Elul Exploration: A Note From Rabbinic Leader Solomon Hoffman

Dear MH,

It is been a pleasure meeting and getting to know some of you at the summer service and Riverdale gathering. I look forward to meeting more of you this month, and am grateful for the variety of opportunities to connect. September 1st coincidentally aligns with the first of the Hebrew month Elul. The month preceding the high holidays, Elul is understood as a time of preparation for the Days of Awe. One custom is to hear the shofar blasted once per morning each day of Elul. We will explore this and other traditions associated with Elul at the September Adult Ed. We also have two Slichot opportunities, a morning hike and an evening service, to engage in this preparation together. We will begin our Elul exploration together at the Shabbat dinner and service on the 6th. The alignment of the Hebrew and Gregorian calendar shifts yearly, but this year feels particularly fortuitous. As we transition away from summer, and back to school for some, may we approach this fall as a time for introspection, one that helps bring us to a place where we can more fully and deeply experience some of the holiest days in our Jewish calendar.

Blessings,
Solomon