submitted by dames@augsburg.edu
We are entering the Jewish High Holy Day season, which runs for the entire lunar month of Tishrei this year from Monday evening, September 6 – Wednesday, September 29. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are listed on secular calendars, but there is another 9-day holiday called Sukkot, right after Yom Kippur. It is a big harvest celebration but it is not listed on calendars.
The second set of holidays, Sukkot, is likely much less observed among our Jewish students and faculty, though some students will not go to class on the first two and last two days of Sukkot (dates below).
For college students, being away from home for these holidays can highlight the homesickness and the yearning to be in the nest, and for some, quite the opposite. If you celebrate Christmas, imagine staying on campus while most students return home for the holiday. If you celebrate Ramadan, this season is similar to that month of observance. The University of Minnesota Hillel will welcome students and can be reached through http://www.mnhillel.org.
The greeting for this season is, “Sha-NAH to-VAH”. meaning Happy New Year.
How to be an ally: We encourage you to have conversations with your Jewish students and colleagues about their observances. If you are aware that students or colleagues are Jewish, it would likely be welcomed to ask them how they observe the holidays and what they mean to them. Since Jewish students and colleagues may or may not self-identify, you may want to announce an invitation to ”any Jewish students/faculty” to talk with you about what this next month is for them, vis a vis classes or being far (or near) family. To further be an ally you could also move important meetings or events away from Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Augsburg Religious Holidays Policy https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bsiyBZp2sQHfuA2jUGM2cnagAlz_tb0W-TIPnlocSus/edit?usp=sharing