The blowing sound of a shofar was heard throughout Brooklyn Sunday night as the borough's Jewish community marked the end of the Jewish new year, or Rosh Hashanah.
The new year isn't actually called Rosh Hashanah in the Torah. Instead, it's "the day" or "time of the shofar blast," and on both days of Rosh Hashanah, residents heard it anywhere from 30 to 100 times as part of the prayer service.
A blowing of the shofar at Grand Army Plaza was one of 25 different outdoor spots in the borough that the United Jewish Appeal Federation organized. The UJA Federation had the shofar blown at the same time as part of its "Shofar Across Brooklyn" program.
There are different reasons the shofar is significant for the holiday. The main ones include a symbol of God's coronation, and as sort of an alarm clock that tells everyone, "it's time to wake up, repent for your sins, and do good for your neighbors."
This idea of blowing the shofar outdoors publicly actually started during the COVID-19 pandemic and now is still going in its fourth year.
Although Rosh Hashanah ended at sundown, the Jewish High Holy Days continue through Yom Kippur next Sunday and Monday. The shofar is part of that holiday with a long, loud blast which means the Jewish faithful can stop fasting.
