Lesson for Rosh HaShanah

Feast of TrumpetsHearing YHWH’s Call

ObjectiveStudent will be able to associate the blowing of the shofar on Rosh HaShanah with the sound of YHWH’s personal call to us by looking at occasions when shofar blowing occurs in scripture (including YHWH’s blowing His shofar and commanding shofar blowing on RH/Feast of Trumpets), looking at a videos*, singing, and having discussion about hearing and obeying YHWH’s call.

Memory/Scripture Verse(s)•I Cor.5:17 “Therefore if anyone is in Messiah, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new” WEB

Rosh HaShanah or Feast of Trumpets or Yom Teruah meaning "day [of] shouting/raising a noise“ Greeting: “Shana Tovah” /"[have a] good year"

GAME: Guess that sound? What does this sound mean?

https://www.freesound.org/people/juskiddink/sounds/152763/ The sound: A ball bouncing across a gym floor.Meaning: Someone’s playing. It’s game time.

Guess the sound and its meaninghttps://www.freesound.org/people/paubg_pou/sounds/111901/

Sound: Fire truck alarmMeaning: There is a fire somewhere that they are going To a put out

•What’s that sound and what does it mean?https://www.freesound.org/people/Sauron974/sounds/223368/

• Sound: A shofar • Meaning as taught in this lesson: At Rosh Hashanah, blowing of the

shofar means that it is the first day of the ten days of repentance, special days to ask YHWH to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all from our uncleanness. It is YHWH calling His people to Himself.

Shofar blowing in scripture• YHWH HAS A SHOFAR• YHWH was the first to blow His

shofar at Mt. Sanai at the giving to His people the commandments (Exodus 19:16) (Shavaot/Pentecost)• YHWH will blow His shofar at the

end of the age (I Thes. 4:16)

Shofar blowing in Scripture• Used in worship to declare

YHWH as King of the Universe (Ps. 98:5,6 “Sing praises to YHWH…with trumpets and the sound of the shofar, shout for joy before the King” CJB)• At the beginning of each every

month (Hebrew/Biblical month): Num. 10:10

Shofar blowing in scripture• To warn of approaching

danger (Ez. 33:3)

• In various aspects of war (Num. 10:9; Joshua 6:4-20; Judges 7:22; Chron. 3:12; Neh. 4:14; etc.),

Blowing the shofar on Rosh HaShanah (and Yom Kippur)

• YHWH says the shofar is to be blown on Rosh HaShanah and on Yom Kippur.

• Lev. 23:24 ““Tell the people of Isra’el, ‘In the seventh month, the first of the month is to be for you a day of complete rest for remembering, a holy convocation announced with blasts on the shofar.’ CJB• Also Numbers 29:1 • “Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month,

on Yom-Kippur, you are to sound a blast on the shofar; you are to sound the shofar all through your land;” (Lev. 25:9 CJB)

YHWH’s shofar’s call on Rosh HaShanah Commentators allocate several reasons for the shofar’s call on Rosh HaShanah, for this lesson, this reason is noted. • The most important reason that the

shofar is blown on Rosh HaShanah is that the Shofar’s Call is a commemoration of Messiah’s return to earth. In addition, blowing the shofar signifies YHWH calling his people to “wake up”/to become alert to His call, to repent/turn away from past wrongs and live a new life of obedience to His Torah – through Yeshua Messiah, by His Ruach.

Shofar blowing on Rosh Hashanah • The most important reason that the shofar is blown on

Rosh HaShanah is that YHWH tells us to do so and we obey.• Blowing the shofar signifies YHWH calling his people to

“wake up”/to become alert to His call, to repent/turn away from past wrongs and live a new life of obedience to His Torah – through Yeshua Messiah, by His Ruach HaKodesh/Holy Spirit.•Blowing the shofar is prophetic. It signifies Messiah’s

return!

How a shofar is madehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpKviLJnV2E

The Four Blasts• Explain that YHWH wants everyone to repent. And He wants every one to hear HIS CALL. • So, as a reminder/to make certain that we hear the shofar, it is blown four times. It’s a

symbol that YHWH is repeatedly calling us to Himself and he does so in different ways.• Ask students if they’d like to hear those four ways.• You-tube video of Jim, the Shofar man blowing the four traditional sounds :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grZDPCKORGg • Tekiah: One blast, a few seconds long, that ends abruptly.• Shevarim: Three one-to-two-second short blasts that rapidly scoop from low to high in pitch.• Teruah: Nine short, rapid blasts.• Tekiah Gedolah: This is one long, continuous blast, traditionally held for nine counts, but some will

often hold it for as long as possible.(Remember, students can mimic these sounds if time permits)

Discussion Points (and answers) for students to Personalize lessonQuestions: • Does YHWH uses His shofar today? • If he doesn’t, Is he still calling His people? • Does He still have things to say to us? • What are some ways YHWH calls us? • Answer/possible responses: • He uses men and women to speak His Word to His people: Isaiah 58:1 “Cry aloud…Lift up your voice like

a shofar, and show my people their transgression..” • Our voice can be used as Yah’s shofar: Ez..33:1-10 tells of the prophet’s voice being the trumpet/shofar

that is blown to warn Yah’s people. HEARING Yah’s prophet(s) and the people Yah speaks through, is hearing Yah’s shofar.

