Tashlich 2004
Sunday, September 19, 2004
Our annual congregational Tashlich service was held on Sunday, September 19, at the Riverwalk Inn, 329 Old Guilbeau Road. The day’s activities began about 12:30 P.M., after Religious School. Thanks to the generosity of innkeepers and Temple members, Jan and Tracy Hammer, we gathered for a picnic on the Inn’s grounds on the banks of the San Antonio River. There was a brief service, conducted by Rabbis Block and Bergman Vann, with song leading by Caitlin Smith, and the sounding of the shofar by Michael Rubenstein.
During the High Holy Day period, we Jews seek forgiveness for our sins. Tashlich is an ancient ceremony during which bread crumbs or pebbles, representing sins committed during the last year, are cast into a river. Our hope is that our sins, like the breadcrumbs or pebbles in the river, will be carried far away from us during the year ahead. Tashlich was not practiced in Reform congregations for many years. However, many have re-adopted the practice recently as a revitalization of the Jewish tradition and as a tangible way for children to relate to the process of repentance.
