The best/worst part of being Jewish in a non-Jewish society is experiencing the annual unavoidable existential calendrical reminder of the inexorable passage of time twice per year, rather than only once.
I just got through Rosh Hashanah a few months ago, it’s not even Tu B’Shvat yet, and now you’re telling me it’s going to be a new year again??
I dunno. I actually love having two markers of new beginnings (actually three, because I also use my birthday as a marker). Rosh Hashanah is for me to reevaluate my relationship with Judaism and my Jewish community. The secular new year is for me to evaluate how I fit into a secular world. And my birthday is for my own introspection, as I figure out who I am absent outside influences.
Ah, this is a lovely way of looking at it; thank you for sharing.
Thinking more seriously about this topic now, I’m reflecting on the fact that my original lighthearted post was incomplete… because, technically, Judaism alone has not one but four New Years built into our calendar!
There’s Rosh Hashanah, of course, as the official “head of the year” for seasons and the counting of calendar years. But then there’s also the month of Nissan, containing Pesach/Passover, which is considered the beginning of the calendar of holidays. And Tu B’Shvat (coming soon!), the new year for trees. And Elul 1, the new year for animals.
Each with its own meaning and significance, its own role, its own domain, its own version and aspect of renewal. Soespecially from this angle, it makes so much sense, living in a secular world as we now do, to add a secular new year to the list.
(But all that said, I am still absolutely going to keep kvetching at Time for having the chutzpah to continue marching on without consulting me first. ;))
You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. - Isaiah 26:3
Those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. - Isaiah 40:31
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. - Matthew 11:28
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. - Romans 12:2
Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you. - Matthew 17:20
The name of the LORD is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. - Proverbs 18:10
Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. - Psalm 1:1-3
If you listen carefully to the LORD your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, who heals you. - Exodus 15:26
Worship the LORD your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you. - Exodus 23:25
Remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today. - Deuteronomy 8:18
Shanah Tovah to all of our followers celebrating Rosh Hashanah! We wish you and your loved ones good health and a sweet new year. ❤️
[Image description: Graphic featuring the WNDB logo, a stock background image of a jar of honey lying in a cluster of apples, and text that reads, “Shanah Tovah from the team at We Need Diverse Books”]
Today is the first of the Hebrew month of Elul, which means IT’S almost TIME FOR DAYS OF AWESOME! Whoo!
What is Days of Awesome?
Days of Awesome is a annual Jewish character ficathon in honor of the Jewish high holiday season.
Originally founded by Livejournal user jadelennox in 2007, the goal of this project is to create a venue for fans of all backgrounds to write fic about Jewish characters and their Jewish identities–which are all-too-often under-represented in canon and fanon, and, when they are represented, they’re often represented as Jewish in name only.
We’re also here because while we love other holiday fic challenges, they so frequently don’t correspond with holidays that are important on the Jewish calendar. We wanted to change that with a festive little celebration around the Jewish holiday season!
How It Works
We’re keeping it really casual.
We’ll have a collection on Archive of Our Own that will open on Erev Rosh HaShana (Monday, September 6, this year), and stay open through the Hebrew month of Tishrei (until October 6)–a length which spans the entire Jewish high holiday season, and includes the holidays of Rosh HaShana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Sheminei Atzeret, and Simchat Torah!
You can feel free to upload any fic, ficlet, or podfic that you write that fits the requirements to the collection within that time frame. Please just tag it with the tag Community: daysofawesome!
And, if all goes according to plan, we’ll have a few optional prompts too, peppered and shared throughout the month.
What are the requirements for fic?
The only firm requirement is that your focal character be Jewish.
If they’re canonically Jewish–great!
If they’re not canonically Jewish, that’s okay too. But we would ask that if it is a situation in which you headcanon a particular character as Jewish, or are writing an AU in which they are Jewish, you please make the fic about their Jewishness.
If you have a Jewish OC that you want to write about–if, for instance, you want to explore what it would be like to be a Jewish character in the world of the Hunger Games, or His Dark Materials–go for it! Again, we would just ask that the fic be about that character’s (or those characters’) Jewish experiences.
If you wanted to be extra festive and seasonal, you could write about some of the characters celebrating one of the seasonal holiday, or a fic on one of the themes that is explored throughout one of these days.
All fandoms are game, and there are no length requirements, and you can upload as many pieces as you’d like within the month.
Questions?
We are here to help!
Check out our FAQ, or feel free to drop us an ask ,or send us an email at [email protected]
And if you’re interested, please signal boost! We’d love to spread this far and wide!
TWO WEEKS UNTIL DAYS OF AWESOME OPENS! Get those writing muscles stretched!
Today is the first of the Hebrew month of Elul, which means IT’S almost TIME FOR DAYS OF AWESOME! Whoo!
What is Days of Awesome?
Days of Awesome is a annual Jewish character ficathon in honor of the Jewish high holiday season.
Originally founded by Livejournal user jadelennox in 2007, the goal of this project is to create a venue for fans of all backgrounds to write fic about Jewish characters and their Jewish identities–which are all-too-often under-represented in canon and fanon, and, when they are represented, they’re often represented as Jewish in name only.
We’re also here because while we love other holiday fic challenges, they so frequently don’t correspond with holidays that are important on the Jewish calendar. We wanted to change that with a festive little celebration around the Jewish holiday season!
How It Works
We’re keeping it really casual.
We’ll have a collection on Archive of Our Own that will open on Erev Rosh HaShana (Monday, September 6, this year), and stay open through the Hebrew month of Tishrei (until October 6)–a length which spans the entire Jewish high holiday season, and includes the holidays of Rosh HaShana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Sheminei Atzeret, and Simchat Torah!
