#Teshuvah Prayer guide

[yhebrew]

The Heart of Teshuvah

/Why Teshuvah is key to prayer

Wednesday, May 12, 2021 Ministries of New Life Copied in entirety from Ministries of New Life website 12.30.22 “If My people, who are called by My Name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”  2 Chr. 7:14   Teshuvah is Hebrew for Return/Repent.  Learning our…

[todaysjewishholiday]

Elul Practices

Unlike with the high holy days, the shalosh regalim, or even the period of the Omer, there are no specific ritual mitzvot for the month of Elul. Instead, the entire month is oriented around the most fundamental biblical mitzvah: teshuvah, ie return. Return to our best selves, return to HaShem and the covenant, return to the care for each other that can heal the world.

But Judaism doesn’t leave us without resources to promote mindfulness of this work during Elul.

I. Shofar

Many Jewish communities begin weekday shacharit prayers with a shofar blast. This serves as a spiritual wake-up call, a reminder of the upcoming encounter of the Yamim Noraim. In the Torah the sound of a shofar blast proceeded from the cloud atop Mount Sinai at the making of the covenant between the newly liberated multitude and HaShem. Even before Rosh HaShana became the Jewish new year during the exile in Babylon, the first of Tishri was known as Yom T’ruah (Day of the Shofar Blast) or Zikhron T’ruah (the Memorial Shofar Blast). Because the watchman’s sounding of the shofar would also be used to call the community together in times of calamity or attack, the sounding of the shofar served to shake our forebears out of their routines and focus them in preparation for the Day of Atonement ten days later. The sounding of the shofar on each weekday in Elul brings this wake up call even earlier and invites us to set our lives in order.

II. Tehillim

Psalm 27 is also added to the morning and evening prayers during Elul. This change also reminds us of the spiritual focus of the month, with the poet’s appeal, “Hear, HaShem, when I cry aloud; show mercy to me and answer me. My heart tells me to seek your face. HaShem, I seek you.”

III. Selichot

Selichot (from the Hebrew word selichah meaning forgiveness) are special piyyutim written throughout the generations of Jewish history to aid in the spiritual work of teshuvah. In Sephardi communities, the custom is to hold a Selichot service every day beginning on the second of Elul, while in Ashkenazi communities Selichot services generally begin roughly a week before Rosh HaShana, with only four services. Whatever your minhag or personal practice, the selichot prayers can help direct the soul towards the repair that Elul invites us to seek.

IV. Other Practices

In the past half century, the Reform, Reconstructionist and Renewal movements have seen a flowering of new practices to guide teshuvah during Elul. Search the web and you’ll find Elul workbooks and meditations galore. Many Jewish communities across the spectrum also see Elul as a time for interpersonal reconciliation as well as soul-work and emphasize reaching out who we have harmed or offended in the past year to attempt to mend what we can. The work of tzedekah— our obligation to provide assistance to those in poverty from what resources we have— is also a crucial aspect of teshuvah that is explored in many Elul traditions.

Teshuvah is deeply personal, and it’s good to remember that no specific practice is obligatory. These are not mitzvot, they are tools we can draw on as we seek to fulfill the ultimate mitzvah of return to ourselves, our righteous vows, and our G-d.

While this work is deeply personal, I encourage you to counteract the overly individualist and isolating spirit of our times and remember that the heart of teshuvah is in relationship, and in recognizing the webs of reciprocity and community and obligation we’re woven into. Recognizing our collective connectedness is at the heart of the healing that we’re offered through the path of teshuvah, and we cannot repair ourselves in isolation. May your labors this month prove fruitful, whatever type of teshuvah you may choose to seek.

[challahbeloved]

I went to the Jewish bookstore today. Here are some titles I didn’t buy, but if you’ve read them, I’d like to know whether you recommend them or not.