• (Ask older students to read the scriptural references) • The Bible is YHWH’s Word and He speaks through His Word2 Tim. 3:16 ‘ALL scripture is God-breathed..”)• Yah speaks through his Son, Yeshua whose Spirit dwells in us (1 Cor. 3;16). Hebrews 1: 1,2 “In the past,

G-D spoke to our forefathers through the prophets …but in these last days he has spoken to us by His Son…”

More Discussion Points and Answers• Question: • How can we LISTEN to YHWH’s call or His Voice.• Answer: to show that we listen to YHWH We OBEY! Jerimiah 7:23 “But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you.John 14:15 “If you love me you will keep my commandments. Yeshua• Question: “Do you think that there are times that YHWH calls at us (blows His

Shofar) and we don’t hear?”• Response: Have students share their personal experiences.

Optional Activity BMaking Shofars https://joyfuljewish.wordpress.com/2011/09/18/blow-your-own-paper-shofar/

Link with instructions and credit and thanks to the person who provided this idea which is NOT my own.

Materials: party horns, cardstock or construction paper, double sided tape, stickers and crayons to decorate.

Directions: Cut out the shofar and decorate with crayons and/or stickers. Stick together with double sided tape (as per the instructions printed at: http://www.cajestl.org/documents/ShofarCraftProject.pdf , and roll the handle to fit around the hooter. Secure with sticky tape.

Instructions taken from: https://joyfuljewish.wordpress.com/2011/09/18/blow-your-own-paper-shofar/

• You will need:• – light card or heavy paper cut in the shape of a shofar (I used the pattern from here:

http://www.cajestl.org/documents/ShofarCraftProject.pdf and just narrowed the shape of the handle slightly.)

• – the hooter part of the type of party favor where you blow and part of it extends. (What are these called? Party horns? If you google “party hooters” some of the photos are a bit risqué!)

• – double sided tape and sticky tape• – marker, glue and glitter, stickers etc. to decorate

• Cut out the shofar and decorate with textas or stickers. Stick together with double sided tape (as per the instructions printed on the .pdf), and roll the handle to fit around the hooter. Secure with sticky tape. That’s it! Then put in your ear plugs and let everyone else go blow their horn

Optional Craft B New Year party Hat (or adjust to make a decorated horn) (Directions at website below. Not original idea. See source below.)http://www.jumpstart.com/common/new-year-hat

Instruction for making hat or horn. This doesn’t have to be as elaborate but having “La Shana Tova” or “Happy Rosh Ha Shana” in glitter would be nice. What You Need• Construction paper – any color you like ; Stones of different colors and sizes• Scissors; Glue; Ribbons – any 2 bright colors Directions:1. The first step is to make a cone from the construction paper. For this, use a ribbon and measure the circumference of your

head. The length of the ribbon that goes around your head will be the diameter of a circle. Draw a circle with a radius half of the length of the ribbon on your construction paper. Cut the circle.

2. Cut out a little more than a quarter of the circle and fold it as shown in the pictures below.3. Fold the construction paper to get the cone shape of desired size, but don’t stick the ends together yet. Mark the centre top

of the cone. (You can cut the construction paper if too much is being folded inside.)4. Take 2 ribbons of different colors. Cut each small piece of ribbon into thin strips, from the bottom to a little more than half its

length, like in the picture below.5. Glue the ribbon to the construction paper, where you marked the top of the cone. Let the strips hang out. If you make a horn,

omit this step6. Now fold the construction paper again and glue the ends together so you get the cone shape with the ribbon strips hanging

out. Looks funky already, doesn’t it?7. I’s time to decorate the hat as you like! Here, we’ve taken a strip of red ribbon long enough to go around the mouth of the

hat. We’ve glued different stones along the length of the ribbon to give it a fun, simple pattern.8. Once the stones have been stuck to the ribbon, you can now stick the ribbon around the open mouth of the cone. 9. Use glue to stick sequins in the shape of 2012 and give the hat a dash of more glamor! You could also use glitter glue and save

the effort of sticking more sequins. (instead of the year as source states write “La Shana tova” of Happy Rosh Ha Shanah”

Song: Shofar Callin’https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEOya0ZG0I0

• Shofar Callin': The Rosh Hashanah song for the Jewish New Year • “I can hear the shofar callin’, calllin’, callin’ • Listen up and no stalling • I think I should change my mind, (repentance)• God’s giving me the time• I don’t need another sign• I’m gonna get mine (reward/name in YHWH’s book of LIFE)” parenthesis

mine/Call students’ attention to the NEW mind/life in YESHUA and the reward of OBEYING YHWH’s call “I’m gonna get mine”

Credits: “Shofar Callin” by Prodezra Beats

Snack Ideas (kids can practice the three sounds with their snacks)• Eat corn horns/ Organic preferably• Slice turkey and/or cheese slice and roll them into horns• Ice cream sugar cones filled with trial mix• Traditional apple slices dipped in honey

Letter to Parent(s)• Dear Parents,In this season/Feast of Trumpets or Rosh HaShanah that heads or begins a solemn time of 10 days of repentance/awe, we encourage you recite the memory verse for the week and to pray each of these 10 days with your child(ren). On Rosh HaShannah, we encourage them to blow their “shofar”. Here’s a link to a fun Rosh HaShanah song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEOya0ZG0I0 La Shanah Tova “Have a good Year”