Why is there a second day of Rosh Hashana?
Rosh Hashana is a one day holiday to be celebrated on the first day of the Hebrew month of Tishri. Traditional Jews celebrated for two days, while many Reform congregations observe just one day. The reason for the difference comes from the fact that the lunar calendar was based on the announcement of the “bet din” (Jewish court) in Israel. The court would announce the beginning of the new month every 29 or 30 days, and then send messengers throughout the land to announce their declaration. Since many Jews outside the land of Israel would never receive confirmation of the court’s ruling, they were unsure of when the new month began. This lack of information meant that every holiday would have to be kept for TWO days to make sure that the sacredness of the day would be maintained. Since the doubt about the certainty of the calendar no longer exists (we now have an established calendar), many reform Jews have eliminated the second day for all holidays. Traditional Jews still maintain the
