Those of you who feel particularly reverent about Rosh Hashanah will not find this amusing.
I'm a pretty much non-observant Jew. I've been inconsistent in my level of involvement with Judaism over the past 50 years or so. At the moment, I really don't do much beyond going to shul on high holy days and lighting candles on Chanukah. Honestly, I like the rituals and usually enjoy going to shul, but it hasn't fit well with the rhythm of my life in recent memory. It is with this background that I offer my observations after a couple of visits to services last night and this morning.
After sitting down in the sanctuary I look around, and my immediate impression is, "Wow, there are a lot of Jewish-looking people here." Granted, this should not be a surprise, but it still strikes me.
One of the things that I like about the services at my shul is the relative lack of what we call the "zum zum" part of the service. This is the part when the rabbi and hazzan are not leading a prayer but are instead praying themselves, and an undetermined number of apparently more-educated-and/or-devout-than-me people in the congregation are muttering "zum zum zum" or actually reading words but speaking too low for anyone to hear them.
I rarely go to shul, but when I do I try to really pay attention and participate. It always bothers me that people talk, sometimes at length, for example during a haftorah reading. I think, why are you here? Are you just showing your face to whoever? Why come if you're not going to actually participate, not to mention distracting others? It's like kids who talk in class. It's a selfish act.
Since I have pretty much zero Hebrew vocabulary but know the phonics, one of my favorite pastimes is "find what they're up to." This involves letting your mind wander for a minute or so, then try to find where they reader is in the middle of a paragraph. Maybe it sounds stupid but I can occupy myself for quite a while doing this. You can also race your family members.
I have never mastered the davening sway and it's an embarrassment. I also never know how long I'm supposed to stay standing during the silent prayer. I do actually think about what I want to pray, but it never takes very long. I feel stupid sitting down when the guy in front of me does, like I'm at a ballgame, but that seems to be what I end up doing.
Over the years it has become gradually more acceptable for people to applaud a particularly good shofar blast. I used to get scolded as a kid if I tried to do that instead of muttering a congratulatory zum zum.
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I find this fascinating. Even peripherally, this beats Christianity.
The only exposure I have to Christianity is my father-in-law's Lutheran church. That ceremony is totally scripted, so there is no room for meditation, contemplation, or extemporaneous displays of any sort, outside of the "Let us pray" drek.
From what I gather of your experience, even if you don't talk the talk an atmosphere abides whereby you are drawn in, albeit margianlly, but it beats being told when to sit and stand and sing.
Of course, I'm a Buddhist, and those guys don't care what the hell you do, but contemplation at least is for real. Take a couple of minutes, or take a lifetime, but find God, or you do this all over again. Ain't that a motivator....
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