Ebert Weinstein walks through the wine aisle, carefully looking over the bottles before plucking a kosher Bordeaux from the shelf.
“Some prefer sweet wines,” says Weinstein, “but this is my favorite.”
Weinstein moves on to an assortment of breads.
“No long loafs. It’s the wrong shape for the tradition,” says Weinstein. “It takes a round loaf to make the grade at the traditional Rosh Hashanah table. No one receives the end that way.”
The Hebrew round loaf, a symbol that all are welcome to life, is often accompanied by honey and fruits to reflect life’s sweetness.
It’s the weekend before Rosh Hashanah – the Jewish equivalent to the Christian New Year – and Weinstein is preparing for the two-day event that begins Tuesday. Alongside the wine and breads will be various meats, fruits and honey to carry them through the holiday. On these days there will be no work allowed and no exchange of currency.
Rosh Hashanah celebrates the creation of the world and the newness of life. It’s the Jewish holiday of repentance. Solemnity as well as festivity is what makes Rosh Hashanah stand out from other Jewish holidays, says Weinstein. Unlike the calendar New Year’s celebration, which falls on January 1, the Hebrew New Year’s celebration is a reflection on spiritual values and judgment leading to salvation.
The first day will begin with a half-hour, sometimes longer, of prayer time, says Weinstein. But this is not only part of Rosh Hashanah; prayer in the Weinstein family is a ritual that takes place three times a day – morning, noon, and night.
Before the setting of the sun on the day leading into Rosh Hashanah, there will be much to prepare.
“It is a time to be with God,” says Weinstein. “We want to look our best.”
The house will be cleaned and all things put in order. The fragrance of fresh cut flowers will fill the air, and the family will dress in their finest clothes.
As dusk sets the Weinsteins will go to the Congregation Beth Israel Synagogue in Old Orchard Beach for a 45-minute sermon and prayer. A shofar – or rams horn – will be blown to mark the beginning of the New Year.
“The congregation will swell from its regular 20 or so local occupants to a booming number well over a hundred,” says Weinstein, president of Congregation Beth Israel. “We have many UNE students attend and would love to have some USM students as well.”
Weinstein has lived in Old Orchard Beach for most of his life. His grandfather opened the downtown’s first produce store in 1880.
“For as far back as I can remember this small resort town has kept our little synagogue full,” Weinstein says, “and during the off months there was always school.”
It is a time for celebration and rejoicing. But most important, says Weinstein, it is a time for all the children of the Jewish faith to stop and think, to reflect on the past year’s failures and struggles and to take into account their sins and repent.
The festivities, says Weinstein, are not to be forgotten. Although this is a time to reflect and repent it is equally a time to celebrate the richness of life. It’s time to break bread, to taste the sweetness of life, and to eat the meat and drink the wine.
“The future is bright,” says Weinstein. “Be patient. What we perceive as the end is in fact only the beginning.”
For more information on the schedule of local Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services, please contact the Congregation Beth Israel in Old Orchard Beach at 934-2973, the Temple Beth El in Portland at 774-2649, the Bet Ha’Am Congregation in Westbrook at 879-0028 or Woodford’s Congregational Church in Portland at 774-8243.
Contributing writer Karl Hebert can be contacted at [email protected]