EDMONDS
Rabbi Zevi Goldberg and his wife Leeba hoped to run out of chairs on Saturday, Sept. 19.
That’s because Jewish people from throughout Snohomish County met Saturday and Sunday for services and celebration marking Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.
The couple runs the Chabad Jewish Center of Snohomish County at 22225 100th Ave. W in Edmonds out of their own home. The center is a place where anyone in the Jewish community is welcome to be involved in Jewish traditions, holidays, Torah study and services throughout the year.
“We want to fulfill our rituals, our commandments,” Goldberg said. “Many times people don’t have the opportunity to do that because they don’t live near a Jewish community, many are not affiliated with any synagogue in their community, and nobody will care for them.”
The High Holy Days start with Rosh Hashanah and end 10 days later with a day of atonement known as Yom Kippur. This year marks the beginning of the 5,770th year on the Jewish calendar. Yom Kippur is on Sept. 28.
Rosh Hashanah is when God judges the universe for the coming year, Goldberg said, and the Jewish congregation appoints God as its king.
One of the most important parts of the day is hearing the sound of the shofar, or ram’s horn, he added.
“The number one reason we blow the shofar is to appoint the king,” Goldberg said. “It’s a very simple sound, basically a cry out to our Father in heaven.”
The day is also a time to pray, to reflect on the past year, to make resolutions for the coming year and to be inspired, he said.
It’s also a time to share a festive meal with one another.
“Rosh Hashanah tradition is basically to eat very sweet foods,” Leeba said. “Apples and honey are traditional.”
Sweet foods, such as traditional honey cake, signify hope for a sweet new year, she added.
The Goldbergs opened the center after coming to Edmonds from Brooklyn, N.Y., last year. Since that time, they have met many members of the Jewish community and have seen the center grow.
Goldberg said he hopes the center will continue to grow and that he will meet more members of the Jewish community in the coming year.
“My goal is to meet every single Jew that lives in Snohomish County and to introduce myself and let people know that there’s a rabbi that cares for them,” he said. “We view every Jew as family. … Every Jew has the same Jewish soul and that’s what I care about.”
Amy Daybert writes for the Herald of Everett.
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