4 | SEPTEMBER 15 • 2022 

for openers

The Message of the Shofar
F

or a large portion of 
the Jewish world, Rosh 
Hashanah involves 
praying in synagogue, feeling 
solemn, and (maybe) having 
thoughts about 
apples and 
honey. However, 
in reality, if 
you tap into 
the spiritual 
potential 
of Rosh 
Hashanah, it 
can be a day that gives you 
a type of clarity unrivaled 
by anything else you have 
ever experienced. With the 
right things in mind, Rosh 
Hashanah can be a day that 
sets you up for a year of 
inspiration, motivation and 
genuine happiness. 
The shofar gives us a 
clear vision of what our 
thought process should be 
throughout the day. It is a 
call to attention that wakes 
us and shakes us up to the 

truth: G-d runs the world 
and is King over everything 
in it. The Rambam explains 
that we first blow a long 
unbroken blast called a 
tekiah to remind ourselves of 
the continuity and unity in 
the physical world that we 
are seeking to find in what 
appears to be a hectic and 
unconnected place. 
Afterward, we blow a 
broken blast called a teruah 
to reveal how fragmented, 
fractured, and distorted our 
world views (and lives) tend 
to be. The teruah symbolizes 
the fissures lying deep within 
ourselves. It also represents 
our inability to connect the 
dots and recognize that there 
is purpose and order in the 
world. 
Lastly, we blow a tekiah 
again. This time, it is not 
to remind ourselves of 
the unity, continuity and 
planning behind everything 
in G-d’s world. Instead, now 

that we have been woken 
up to the way the world 
really is (a unity of working 
parts interacting with one 
another due to planning 
and purpose) and have been 
reminded of the way we 
previously viewed it (broken 
and disconnected from a 
spiritual source), we take this 
newfound truth and express 
it back out again in the most 
profound sound you might 
ever hear. 

In a nutshell, the shofar 
gives us the real mindset of 
Rosh Hashanah: It reminds 
us that G-d is out there 
rooting for us, guiding 
us, running the show, and 
helping us see the unity and 
beauty in everything. 

Bob Barocas is the author of Legacy 

of Light: Revealing the Torah’s Eternal 

Relevance (Adir Press / Feldheim), a 

mentor and speaker for RJX/MEOR 

Rutgers and a contributing writer for 

Chabad.org.

Bob Barocas

PURELY COMMENTARY

Anti-Israel Views 
on Campus

As more synagogues and 
temples are enhancing their 
security and instituting 
membership security 
assessments, we see that 
universities and high schools 
are still breeding ground 
for anti-Israel, anti-Jewish 
sentiment. 
Many of these young 
people are prodded by the 
likes of Jews for Justice in 

Palestine, American Muslims 
for Palestine, Nazi National 
Socialists, etc. 
It is imperative we 
encourage our high school 
and college students to listen, 
be aware and document 
Jew- and Israel-hatred in 
their classrooms and school 
environments. 

— Ed Kohl

West Bloomfield

 

More to the Story: 
Eilu v’ Eilu

I am grateful for the very 
warm and laudatory article 
in last week’s issue noting my 
recent retirement from Beth 
Ahm, which summarized 
my various volunteer and 
staff roles in the Metro 
Detroit Jewish community 
since moving here in 1988 
(“A Lifelong Learner,” Sept. 
8, page 30). The writer 
succeeded in distilling a 

lot of information into her 
piece, and I appreciate how 
much she was able to convey 
to your readers.
I would like to mention 
two projects that meant a 
great deal to me which did 
not get mentioned in the 
article:
For me, the crown 
jewel of my work in this 
community was Eilu v’ Eilu, 
the pluralistic adult learning 
project of the Michigan 

letters

continued on page 6

