DO YOU WANT ME?
By Rabbi Moishe New
Rosh Hashanah is unlike any other Jewish holiday. And you’ll notice something very unusual if you open up the Torah itself. When it comes to Passover, the Torah says: we celebrate because G-d took us out of Egypt. Sukkot: because He protected us in the desert. Yom Kippur: because it’s a day of forgiveness. Shavuot: the harvest, and the giving of the Torah.
But Rosh Hashanah? All the Torah says is: “On the first day of the seventh month... it shall be a holy day... you shall sound a sound.” That’s it! No explanation. No story. No context.
Why the silence?
THE ORAL LAW SPEAKS
To understand, we turn to the Oral Law—the teachings G-d gave Moses at Sinai, passed down through the generations. And what do we learn? Two crucial things.
First, Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the year. Yes, even though it’s the seventh month! That’s when the “clock resets” and the year number changes.
Second, Rosh Hashanah is Judgment Day. On this day, G-d decides the fate of all creation—who will live, who will prosper, who will be blessed with health, livelihood, marriage, children. We pray that we ‘are written and sealed in the Book of Life’.
But if we stop there, we’ve only touched the surface. On the contrary, given the enormous significance of the day, Torah’s virtual silence is even more puzzling.
WHAT’S REALLY HAPPENING
At a deeper level, something even more dramatic is taking place. Each year on Rosh Hashanah, G-d pulls back, as it were, and asks: Do I even want to continue this project called creation? Do I want a relationship with mortal man? After all, He was doing just fine before the world existed.
And here’s the astonishing thing: He waits for us to answer. Rosh Hashanah is the day we convince G-d to “sign on again,” to reinvest in creation, in His relationship with each and every one of us, with even more love than before. How? By coronating Him as King.
THE SHOFAR: OUR CRY
This is why the shofar is so central. Not a polished trumpet, not a choir, not an orchestra—though the Temple had all of those every day. On Rosh Hashanah, it’s the simple, raw sound of a ram’s horn. Why? Because it’s the sound of the soul. A primal cry that says: “I am Yours. I surrender to You. Every part of me is a vessel for You alone”.
The shofar bends, just as we bend before G-d. It is both a wake-up call to repentance and the coronation blast of the King.
And that’s why we observe Rosh Hashana again and again. For true love ever deepens. ‘Want me deeper’ says G-d, so that I connect to you ever deeper.
OUR ROLE IN CREATION
This is why the Torah is so vague on what we celebrate on this day. G-d is saying that this time He’s not writing the script. It’s our turn. G-d is waiting for us to invite Him into our lives.
Kosher sanctifies breakfast, lunch, and supper. Shabbat sanctifies time itself. A mezuzah sanctifies our homes. Even the most ordinary moments—eating, resting, walking into a room—become eternal when infused with His will.
A breakfast can be just a breakfast... or it can be a holy act that connects heaven and earth.
DAYS OF AWE
This is why these days are called Days of Awe. Because on Rosh Hashanah, G-d steps back and says: Do you want Me? And we respond with the shofar blast: Yes, we want You. Yes, we crown You as our King.
And that is truly awesome.
Passover is G-d choosing us. Rosh Hashanah is us choosing Him. That’s why it is not just another holiday—it is the heart of our relationship with G-d.
A NEW YEAR BEGINS
So as we stand together this Rosh Hashanah, let us hear the shofar not just with our ears, but with our hearts. Let its simple, pure cry awaken in us the courage to open our lives more fully with G-d in one more area, one more step, one more mitzvah than before.
And in that moment, He chooses us again. Creation is renewed. And the year ahead is blessed.
May we all be inscribed and sealed for life, health, and revealed goodness.