You can feel free to upload any fic, ficlet, or podfic that you write that fits the requirements to the collection within that time frame. Please just tag it with the tag Community: daysofawesome!
And, if all goes according to plan, we’ll have a few optional prompts too, peppered and shared throughout the month.
What are the requirements for fic?
The only firm requirement is that your focal character be Jewish.
If they’re canonically Jewish–great!
If they’re not canonically Jewish, that’s okay too. But we would ask that if it is a situation in which you headcanon a particular character as Jewish, or are writing an AU in which they are Jewish, you please make the fic about their Jewishness.
If you have a Jewish OC that you want to write about–if, for instance, you want to explore what it would be like to be a Jewish character in the world of the Hunger Games, or His Dark Materials–go for it! Again, we would just ask that the fic be about that character’s (or those characters’) Jewish experiences.
If you wanted to be extra festive and seasonal, you could write about some of the characters celebrating one of the seasonal holiday, or a fic on one of the themes that is explored throughout one of these days.
All fandoms are game, and there are no length requirements, and you can upload as many pieces as you’d like within the month.
Questions?
We are here to help!
Check out our FAQ, or feel free to drop us an ask ,or send us an email at [email protected]
And if you’re interested, please signal boost! We’d love to spread this far and wide!
TWO WEEKS UNTIL DAYS OF AWESOME OPENS! Get those writing muscles stretched!
Today is the first of the Hebrew month of Elul, which means IT’S almost TIME FOR DAYS OF AWESOME! Whoo!
What is Days of Awesome?
Days of Awesome is a annual Jewish character ficathon in honor of the Jewish high holiday season.
Originally founded by Livejournal user jadelennox in 2007, the goal of this project is to create a venue for fans of all backgrounds to write fic about Jewish characters and their Jewish identities–which are all-too-often under-represented in canon and fanon, and, when they are represented, they’re often represented as Jewish in name only.
We’re also here because while we love other holiday fic challenges, they so frequently don’t correspond with holidays that are important on the Jewish calendar. We wanted to change that with a festive little celebration around the Jewish holiday season!
How It Works
We’re keeping it really casual.
We’ll have a collection on Archive of Our Own that will open on Erev Rosh HaShana (Monday, September 6, this year), and stay open through the Hebrew month of Tishrei (until October 6)–a length which spans the entire Jewish high holiday season, and includes the holidays of Rosh HaShana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Sheminei Atzeret, and Simchat Torah!
You can feel free to upload any fic, ficlet, or podfic that you write that fits the requirements to the collection within that time frame. Please just tag it with the tag Community: daysofawesome!
And, if all goes according to plan, we’ll have a few optional prompts too, peppered and shared throughout the month.
What are the requirements for fic?
The only firm requirement is that your focal character be Jewish.
If they’re canonically Jewish–great!
If they’re not canonically Jewish, that’s okay too. But we would ask that if it is a situation in which you headcanon a particular character as Jewish, or are writing an AU in which they are Jewish, you please make the fic about their Jewishness.
If you have a Jewish OC that you want to write about–if, for instance, you want to explore what it would be like to be a Jewish character in the world of the Hunger Games, or His Dark Materials–go for it! Again, we would just ask that the fic be about that character’s (or those characters’) Jewish experiences.
If you wanted to be extra festive and seasonal, you could write about some of the characters celebrating one of the seasonal holiday, or a fic on one of the themes that is explored throughout one of these days.
All fandoms are game, and there are no length requirements, and you can upload as many pieces as you’d like within the month.
Questions?
We are here to help!
Check out our FAQ, or feel free to drop us an ask ,or send us an email at [email protected]
And if you’re interested, please signal boost! We’d love to spread this far and wide!
Last weekend was Rosh Hashanah, and to celebrate I wanted to share some artwork featuring Chava bat Shoshana v'Sv-kkisx, a character from a comic I am working on set during the holiday in a far sci-fi future.
Chava is the main character of In Diaspora, a comic about culture clashes between alien scientists studying the origin of life on a distant planet.
The comic will be around 30-40 pages, and is currently in the early stages of creation, but stay tuned for more info as I slowly work on it. I dream of one day making a collection of shorts like In Diaspora that explore similar themes like cultural change, religious beliefs, and relationships with the natural world in sci-fi settings.
Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, begins this Sunday at sundown. For Jews around the world, the holiday is ushered in with a shofar blast and a profusion of New Year greetings. On view now, this unexpected New Year greeting dated from 1910 hails all the way from Nome, Alaska, produced by an Alaskan Inuit carver known as Happy Jack. For nearly 400 years, Jewish immigrants have brought to America their skills and ambition to succeed. Today, this unique object serves as testimony that Nome was one among many far-flung places where Jews have lived and thrived.
Jacob wrestling with the angel,Rosh Hashanah(Jewish New Year)postcard with illustration by Ephraim Moses Lilien, early 20th century (1918?), 14 x 9 cm, private collection.
UGH. when the time on your shul’s handout that said maariv & havdala was at 7:30 really meant that they were starting maariv then but that havdala wasn’t actually until 7:37, so you did it early.
LIFNEI EIVER IS A THING.
(Messaged one of the ritual comitte because this needs to not happen. So upset.)
Jewish Book Council found this scrumptious recipe forApple-Stuffed Challah in Rosie Daykin’s collection of recipes for special occasions from Vancouver’s Butter Baked Goods, new cookbook. It’s the perfect twist to add to your repertoire and table for the Jewish High Holidays!
Wondering what to read over the Jewish High Holidays starting next week? Check out this year’s 10 Awesome Books for the 10 Days of Awe recommended by the Jewish Book Council!
