The Significance of Yom Teruah - Laws of Yom Teruah

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XVII. Laws of Yom Teruah

The obligations to honor and enjoy the festival are fulfilled by preparations like bathing, haircuts, special (new) clothing and cleaning the house. A husband must buy new clothing or jewelry for his wife. Treats are given to the children. The woman of the household lights candles before sunset of the first night and a half hour after sunset on the second night of Rosh Hashanah and recites blessings over the candles. The festival is sanctified in words (Kiddush) over wine at the night and also during the day, before the meals.

Foods representing joy and blessing are eaten at the night meals, and prayers are recited for a good year using puns based on the names and nature of the foods (simanim): fish head, carrots, pomegranate (lettuce, raisin, celery).

Two festive meals each day Guests!

Maimonides - "One who celebrates but closes his door to the less fortunate is engaged in joy of the stomach and not joy of a mitzva."

If a Jew was limited to only two Jewish books, which ones should he choose? My own suggestion: the Code of Jewish Law and a Siddur or Machzor. With these, one would know how to act and pray as a Jew. But on an even deeper level, the Code of Jewish Law is the distillation of the knowledge in the Talmud and Commentaries; the Siddur is a compilation of Jewish philosophy culled from accepted rabbinic attitudes. The prayer book thus contains the fundamental theology of Judaism. To understand the meaning of the Jewish festivals, it is crucial to study the prayers and their origins. Preparation for Rosh Hashana should include, in addition to the daily shofar blast, the 27th Psalm, penitential prayers, visiting the cemetery and dispensing charity, an intensive study of the Rosh Hashana Machzor.[42]