Naperville Jewish center plans for large new year services
Chabad Jewish Center in Naperville is branching out to larger locations for its services for the High Holidays to allow more people to experience the Jewish new year and a day of atonement.
Chabad will host several services in September for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, known as the High Holidays, at Noah's Event Venue and Embassy Suites in Naperville.
Rabbi Mendy Goldstein said the locations outside Chabad's Naperville headquarters at 1935 Brookdale Road bring benefits of more space and a comfortable environment for Jews who might have limited experience in prayer and practice.
"Our current location is not large enough for the High Holidays because we get a larger crowd than normal," Goldstein said. "If it's at an independent location, people might be more comfortable coming."
Rosh Hashana services are at 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13, 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday, Sept. 14, and 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, at Noah's Event Venue, 119 Shuman Blvd.
The holiday represents the beginning of a new year, when God will choose the fate of each Jew for the coming months. The service begins with blowing a ram's horn called a shofar.
"The sound of the shofar represents the cry of the heart, the yearning of the soul to God and to spirituality," Goldstein said.
Each service will include traditional prayers and explanations of their purpose to deepen the meaning.
"We try to make the service inspiring and meaningful - not just to sit through the High Holidays but to bring some meaning into it," Goldstein said.
Services for Yom Kippur begin at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, which begins a 25-hour fast on a day of atonement in which Jews refrain from the "physical and mundane world to reflect in prayer and ask God for forgiveness," Goldstein said.
Services during the fast day itself are scheduled for 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23, with a breaking of the fast at 7:30 p.m.
Each service for Rosh Hashana concludes with a meal as well, featuring foods traditionally eaten to symbolize the new year.
Apples dipped in honey are used to wish each other a sweet new year. Pomegranates are eaten because their many seeds represent a prayer for a year full of many blessings. And challah, a Jewish bread that's typically braided, is served in a round shape to symbolize the dawning of the world, Goldstein said.
All services Chabad is offering for the High Holidays are free and no membership in Chabad is required.
"The High Holidays in general is the beginning of the Jewish new year. It's a time to start fresh with some new opportunities," Goldstein said. "We try to inspire people to reflect on the importance of the day."