for a year of goodness, peace, prosperity, health, joy and beautiful beginnings, endings, and moments in between.