Rosh Hashanah brings awakening, and stepped-up security, at Space Coast synagogues

It is a season of awakening and renewal but increasingly, also one where the thought of safety isn’t too far behind the spiritual.

Across Brevard County, Florida and the world, Jews will gather this weekend to mark the beginning of Rosh Hashanah and the High Holy Day season. Already, though, rabbis and congregational leaders in Brevard are eyeing security with the growth of demonstrations conducted by extremists and neo-Nazis and the spread of antisemitic propaganda dropped on lawns and driveways across the state.

“We will have extra security and surveillance for the High Holidays. Antisemitism doesn’t deter us. It all makes us much stronger and our resilience is infinite,” said Rabbi Zvi Konikov of the Chabad of the Space and Treasure Coast.

More: 'Kindling Joy': Brevard synagogue provides bread, honey for celebrants as Rosh Hashanah arrives

The two-day holiday, also known as the Jewish New Year, begins Friday at sundown and ushers in the 10-day period known as the Days of Awe, a time when Jews reflect, pray and focus on the sweetness of God's forgiveness and judgement. Synagogues typically see their biggest crowds during the period, one marked with the blowing of the shofar, prayers and penitence, according to the Hebrew Scriptures.

Because the holy day falls on the sabbath, the shofars won't be blown until Sunday.

“On a spiritual level, we should never be afraid and we should never be weakened. We are walking around without fear. God gave us this freedom, but we have to tend to his garden," Konikov said.

"And that is an important message for us to hear when we see the world getting darker and darker and that gives us the opportunity for more light. The real point for blowing the shofar is to wake up the nation. It brings a sense of awakening. It is not meant to scare us but to make us aware of our responsibility and that God is counting on us in these times."

There are three primary synagogues in Brevard County, with each taking security measures as Rosh Hashanah gets underway.

Some of the hate groups have over the last year demonstrated along roadways and, on Labor Day weekend, near the entrance of Walt Disney World.

In Brevard, antisemitic flyers were dropped along Indialantic and Melbourne Beach in June.

This past week, a Cape Canaveral man with ties to a neo-Nazi group was arrested on criminal mischief charges after he and others were seen protesting along Interstate 4 on June 10, hanging flags with antisemitic slurs and hate symbols from a bridge. Authorities say the man is aa member of the extremist group Order of the Black Sun, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement reported.

And in late August, someone scattered antisemitic flyers laced with white supremacist rhetoric across yards in some West Melbourne neighborhoods.

Despite the growing presence of hate groups and their messages, synagogue leaders remain undeterred.

The message of Rosh Hashanah, one that also talks about the promise of coronating God as King and ushering in a new world, remains the focus, Konikov said.

"We definitely feel that we have good people in this community," he said. "When we come together with love for one another, that's a start, holding hands together."

J.D. Gallop is a criminal justice/breaking news reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Gallop at 321-917-4641 or jgallop@floridatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Extra security in place for Rosh Hashanah gatherings on Space Coast