2008 Woodie Awards
Jewish new year, Chabad center unite community
By: Raelene Willis
Issue date: 10/1/08 Section: Features
It is still 2008, but the Jewish new year, Rosh Hashana, has arrived.
It is a day to reflect on the previous year - to make sure people are on the right track, said Rabbi Mendy Zwiebel, co-director of the Chabad Jewish Center, which doubles as a home for him and his wife.
"God looks at the world and decides our fortune for the coming year," he said.
The celebration, which began Monday and continues through today, consists of services, a feast of sweet food to bring in a sweet new year and a time to accept God as king, Zwiebel said.
But for some Jewish students, the holiday is not just a celebration, but a time to connect with the people of their faith.
"It's hard coming to Chico because there's not a big Jewish presence," junior Kaylee Volpert said. "No one can really connect with you on that level."
Volpert grew up in Los Angeles, where she lived in a Jewish community and attended a Jewish day school, she said.
Because the holiday falls in the middle of the week, Volpert couldn't spend the holiday with her family, she said. Instead she went to the Jewish center to be with people who share her views.
"Not that I'm a religious person, but on holidays like these, it's nice to be with someone who has done these things in the past," she said. "The Chabad creates such an amazing Jewish community that you feel like you're with family celebrating."
Senior Isaac Roberts plans to celebrate the new year but wasn't always into the holiday, he said.
He lost interest in Judaism after attending a private school, which made him turn a blind eye toward the religion, he said.
"I went to a private Jewish school where if you didn't pray loud enough, they would yell at you," he said. "Of course I'm going to lose it."
When he came to Chico, his faith remained locked away because he had only seen "about four or five Jews, maybe," he said.
But one day, Roberts got a surprise after hopping out the shower, he said. Outside his open window there was a "big, Jewish-looking guy."
He ran outside to meet "Rabbi Mendy" and since then, Zwiebel has helped Roberts relearn and reclaim his faith to Judaism, he said.
"When I saw him, I charged out the door in my towel," he said. "We spoke, he invited me over and I've been going ever since."
Roberts continues to go to the center almost every Friday night for dinner.
"It's cool and nice to see a bunch more Jews," he said. "Especially in Chico, where there are some that are religious and some that aren't."
On Rosh Hashana, Roberts will be helping with service at the center and indulging in sweet treats such as apples and honey, he said.
The feast and prayers are done three times a day, so practicing Jews can take time off to follow their faith, said Sandra Flake, provost of academic affairs. In fact, she's asked teachers and staff to accommodate students' religions.
"We don't observe their holidays in the same ways we have traditionally," she said. "So, I'm simply asking that our faculty accommodate that, just as some of our faculty observes these holidays because of their religious practices."
Roberts and Volpert will be taking time off class to practice their faith by going to the services, they said.
But junior Talia Israel plans only to join the night services and feasts because she finds schoolwork more important, she said.
"I structure my life around Judaism," Israel said. "I don't base my life around it. I follow it as a guideline of what I want my life to be."
Zwiebel plans to start the new year right by inviting anyone to come and join the festivities, he said.
"We have this world in front of us and we can use it however we want," he said. "We have to take this into consideration and know we have the ability to affect the world, good and bad."
The shofar, a ram's horn used to let God know he has been accepted as king, will be blown at a quarter to noon today for anyone wanting to join, Zwiebel said.
Raelene Willis can be reached at
rwillis@theorion.com
It is a day to reflect on the previous year - to make sure people are on the right track, said Rabbi Mendy Zwiebel, co-director of the Chabad Jewish Center, which doubles as a home for him and his wife.
"God looks at the world and decides our fortune for the coming year," he said.
The celebration, which began Monday and continues through today, consists of services, a feast of sweet food to bring in a sweet new year and a time to accept God as king, Zwiebel said.
But for some Jewish students, the holiday is not just a celebration, but a time to connect with the people of their faith.
"It's hard coming to Chico because there's not a big Jewish presence," junior Kaylee Volpert said. "No one can really connect with you on that level."
Volpert grew up in Los Angeles, where she lived in a Jewish community and attended a Jewish day school, she said.
Because the holiday falls in the middle of the week, Volpert couldn't spend the holiday with her family, she said. Instead she went to the Jewish center to be with people who share her views.
"Not that I'm a religious person, but on holidays like these, it's nice to be with someone who has done these things in the past," she said. "The Chabad creates such an amazing Jewish community that you feel like you're with family celebrating."
Senior Isaac Roberts plans to celebrate the new year but wasn't always into the holiday, he said.
He lost interest in Judaism after attending a private school, which made him turn a blind eye toward the religion, he said.
"I went to a private Jewish school where if you didn't pray loud enough, they would yell at you," he said. "Of course I'm going to lose it."
When he came to Chico, his faith remained locked away because he had only seen "about four or five Jews, maybe," he said.
But one day, Roberts got a surprise after hopping out the shower, he said. Outside his open window there was a "big, Jewish-looking guy."
He ran outside to meet "Rabbi Mendy" and since then, Zwiebel has helped Roberts relearn and reclaim his faith to Judaism, he said.
"When I saw him, I charged out the door in my towel," he said. "We spoke, he invited me over and I've been going ever since."
Roberts continues to go to the center almost every Friday night for dinner.
"It's cool and nice to see a bunch more Jews," he said. "Especially in Chico, where there are some that are religious and some that aren't."
On Rosh Hashana, Roberts will be helping with service at the center and indulging in sweet treats such as apples and honey, he said.
The feast and prayers are done three times a day, so practicing Jews can take time off to follow their faith, said Sandra Flake, provost of academic affairs. In fact, she's asked teachers and staff to accommodate students' religions.
"We don't observe their holidays in the same ways we have traditionally," she said. "So, I'm simply asking that our faculty accommodate that, just as some of our faculty observes these holidays because of their religious practices."
Roberts and Volpert will be taking time off class to practice their faith by going to the services, they said.
But junior Talia Israel plans only to join the night services and feasts because she finds schoolwork more important, she said.
"I structure my life around Judaism," Israel said. "I don't base my life around it. I follow it as a guideline of what I want my life to be."
Zwiebel plans to start the new year right by inviting anyone to come and join the festivities, he said.
"We have this world in front of us and we can use it however we want," he said. "We have to take this into consideration and know we have the ability to affect the world, good and bad."
The shofar, a ram's horn used to let God know he has been accepted as king, will be blown at a quarter to noon today for anyone wanting to join, Zwiebel said.
Raelene Willis can be reached at
rwillis@theorion.com
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