A Civic Liturgy for 9/11: Reflections for the Days of Awe

Sep 11, 2026 By Rabbi Ayelet Cohen | Commentary | Rosh Hashanah

This year, when the first night of Rosh Hashanah falls on the 25th anniversary of 9/11, we reflect on the lessons from that day, on its inexorable connection to the season of the Days of Awe, and on the days and years since. The images from that day are imprinted on those of us who can remember where we were that morning. Yet 30 percent of Americans living today were born after 9/11. They never had to readjust to the new skyline. They never lived in a world where such horrific acts of terrorism were unimaginable. We have experienced too much horror, too much revenge, too much loss. We also carry the legacy of those who reached toward each other to offer healing and comfort.

From Nothing to Nothing: Finding Your Own Voice in Prayer 

Aug 31, 2026 By Cantor Rabbi Shoshi Levin Goldberg | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Rosh Hashanah | Yom Kippur

The High Holiday liturgy offers a rich tapestry of words handed down through generations, yet it also leaves room for something deeply personal: the prayers of our own hearts. In this session, Cantor Rabbi Shoshi Levin Goldberg, Director of the H. L. Miller Cantorial School, will explore the quiet prayer recited at the conclusion of the Amidah—a passage traditionally associated with the personal supplications of the sages—and consider what it teaches us about bringing our authentic selves into prayer.

Fear, Trauma, and the High Holidays: Reading Ancient Texts with Compassion

Aug 24, 2026 By Naomi Kalish | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Rosh Hashanah

In this session, Rabbi Naomi Kalish, Director of the Program in Spiritual Care and Counseling, JTS, will explore how the themes of fear and trauma surface throughout the High Holidays, with particular attention to the banishment of Hagar and Ishmael, the binding of Isaac, and the recurring language of the Psalms.

Objects of Awe: The Meaning of the High HolidaysThrough Treasures from the JTS Library

Aug 17, 2026 By Marcus Mordecai Schwartz | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Rosh Hashanah | Yom Kippur

What can a medieval prayer book, one of the earliest printed Hebrew mahzorim, and a set of century-old baseball card sized boxing cards teach us about the High Holidays? These three remarkable objects from The JTS Library demonstrate how Jewish communities across the centuries have expressed themes of kingship, tradition, strength, repentance, and renewal.

JTS High Holiday Webinars 2026

Join The Jewish Theological Seminary this August for a special webinar series to help prepare for the Days of Awe. Through conversations with JTS scholars, we will explore themes that shape the High Holiday season, including fear and resilience, prayer and liturgy, and the enduring wisdom of Jewish texts and traditions. These sessions will offer fresh perspectives, thoughtful reflection, and practical insights to help deepen your experience of the High Holidays.

When Teshuvah Feels Impossible

Sep 19, 2025 By Noam Blauer | Nitzavim | Rosh Hashanah

Are we really being set up for success for this whole teshuvah business? We might commit to doing all the preparation—journaling, going to shul, talking to therapists, chatting with rabbis, calling up hurt family and friends, New Year’s resolutions, etc.—and it still feels inadequate. Am I actually morally transformed? I am some infinitesimally small fraction of a hypermodern, global, complex network. My actions bear consequences for people on the other side of the globe I will never meet and whose names I will never even know. I still need to bring teshuvah to bear on my most intimate relationships,  but is this millennia-old process suitable to the messiness and uncertainty of modern moral life?

Jews, Non-Jews, and the Purpose of the High Holidays

Sep 16, 2025 By David C. Kraemer | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Rosh Hashanah | Yom Kippur

The Amidah for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur presents a striking, even radical, vision: a world where God alone reigns, where all people—Jewish and not—live in peace, and oppressive regimes vanish. In this vision, the Jewish people are neither erased nor centered. Instead, they are part of a broader human hope. 

The Blessing of Curses: A Rosh Hashanah Puzzle

Sep 12, 2025 By David Hoffman | Commentary | Ki Tavo | Rosh Hashanah

Here’s a puzzle for us to think about as we consider the spiritual work that we need to engage in over the remaining days until Yom Kippur: The Talmud tells us—in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar—that Ezra the Scribe decreed that, for all time, the Jewish people would read the blessings and curses in Leviticus (Parashat Behukkotai) prior to the holiday of Shavuot and those of Deuteronomy (Parashat Ki Tavo) before Rosh Hashanah (BT Megillah 31b). This decree is strange. Reading these graphic and threatening chapters, which detail the good that will come if we are faithful to God and the suffering that will be wrought if we forsake our relationship with God, is difficult at any time. Why insist that we read them publicly as we ready ourselves to celebrate these joyous holidays?