 Media Credit: Chris Maroshegyi Services for Rosh Hashanah were held for the first time in BC's history in the Muti-Faith Center on Monday.
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"L'shanah tovah is a greeting we use to wish each other happy new year, but a more literal translation is 'good change,'" said Leon Ratz, vice president of Boston College Hillel and A&S '11.
This greeting was exchanged between students at BC earlier this week during Rosh Hashanah, a holiday commonly referred to as the Jewish New Year. While many Jewish students call BC their home, this is the first year they were able to attend services for the High Holidays, days set aside for repentance that are concluded with Yom Kippur, on BC's campus.
"These services are the first [High Holiday services] ever in BC's history to be held on campus. It's exciting for all of us to be part of history," Ratz said. "For Jewish students at a Catholic school, it can be a challenge this time of year to find services to go to for the High Holidays. To be able to offer this to BC students on campus was particularly exciting."
Ratz said that being able to attend Rosh Hashanah services on BC's campus, and Yom Kippur services later this week, is comforting for students who are celebrating these holidays for the first time away from their families and homes.
"We still felt like we were among family," Ratz said. "It was like being at your home away from home."
Rosh Hashanah started Monday night at sundown and lasted until sundown last night.
"Rosh Hashanah is a time to reflect on your deeds of the past year and to begin the process of repentance," Ratz said.
The services, held on Monday night in the interfaith center in 66 Commonwealth Avenue, were preceded by a traditional dinner.
"It was almost like Thanksgiving," said Anna Kupchik, president of BC Hillel and A&S '09. "Everyone pitched in. The group really came together." The candle-lit meal, Kupchik said, was prepared in BC's kosher kitchen, which has been a fixture in Gabelli Hall for years. Students dined on apples with honey and round challah bread for a sweet new year. "There was a lot of sweetness in our dinner," Kupchik said. "It was very symbolic."
The service that followed drew a larger audience than the member of Hillel had anticipated, and attendees had to find more chairs to seat everyone in the room. The services themselves, entirely student-led, allowed the congregation to reaffirm their faith and to reflect on the past year and times when they may have missed the mark on certain things, Kupchik said.
Spring Break
