Boston’s Jewish community has ushered in the New Year with synagogue services, prayer and with traditional family gatherings.
Now comes the ten days of penitence for Jews all over the world, during which time they must atone for their misdeeds during the past year in order to clear the slate for the coming year.
God has presumably opened the Book of Life with the onset of Rosh Hashanah. At the end of the ten-day penitence period on Yom Kippur, God will close the Book of Life.
God writes into the Book of Life the names of those who shall live and who shall die, who shall be happy and who shall be sad, who shall be rich and who shall be poor, who shall be exalted and who shall be brought low and on and on.
While there is some speculation about whether or not God actually does such things, there is no speculation about Jews and everyone on this earth, being held to a higher standard and that during the next year, many of us will not be here, many of us will grow richer or more poor, that many of us will be happy or sad, exalted or brought low.
The Jewish New Year ending with Yom Kippur is a seminal moment every year.
We wish out Jewish friends a L’Shanah tova.