Nitzavim-Vayelekh/Rosh Hashanah

Ordinarily, on the Shabbat before Rosh Hodesh (the new moon), we say birkat ha-hodesh, the blessing that announces the coming of the new month. The one exception is this Shabbat, the Shabbat before Rosh Hodesh Tishrei (which is also Rosh Hashanah). There is no blessing to announce the coming of the first month of the year.

The Shem Mi-Shmuel offers an explanation: The reason why we say birkat ha-hodesh onthe Shabbat before every other new moon is to take some of the holiness of Shabbat and push it forward into the coming month. That way, the month gets off to a good start by drawing on the sanctity of the Shabbat before it. But Rosh Hashanah commemorates the creation of the world, which had no Shabbat before it. Rosh Hashanah reminds us of our ability to make a fresh start, to create ourselves anew, as if we had no past.

In many respects, we are products of our history. We are defined by our genetic inheritance, by our upbringing, and by decisions that we made long ago. But Rosh Hashanah teaches us that we are also more than that. We have the ability to make choices that are not determined by the past, that come, in a sense, from nowhere, in that they are just that: choices.

The realization of our freedom brings with it a deep sense of responsibility. It also brings great joy. May this season be a time of new beginnings for all of us.