Ottawa, Ontario – Prime Minister Stephen Harper today issued this statement to mark Rosh Hashanah, or Jewish New Year:
“In the coming days, Jewish communities across Canada will come together to celebrate the start of the Jewish New Year, or Rosh Hashanah.
“Rosh Hashanah is a time of both communal celebration and personal reflection. It is a time to reflect on the past year, and to look forward to the new one with hope and optimism. In the coming days, Jewish communities will come together to pray, hear the blowing of the shofar, the traditional ram’s horn, which is a symbolic call to repent for the sins of the past year, and to eat apples and honey, which symbolize the coming of a sweet New Year. They will also perform tashlich, or the symbolic casting of sins into a body of water.
"This period of observance provides an opportunity for all Canadians to acknowledge the invaluable contributions of the Jewish community in building a peaceful, pluralistic and prosperous Canada.
"Once again, I wish everyone in Canada and around the world celebrating Rosh Hashanah a very sweet New Year.
"L’Shanah Tovah Tikatevu V'Tichatemu.”