L’shanah tovah! Or to all that do not speak Hebrew, “to a good year,” because it’s Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, once again.
This two-day Jewish holiday is known as the Day of Judgment, and is celebrated all over the world for people to reflect on what they need to change to become better human beings. It has been questioned whether Rosh Hashanah, along with the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur, should be school holidays.
In Jewish tradition, it is prohibited to work during the two days of Rosh Hashanah, yet in the U.S., teachers and students are expected to be in attendance during those days of celebration and worship. In the nation of religious freedom, it is ridiculous that our school district doesn’t give the two days off to respect our teachers, staff, and students of the Jewish faith.
Others might say that religion isn’t important in school. But in a country where children too young to understand what they’re saying are forced to recite the Pledge of Allegiance, which includes the line “one nation under God,” we are lying to ourselves if we think school and religion are separated.
Every year, we receive one week off for the religious holiday Christmas, a week for the nonreligious New Year, and another week for the religious holiday Easter.
It shouldn’t matter how many people identify with Judaism, Jewish students and teachers should be allowed to have the two days off to celebrate their new beginnings.