Skip to content

This site is no longer being updated as of June 2021. For the latest news and stories, visit Vassar News.

College Co-hosted Rosh Hashanah EventTashlich Service was held with Vassar Temple congregation

In what has become a tradition during observances of the Jewish High Holy Days on the Vassar campus, the college co-hosted a service with the congregation of Vassar Temple of Poughkeepsie at Sunset Lake on Monday.

Sunset Lake is the venue for Vassar’s annual Tashlich ServicePhoto: Tamar M. Thibodeau

The service, known as Tashlich, is a component of the celebration of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, said Elizabeth Aeschlimann, Rachlin Director for Jewish Student Life and Assistant Director of the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life and Contemplative Practices. “We throw bread crumbs into the water to symbolize the release of our mistakes and shortcomings from the past year,” Aeschlimann explained. She said the ritual dates from the Middle Ages.

The service was one of several to be held on the campus this month in observance of the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. “It’s a time of reflection on the year that has passed and spiritual realignment for the year that we are entering,” Aeschlimann said.

More information about observances of the High Holy Days on campus.