Even for the least religiously involved Jews, the High Holidays are a high point—and sometimes the only point—of organized Jewish engagement.

For many families, it may be the only time in a year they step inside a synagogue or participate in a prayer service. A time for re-upping their membership in the Jewish collective, returning to the same well of tradition: the same tunes, buildings and prayer books that they remember from sitting with their parents and their parents’ parents.

But, ironically, for the people most passionate about Jewish spiritual life—those who have devoted their careers to it—Rosh Hashanah can look very different. Two of our hosts’ spirtual needs are bringing them to prayer services apart from their partners. Another fears they’ve been seeing Rosh Hashanah as a job for so long, they're not sure if they’ve ever had, or could have, an "authentic" Rosh Hashanah experience.

Plus, rabbis Avi, Matthew and Yedida discuss their advice for boredom in shul services, asking for forgiveness, and what to do with a yearning for someone to ask forgiveness from you, and using the High Holidays as a time not only to think about what you’ve done to other, but to let go of the slights others have done to you.

Credits

• Hosts: Avi Finegold, Yedida Eisenstat, Matthew Leibl


• Production team: Zachary Judah Kauffman (editor), Michael Fraiman (executive producer)


• Music: Socalled

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