There is known custom to dip a sweet apple into honey during the first night meal of Rosh Hashana. A blessing of Ha’aitz is made over the apple before it is eaten and then the following prayer is recited, “May it be Your will, Hashem, our G-d and the G-d of our forefathers, that You renew for us a good and a sweet year.”
The question is why do we use an apple? The Talmud, based on a verse in Song of Songs, relates to us that the Jewish people are compared to an apple, for the growth and development of an apple is unique amongst fruits. In fruit trees generally, the protective leaf emerges first followed by the emergence of the fruit. However, the apple tree is different; the initial development is the fruit, and then the protective leaf appears.
Says the Talmud, when the Jewish nation was at Mount Sinai, anticipating receiving the Torah from G-d, they made the following statement to affirm their commitment, “Everything that G-d will tell us, we will do and we will listen.”
This statement that our forefathers made, appears to be out of order. Generally speaking when one is asked for a commitment to do something, they first ask what it is and only after hearing the details will they determine if they will commit to it or not, based on their ability and schedule. Yet, when the Jewish nation was asked if they will accept the Torah from G-d, they did not ask what it entails, rather they said, “We will do and then we will listen.” They reversed the normal protocol which is similar to the apple tree that produces its fruit before the protective leaves emerge. This is why the Jews are compared to an apple and this is why an apple is the primary fruit used to beseech G-d for a good sweet year.
The Talmud tells us that on Rosh Hashana there is much significance to omens regarding foods. There are assorted fruits, vegetables and dishes, such as the head of a fish, carrots, leeks, and beets, over which we recite various prayers related to the items of food, and we beseech G-d for His protection for the new year.
The apple on Rosh Hashana evokes our unique relationship with G-d, reminding us that we originally accepted the Torah blindly and conveys our total trust and reliance upon G-d.
This is significant because the primary function of our service on Rosh Hashana is to recognize that G-d is our King, the Creator of the world and of mankind (Adam), and it is to Him to whom we pray and declare our loyalty. This expression and display of commitment and loyalty to the Almighty on Rosh Hashana, is a determining factor as to how G-d will judge us for the coming year.
We dip the apple into honey. What is the significance of honey? Yes, it is sweet. Sugar is also sweet – and in fact the Sephardic custom on Rosh Hashana is to dip Challah into sugar.
When we take a deeper look into honey we will see a hidden gem and how it relates to the Ten Days of Repentance, which begin on Rosh Hashana. Honey is unique because it is produced by a non-kosher bee, yet it is kosher. The Talmud explains why bee honey is kosher.
Honey can act as a preservative for whole items and it also has the property of dissolving fragments that are within it. If a piece of a non-kosher bug got stuck in the honey, over time the honey will dissolve it and turn it into honey and the honey is permissible to be eaten.
These two interesting components of honey, that its source is non-kosher, and it dissolves non-kosher parts, teach an important lesson for us during these ten special days when G-d is extremely close to us and eagerly waits for us to change our ways to serve G-d properly.
An Avairah – sin – is something that G-d abhors. Yet we are human, and G-d knows that we all have our tendencies and pitfalls. He therefore instilled a great gift into the Torah and that is the power that we each have to repent – to do Teshuva. The power of Teshuva is miraculous and defies logic. A person can sin, and then wipe it away, by abandoning the sin, being remorseful, confessing and making a commitment not to return to it. Each and every day we have the ability to repent and there are two convenient blessings in the Amidah that address repentance.
During the Ten Days of Repentance the prophets tell us that G-d is close to us and He seeks our closeness through repentance so that we secure the gift of life for the coming year.
Honey which comes from a source that is non-kosher is comparable to a sin. Going through the process of Teshuva provides a person with the ‘sweetest’ feeling of being exonerated from sin.
Honey also dissolves non-kosher that fell into it and turns it into honey. Here we see an added feature of sincere Teshuva when it comes through Ahava – love of serving the Almighty. Our Sages teach us that when one repents out of love – it is so powerful, that the sins that were committed actually turn into merits! This is similar to honey that turns that which is non-kosher into honey!
There is no better deal than this!
