(WBIR) Wednesday night marked the start of the Jewish New Year, known as Rosh Hashanah.
On the University of Tennessee campus, the Jewish student group Hillel met for a traditional holiday meal. Customs include eating foods, apples in particular, with honey to bring about a "sweet" new year and sounding the shofar, which is a ram's horn.
The group's adviser said that Rosh Hashanah is special even for Jews who aren't typically as observant throughout the year.
"Even to this day, for most Jews, even Jews who aren't regularly observant during the year, there's something special about certain times of year. So Rosh Hashanah is a time of year that a Jew will celebrate even if they're not particularly observant during the year. Passover is another, they'll make an effort to have a Passover Seder, so it's just a very special days in the Jewish year," Deborah Oleshansky said.
Reform Jews tend to observe Rosh Hashanah for one day, while Conservative or Orthodox Jews observe it for two days.
