Rosh HaShanah
Machol Dance Ministries
Rosh Hashanah is a two day festival falling in the Autumn (September or October) of each year, on Tishri 1 & 2.
Leviticus 23
24 Speak to the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a Sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.Teshuvah is a time of repentance that begins 30 days before Rosh Hashanah.
The 10-day period beginning with Rosh Hashanah (Tishri 1) and ending with Yom Kippur (Tishri 10) is referred to as the High Holy Days, or the Days of Awe.
The Shofar
Numbers 29
1 And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you.Blowing the Shofar on Rosh Hashanah is the only specific commandment for the holiday.
Rosh Hashanah Names Rosh Hashanah literally means Head of the Year.
Other names for Rosh Hashanah include…
Jewish New Year
Feast of Trumpets
Feast of the Last Trump
Feast of the Born Again
Yom Ha’Zikkaron – Day of Remembrance
Yom Teruah – Day of the Awakening Blast
Yom HaDin – Day of Judgment
Yom HaMelech – Day of the King - the Coronation
Yom HaKiseh – the Hidden Day (referring to the New or Hidden Moon).
Yeshua said no man knows the day or the hour. This was actually an indication that the “catching away” would take place on this “hidden” festival.
Themes of Rosh Hashanah
* The Catching away of the Bride (the Rapture)
Rabbis taught that after being resurrected on the Feast of Trumpets, they would enter the chupa, or wedding canopy for 7 days (or seven years prophetically) while 7 years of judgment occurs on earth.
* The Resurrection of the dead
* The Coronation of the King (Messiah Yeshua)
* The Marriage of Messiah and His Bride
* Birthday of the World – Jews believe that God created the world on Tishri 1.
* God Judges the world and your name is written (inscribed) in one of the books that God Himself keeps.
Phrases referring to Rosh Hashanah…
* The gates were opened
Ani L'Dodi V'Dodi Li - I am my Beloved's and my Beloved is mine
Catching Away of the Bride of Messiah
Luke 21
24 Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.
27 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
28 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.
32 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.
I must tell you, when I read this in Don Finto’s book, Your People Shall Be My People in 2002, I actually wept. It’s as clear as the nose on your face. Yeshua is coming in this generation!Yeshua is coming back for a bride that is without spot or blemish. Will she look like the traditional church of the past, or will she look more like a young Jewish virgin? God is restoring many things to believers that had been lost to them through Constantine and other early church fathers. As the time approaches, God is making us more aware of the Hebrew roots of our faith.
The Rapture I grew up knowing and believing in the Rapture, but also being taught that no man knows the day or the hour. Jewish Roots teach me that I can know the season and time period. If Messiah does “rapture” His bride on Rosh Hashanah, will it be Tishri 1 or Tishri 2? No man knows the day or the hour, but we can have a pretty good idea about the season, and even the festival day that so clearly points to this important prophetic event.
1 Thessalonians 4
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.1 Thessalonians 5
1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness that that day should overtake you as a thief.The "Day of the Lord" will not "overtake" us. The Jewish Wedding Included... The Betrothal
Hosea 2:19 I will betroth thee unto me for ever.
Many times the Bride had not seen the Bridegroom before
1 Peter 1:8 Whom having not seen, ye love. (referring to Messiah and His bride)
The Bride Price - The Mohar
1 Corinthians 6:20 For ye are bought with a price. (the blood of Messiah)
The Wedding Contract - the Ketubah
Hebrews 8:6 Now hath He obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant. (New Covenant)
The Bride's Consent
Romans 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness and with the heart confession is made unto salvation.
The Cup of the Covenant
Matthew 26:29 I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.
Betrothal Gifts
James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights.
The Mikvah - Ritual washing before the wedding
Mark 16:16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved.
Departure of the Bridegroom
John 14:2-3 In My Father's house are many mansions: if (it were) not (so), I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, ye may be also.
Day & Hour of Return
Mark 13:32 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.
2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night.
The Chupa - Bridal Canopy
Psalm 19:5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber...
Bride walks around the Bridegroom
Jeremiah 31:22 ...A woman shall compass a man.
Wedding Feast - Marriage Supper
Revelation 19:7-9 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white; for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed (are) they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.
Messianic Wedding at Gates of Praise There is great symbolism between the Jewish wedding ceremony and the marriage between Messiah and His bride. At the culmination of a study in 2003, seven couples at Gates of Praise decided to renew their wedding vows in a traditional Messianic wedding. Carolyn and I had been married for 28 years as the time, and had wanted to renew our vows, so this was a wonderful opportunity.
The Chupa
Seven couples participate in the Messianic Wedding Vow renewal. 
The ladies walk seven times around their husbands.
Drinking the first cup of wine together.
Breaking the cup at the end of the ceremony.
Our daughter Beth & granddaughter Alexandria.
Granddaughter, Savanna: "Is there a canopy in store for me someday?" 
My "shy" bride. Signing the Ketubah.
A time for dance after the vow renewal. 
Dancing at rehearsal the night before. Tashlich Tashlick is a popular practice among Jews and Messianics alike. It’s common to walk to a place where there is a flowing body of water (lake, stream, etc) and throw pebbles (that you’ve picked up along the way) or bread crumbs (that you’ve carried in your pockets) into the water. Tashlick means “casting off” referring to our casting off of the sin in our lives.
My First Rosh Hashanah Carolyn and I experienced our first Rosh Hashanah service in 1991. We had gone to a weekend seminar in Colombia, SC sponsored by Morning Star Drama & Dance Ministries and its founder, Helen Cregger. The weekend conference was to teach us about the three fall festivals.
We had been asked to bring white to wear Saturday night, the night we would be celebrating Rosh Hashanah. I must tell you that it was an impressive sight when we walked into the conference room and there were hundreds of people all dressed in white. They gave all the ladies white veils and all the men white yarmulkas as they entered the doors. Singers, musicians, and the congregation sang, dancers danced, actors acted out their parts of the story that told of the catching away of the bride of Messiah.
At one point they brought long pieces of fabric over the congregation, representing the chupa. What a wonderful experience it was.
One of the Hebrew words for "Feast" means "Rehearsal". What a wonderful way to learn more about the Hebrew roots of your faith, and God's time line that is so clearly pointed out in the Festivals of the Lord.Torah Reading
Genesis 22 is usually read on the second day of Rosh Hashanah. This is the story of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, and his devotion to God.
Foods The most common holiday food for Rosh Hashanah is apples dipped in honey – for a sweet year.
The common greeting for Rosh Hashanah is “L’Shanah Tovah” which means may you be inscribed for a good year, or Happy New Year.
L'Shanah Tovah
