"Watchnight" and a Brief History of New Years

New Year's Eve and celebrating the New Year has a long tradition in Judaism and Christianity.  Among Protestant, Methodists under Wesley celebrated "Watchnight" New Year's Eve services as literally a sober occasion for reflection and confession. Prior to that, "watchnight" in the Catholic Church and among other Protestants typically referred to Christmas Eve services. 

New Year's as a "holy day" has been celebrated by many cultures and religions dating back to the dawn of human history. Typically celebrated during the Winter Solstice, they observed the shortening of days and the life to death to rebirth metaphor and reality of the natural world. Many ancient monuments around the world, such as, Stonehenge, speak to this human need to "mark time" and "pray for the future."

Roman's named January, the first month of the New Year, after the god "Janus" who was depicted with two heads: one looking back and one looking forward. 

The Hebrews, following a different calendar, celebrated the end of the year in the Fall during the Festival of Rosh Hashanah. Some scholars believe that this tradition came into Judaism from the Persians during the Babylonian Exile.

The making of noise on New Years, which is found in many cultures across time, harkens to the ancient idea of scaring away evil and calling the gods to bless the people. As with many other traditions, Jews and Christians borrowed and transformed these practices to point to God.

Rosh Hashana is also known as the "Feast of Trumpets." The shofar (horn/trumpet) of Rosh Hashanah announces God's blessing and calls people to worship in the New Year.

"Confession and Change" have long been themes in New Years and Rosh Hashanah celebrations, and they continue today where we call them "resolutions."  The pagan idea was that the return of the sun, the gods favor, could be won by confession and sacrifice. Today we recognize that God is not capricious, and that confession and the possibility of change are to be celebrated every day.

Jesus celebrated the New Year

Jesus undoubtedly observed Rosh Hashanah, and in his day, the meaning of it also had Messianic implications. Some believed that the "end of the world" or arrival of the Messiah might happen on the New Year. (Zechariah 14 predicts this day when the Messiah will stride on the Mount and split it in half.)  The Book of Revelation's multiple references to "blasts of trumpets" refers to the shophar and its tradition. 

HebrewForChristians has a terrific summary of the Jewish New Year and many different celebration ideas. http://www.hebrew4christians.c.../rosh_hashannah.html