Jewish Holy Days

Ventura

* The Ventura County Jewish Council--Temple Beth Torah in Ventura will observe the Jewish High Holidays in a series of services.

The two most significant days of the season are Rosh Hashana--the Jewish new year--observed Sunday through Tuesday, and Yom Kippur--the Day of Atonement--which begins Sept. 29.

The first Rosh Hashana service begins at 8 p.m. Sunday.

At 10 a.m. Monday and Tuesday, the congregation will observe the arrival of the new year with the blowing of the shofar, a ram’s horn.

A 4 p.m. family service will be held at the temple. At a 5:30 oceanfront Tashlich service, the congregation will bring in Jewish year 5759 by casting bread crumbs, which represent the past year’s shortcomings, into the ocean.

At 1 p.m. Sept. 27, a graveside memorial service will be held at Ivy Lawn Cemetery in Ventura.

The Yom Kippur service will be held at the temple at 10 a.m. Sept. 30, followed by a healing service. The family service will begin at 2 p.m., and a Yizkor memorial service at 5 will close the High Holiday services.

A Sukkot Festival service will be held at the Ventura temple at 10 a.m. Oct. 5 to celebrate the ancient harvest of the wandering Israelites.

A Shabbat dinner in the Sukkah, a temporary dwelling constructed on the temple’s grounds, will be held at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 9.

Tickets are required for morning and evening services on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, said Annette Halpern, the temple’s director of communications. Children’s programs and child care also require reservations. However, tickets are not necessary for family services or the 10 a.m. service Tuesday.

For information or to make reservations, call the Temple Beth Torah office at 647-4181. The temple is at 7620 Foothill Road in Ventura.

Oxnard

* Services at congregation Am HaYam in Oxnard include Erev Rosh Hashana on Sunday and Yom Kippur on Sept. 30.

All activities, except for Tashlich, will be held at the Oxnard Monday Club at 1401 W. Gonzales Road. The Monday Tashlich service will begin at 3:30 p.m. at Oxnard Shores Beach.

For information, call 656-6634.

Thousand Oaks

* Temple Etz Chaim offers a special service for children and the entire family on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. The Monday Rosh Hashana service will begin at 2:30 p.m. On Yom Kippur, the service will begin at 2:30 p.m. Sept. 30 in the main sanctuary.

Tickets are not required and everyone is welcome.

Regular adult services will also be held at 9:30 a.m. on these dates.

At 1:45 p.m. Sept. 30, Leah Shechter will speak on “The Book of Jonah.”

“It is traditional to read this book in the afternoon,” she said. After her lecture in the Winer Chapel, a discussion on why the Book of Jonah is read on Yom Kippur will ensue. The teenage youth group of the temple will participate.

At 4:15 p.m. that day, a Yizkor Memorial Service will be held in the main sanctuary, followed by Mincha and Neilah services.

Temple Etz Chaim is at 1080 Janss Road.

For information, call the temple office at 497-6891.

Meiners Oaks

* Ojai Valley’s Jewish Community of the Oaks, K’hilat Ha’Aloneem, will celebrate the High Holidays in the sanctuary of the Southern Baptist Church at 530 W. El Roblar, which is across the street from K’hilat Ha’Aloneem at 619 W. El Roblar in Meiners Oaks.

Rabbi Baruch Cohon of Los Angeles will conduct the services with a newly formed choir directed by Bob Birk.

The Erev Rosh Hashana evening service will begin at 6 p.m. Sunday.

On Monday, the 9:30 a.m. Rosh Hashana service will be followed with an 8 p.m. service.

A 9:30 a.m. service is set for Tuesday.

Erev Yom Kippur will be held at 6 p.m. Sept. 29.

On Sept. 30, a 9:30 a.m. Yom Kippur service and Yizkor will start the day, which will also feature a 5:30 p.m. service and 7:30 p.m. break-the-fast potluck dinner, which will be held on the front lawn at K’hilat Ha’Aloneem.

One-hour children’s services will begin at 10 a.m. on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur next to the sanctuary. Parents may accompany their children. Child care will be available afterward until 12:30 p.m.

For information, call Hallie Katz at the center at 646-4464.

Camarillo

* Jewish families from JFC-Temple Ner Ami in Camarillo will mark the beginning of Rosh Hashana on Sunday with family meals, then gather for services at Congregation JFC-Temple Ner Ami at 6 and 8 p.m., said Marvin Krantz, president of the temple.

Rabbi Kenneth Milhander will deliver the evening services and Monday’s 10 a.m. service.

The temple is at 4098 Calle Tesoro, No. D.

Yom Kippur, which begins at sundown Sept. 29, will start with a Kol Nidre service at 8 p.m. at the temple. Yom Kippur ends with a long single blast of the shofar, and the High Holidays conclude with a celebratory break-the-fast meal.

On Sept. 30, morning services begin at 10; afternoon Yizkor and concluding services begin at 3:30.

For information, call the temple at 388-3824.

Simi Valley

* High Holiday services for Congregation B’nai Emet will be held at the Rancho Santa Susana Community Center in Simi Valley, beginning with Rosh Hashana services at 8 p.m. Sunday. They will continue with a 10 a.m. service Monday.

Yom Kippur services begin at 8 p.m. Sept. 29 and continue at 10 a.m. Sept. 30. A children’s service will be held that day at 1 p.m. Rabbi Michelle Paskow will lead a group discussion at 3:15 p.m. Sept. 30, and Yizkor will follow at 4:15 p.m.

Yiddish maven and Shoah Foundation translator Archie Barkan will speak at the 8 p.m. service Friday.

Rancho Susana Community Center is at 5005 Los Angeles Ave. For more information, call 583-0127.

Westlake

* Chabad of the Conejo will hold a Tashlich Walk on Monday.

The tradition of Tashlich consists of visiting a body of water containing live fish. A special prayer is recited at the water, during which Jews symbolically cast away their sins, said Rabbi Moshe Bryski of the Chabad.

The walk, in its ninth year, will begin at 4:30 p.m. at the Hyatt Westlake Plaza Hotel, 880 S. Westlake Blvd., and proceed to Westlake Lake.

Jews from all synagogues are invite to join in the Tashlich Walk. For further details, call (818) 991-0991.