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September 6, 2002/Elul 29 5762, Vol. 55, No. 1
Holidays are the time to teach our children
DONNA HARRIS
Special to Jewish News
As children begin religious school this fall, it is important to keep them interested and appeal to their needs. Fall is the perfect time of year to focus on Judaism, as we all need a chance to start over.
Even young children can feel they can make a difference - they can donate their used toys, clothing or simply welcome a new classroom friend by sharing a red crayon and a smile.
Our matriarchs and patriarchs, in their wisdom, gave us four fall festivals to celebrate. The impact of the total season is greatly enhanced when we celebrate the entire cycle rather than simply observing individual holidays.
Rosh Hashana ushers in the High Holidays with apples dipped in honey for a sweet new year. Rosh Hashana is a very special holiday that gives us a chance to start over, wish L'shana tova to our friends and listen to the ancient custom of blowing the shofar. Discussing other ways of making announcements - and learning about current events with our children - can contrast with our past formidable task of getting out the news to a civilization. This opportunity of delving into our past gives us a chance to emphasize the positive and demonstrate man's nature to progress from darkness to light.
While children are too young to fast for the solemn day of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, they can be shown that saying sorry and forgiving can be a valuable life-affirming lesson. Once they get the hang of it, it will help them understand other people as well as themselves. Certainly as children become more familiar with differentiating right from wrong, they will make wiser life choices.
The delightful festival of Sukkot celebrates the gathering of the harvest, an important time to remind the children about past lessons learned. There is drama in relaying that Aaron, Moses' brother, visits our sukkah. Children easily believe that there are more invisible creatures in the universe than visible ones and why not give them a positive example.
Simchat Torah is the day of rejoicing when young and old sing, dance and pray around the Torah. Concluding the reading of the Torah is not complete in itself. Immediately after, we resume the privilege of beginning with the Bible's first verse, again emphasizing that completion of one cycle is only a link to reaching full development and context understanding.
Many demands are put on our young children. They, too, need time to refresh and renew. Religious school not only offers nourishment for the unfolding mind, it also gives positive spiritual expres- sion and provides meaning through an orderly existence. Positive attitudes and positive images are a challenge in our age of greed and depravity. Through the wonder and mystery of religion, children can aspire to reason and virtue.
Donna Harris is a religious school teacher at Temple Beth Israel.
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