CBN Celebrates Rosh Hashanah

CBN will be airing a celebration of Rosh Hashanah tonight at 7pm EST, featuring a series of speakers and special performances by Paul Wilbur, Messiah Company Dancers and Masterworks Dance Troupe! Christians who are interested in Jewish feast days may want to tune into this special live event, which will air on CBN.com. If you happen to live in the Virginia Beach area, admission to this event is free! Paul Wilbur is a Messianic singer-songwriter and worship leader. I had the immense honor of performing alongside him when he visited our previous church in Michigan a few years ago. He has an immense passion to share the love of God (Yeshua) with his fellow Jews, through his gift of music! Here is a video advertisement of the program tonight:

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In case you missed it, here is the broadcast in its entirety!

Happy Rosh Hashanah!

Tonight at sundown, Rosh Hashanah will begin with the sighting of the new moon! Rosh Hashanah is a sacred Jewish festival, also known as the Feast of Trumpets or the Jewish New Year. It begins with 100 shofar blasts (made from a ram's horn) and lasts 2 days and 2 nights. The Feast of Trumpets is one of 7 feasts given by God in Leviticus 23 of the Holy Scriptures. According to verse 24, it is to be "day of rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts". The Feast of Trumpets is also mentioned again in Numbers 29:1-6. It is then followed by the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Tabernacles for a total of 10 feast days, also known as Yom Kippur.

An audio sample of the shofar blasts:

Jewish people continue to celebrate this sacred holiday every year, which includes a traditional holiday feast of challah bread, pomegranates and apples dipped in honey. It is also considered a time of reflection, renewal and repentance. Some go to a lake, river or sea to recite prayers and symbolically cast their sins into the water, leaving old shortcomings behind and starting the new year with a clean slate.


Though Christians are not required to observe Torah law, it should be of great interest due to its Biblical context. The Jewish feasts are not only a time to honor God, but are also considered "appointed times" and as Paul tells us in Colossians 2:16-17, "are a shadow of things to come". Four of the 7 feasts were fulfilled with the death (Passover), burial (Feast of Unleavened Bread) and resurrection (Feast of First Fruits) of Christ and the day of Pentecost (Feast of Weeks). Prophetically speaking, there are still 3 Jewish feasts to be fulfilled in the Second Coming of Christ, which includes the Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement & Feast of Tabernacles. To learn more about Rosh Hashanah and its traditions, check out the graphic chart and links below!

Rosh Hashanah on Wikipedia

Judaism 101: Rosh Hashanah

Rosh Hashanah on Chabad.org

Hebrew4Christians: Rosh Hashanah & Yom Kippur

CBN: Rosh Hashanah

Celebrate Rosh Hashanah

Whether you are Jewish or Christian, Rosh Hashanah is a part of your spiritual heritage. Also known as The Jewish New Year, it is celebrated on the first and second days of the Tishri (seventh month of the Jewish year), which falls on September 18th through the 20th this year. Like the New Year celebrations we are familiar with, it is a time for introspection on the year past, as well as making new resolutions to improve upon the year ahead.

In the Bible the holiday is referred to as Yom Ha-Zikkaron (the day of remembrance) or Yom Teruah (the day of the sounding of the shofar) and can be found in Leviticus 23:24-25. One of the most important observances of this holiday is the sounding of the shofar (traditionally a ram's horn) as a call to repentance, and all religious services are a call to reflect on God's sovereignty. It is customary for people to not work through the holiday, treating it as a Sabbath.

To Christians, it is known as the Feast of Trumpets, and can be observed as a time to reflect on the resurrection and return of Christ, as well as a time for self reflection, similar to how we observe the Lord's Supper.

Another popular tradition of Rosh Hashanah, which I'm sure we can all share in, is eating apples dipped in honey to symbolize hope of a sweet new year. I'll eat to that!


You can read more on Rosh Hashanah by visiting these websites:
Rosh Hashanah on Judaism 101
Rosh Hashanah on Wikipedia
Rosh Hashanah on CBN