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Special Observances For Rosh Khodesh

Women's Celebration

Rosh Khodësh has long been recognized as a women's holiday. In the Talmud [Masëkët Mәgilâh 22b], we read that women are exempt from work on Rosh Khodësh. Why do women merit a special holiday once a month? In Midrâsh Pirqe dәRabi Eliezer,, chapter 45, we are told that in the incident of the Golden Calf mask, the women refused to relinquish their earrings to the men who were smelting the calf. As a reward, ha-Sheim gave them an extra holy day each month, free from work. It is customary, if one has new clothing not yet worn, to wear new clothing on Rosh Khodësh, in celebration of the day's special character.

Men can add to Rosh Khodësh by volunteering to do the dishes, vacuum or laundry and bringing home (moon-shaped) crescent rolls for the ërëv meal. When practical, a special wine (including sparkling) or apéritif, as well as a special fruit (e.g. pomegranate) for dessert, may contribute to making the festival meal special.

Women are encouraged to use this evening to start a women's Rosh Khodësh group. Rosh Khodësh groups began in the early 1970's, as women gathered to explore the nature of women's spirituality and the role of Jewish women in ritual. The small group nature of Rosh Khodësh also served to provide a forum for women's studies and support. Through the years, ceremonies of various kinds have arisen out of these groups, involving a variety of themes (most prominently rebirth, renewal, fertility, nature, and the life cycle), ritual elements (including, but not limited to: tzәdâqâh, candles, feasting, water imagery), foods (such as fruits containing seeds, round khalot, crescent-shaped rolls, egg dishes, sprout salads), and liturgical elements (singing of Halleil Tәhilim and Birkat ha-Mâzon). Each group has its own character, shaped by the participants and serving their unique needs.

(Parts paraphrased from www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org.)

Liturgy

  1. שחרית; (Shakharit; pre-dawn darkness).
    1. On the Shabat preceding Rosh Khodesh is מברכין החודש (Mevarkhin ha-Khodesh; the announcement of the New Moon) is recited in יהי רצון (yehi ratzon; may it be His will…), after the recitation of Torah and Haphtarah.
    2. When Rosh Khodesh falls on Shabat, recite יעלה ויבא (ya·aleh wә-yavo) in Shakharit near the end of the Shәmoneh Esreih (in rәtzeh י--ה ).
    3. When Rosh Khodesh falls on Shabat, recite הלל (Haleil) at the end of the Shәmoneh Esreih, before the qadish.
    4. תורה (Torah); When Rosh Khodesh falls
      • On weekdays: the Torah reading is be-Midbar 28.1-15
      • On Shabat: the Torah reading is the Parashat Shavua and the Maphtir is be-Midbar 28.9-15
    5. הפטרה (Haphtarah)
      • If Shabat falls on Erev Rosh Khodesh then the Haphtarah מחר חודש (Makhar Khodesh; tomorrow is New Moon) — Shmueil Aleph 20.18-42 — supersedes the usual Haphtarah.
      • When Rosh Khodesh falls on Shabat: the Haphtarah is ישעיה ס"ו א'-כ"ד (Yeshayahu 66.1-24)
      • Note 66.23:

        והיה, מדי-חדש בחדשו, ומדי-שבת בשבתו; יבוא כל-בשר‮;

        For Christians who believe in the Displacement Theology of Danieil 7.25 (e.g. displacing Shabat with Sun-g*o*d-day) it is inconsistent to be looking forward to messianic days in which they will be required to observe Shabat — if they survive (for which see Yeshayahu 66.24)!

  2. מוסף (Musaph; Additional)
    1. When ראש חודש (Rosh Khodesh) falls on a week day, the מוסף ראש חודש (Musaph Rosh Khodesh) is recited
    2. When ראש חודש (Rosh Khodesh) falls on שבת (Shabat) then אתה יצרת (atah yatzarta) is inserted in the מוסף שבת (Musaph Shabat).
  3. ברכת הלבנה; (Birkat ha-Levanah; "Blessing of the Whiteness," i.e. the new moon / month)

    The ברכת הלבנה is recited

    1. in the open air
    2. in the evening
    3. between the 8th and 14th of the Judaic month (inclusive)
    4. the first evening the moon is clearly visible (not obscured by clouds)

    subject to the following:

    1. ברכת הלבנה is never recited on a יום טוב (yom tov). In such cases it is deferred until after Havdalah (but not recited after the 14th of the Judaic month).
    2. Where there is a problem of ערוב (eiruv; mingling) and the New Moon is first sighted on ערב שבת (Erev Shabat), reciting of the ברכת הלבנה is deferred until after Havdalah (but not recited after the 14th of the Judaic month).
    3. As a matter of convenience in Teimani Batei ha-K'neset, and subject to the moon being clearly visible, ברכת הלבנה is recited outside the Beit ha-K'neset after Havdalah of the Shabat which falls between the 8th and 14th of the Hebrew month, inclusive.
    4. Since few Batei ha-K'neset recite ברכת הלבנה today, you should recite it, outside, the first evening the moon is visible and unobscured between the 8th and 14th of the Hebrew month, inclusive. Please mark on your calendar when to recite ברכת הלבנה this month. (The text of ברכת הלבנה may be ordered from our Teimani Judaica Shoppe in our Mall).
    5. Within these constraints, according to the earliest Sages, the ראשנים (rishonim; first ones), the ברכת הלבנה is to be recited in the evening in which the New Moon is first sighted (or, if missed, the subsequent evening) until the 14th of the Judaic month. In order to be recited on Shabat (where an ערוב permits), the first sighting must occur on ערב שבת from the 2nd Shabat of the Judaic month through the 14th of the Judaic month.
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