Scrawled Shortcuts through the Research Maze
Fall is not only the academic new year; it is also the new year for Jews, who observe the holiest days of Jewish liturgical time at this season: Rosh HaShana (the New Year) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement).
Dictionary of Jewish Usage
But is it the high holidays, or High Holy Days, and are these capitalized or lower-cased? See this handy dictionary for some guidance.
Ref BM50 .S74
Dictionary of the Jewish Religion
Rosh HaShana marks the new year. But by whose count? Under “Calendar,” find a formula for converting Gregorian to Jewish calendar years. After Rosh HaShana (Sept 29), we’re in the year 5772 since the Creation of the World.
Ref BM50 .O99
Reader’s Guide to Judaism
That said, how do Jews square the 5772 years of Jewish time with the billions of years of scientific time since the Big Bang? See this useful collection of bibliographic essays, under “Science and Religion”.
Ref BM50 .R43
The Jewish Religion: A Companion
Why do some Jews celebrate Rosh HaShana for two days, and others for one? It has to do with sightings of the New Moon, which determine the Jewish months. See this reference, under “Rosh HaShana”
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JPS Guide to Jewish Traditions
No two Jewish holidays could be more different than Yom Kippur and Purim (Jewish Mardi Gras). But by scrambling the letters, Jewish mystics uncovered Purim inside Yom Kippur. What could they have been thinking? This source gives a clue. (And after all, Mardi Gras culminates in Lent).
Ref BM50 .E49
Encyclopedia Judaica
A favorite pastime among Jewish philosophers is pondering reasons for Jewish rituals. For 10 good reasons to blow the Shofar, or ram’s horn, whose unique sound is ritually heard at the High Holy Days, look here under “Shofar.”
Ref DS102.8 .E496 & Online