In Forest Fields: a unique guide to personal prayer

Not in the Heavens: The Tradition of Jewish Secular Thought by David Biale

On the Road with Rabbi Steinsaltz: 25 Years of Pre-Dawn Car Trips, Mind-Blowing Encounters and Inspiring Conversations with a Man of Wisdom by Arthur Kurzweil

Stop Look Listen: Celebrating Shabbos Through a Spiritual Lens by Nehemia Polen

On Being Free by Adin Steinsaltz

My Grandmother’s Candlesticks: Judaism and Feminism, A Multigenerational Memoir by Diane Schulder Abrams

Festivals of Faith: CONNECT and GROW with the JEWISH YEAR by DISCOVERING Is ESSENCE by Rabbi Moshe Wolfson

Why We Tremble

Inside Teshuvah by Miriam Millhauser Castle

Opening the Gates of Teshuva: A Contemporary Commentary on Rabbeinu Yonah’s Shaarei Teshuva by Rabbi Asher Baruch Wegbreit

Knocking on the Gates of Teshuvah: Comments and Insights Rambam Hilchos Teshuvah by Rabbi A. Levin

Life After Teshuvah: Five, Ten, and Twenty Years Later

Vegetarianism, Ecology, and Business Ethics: Three Essays of Judaic Insights into Contemporary Concerns by Daniel Sperber

[euhemeria]

Time (Escapes Me) - Oneshot No.8

When she releases her stones into the ocean, that is what is most on her mind, the ways she has failed Fareeha in the past year, the ways she has failed herself, the pain she has caused both of them by promising that things will be different, but not actually making an effort to change.

Fandom: Overwatch Rating: G Characters: Angela Warnings: None A little thing for Rosh Hashanah (late for several reasons, not the least of which being that I don't have power right now), with Angela musing on how she hasn't always been the best partner to Fareeha. Also on ao3. This is Chapter 8 of a oneshot collection.

Novelty is exhilarating, for many people, is necessary, to stave off boredom, to be happy, to feel sane.  Angela has never been one of those people; the problem solving and excitement of her work has always been more than enough to keep her from feeling stultified in her everyday life.  In fact, she rather prefers that things not change, finds comfort in routine, in tradition, in repetition.

Religion is satisfying, in that way.  Yes, she appreciates it for providing a connection to her parents, an understanding of them and their values that time did not permit her to gain firsthand, and the ready community it provides when she moves from one place to another, yet again, but more than that there is continuity, an understanding that, no matter what came before, or what will come, some things will stay the same.  There is comfort in that, in knowing that she is one part of a larger whole, one moment in something that existed long before her and will persist long after, come what may, that there is nothing she can do to change that.

Few enough things in her life have felt so stable, and even those which have, like Overwatch, have evaporated in an instant.

Even Rosh Hashanah, which heralds the new year, is observed the same way every time.  Even when the place changes, the people, she knows what to expect with it, the same prayers, the same meal, the same wish for peace, for a good and sweet year to come, the same strange contrast between the somber service and the joy of children playing before dinner, not old enough, yet, to be burdened with guilt.  For all that they focus on the future, the promised return is only that—a return, life until the next new year.

She can appreciate that, appreciates, too, the seeking of forgiveness.  There is much she has to seek repentance for, at the end of another long year, much to cast off, even if she is not so good at the last part, at letting her failures go.  It is nice to have a period to devote to it, at least, nice to be able to tell herself, afterwards, that she has devoted appropriate time to it, to dwelling on the mistakes of the past, and can only do better now.  Otherwise, she might let it bog her down, the mistakes of the old days, of her past, all the things she did or said—and worse, the things she did not, words she spoke not.  After Yom Kippur, they will be truly behind her, and when that urge comes to ruminate, she can shake it off, can remind herself of what she has promised to do differently, the ways which she has sworn to change, and act on those, rather than sitting there in her misery, accomplishing nothing.

So there is change, too, yes, but in a way that feels safe, feels like continuity, like progress, like a choice, and always towards the same end: a better, sweeter future, a healed world.  That, she can accept, that, she will pursue.  With the same safe ritual, year over year, she can better herself, can feel safe in doing so because there is a guide for it, practical, a framework for understanding it.  Unlike so many other changes in her life, her repentance, the promises she makes during Tashlich, and will make through teshuvah on Yom Kippur, are ones she has chosen, are not the consequence of some event, sudden and catastrophic, are not forced upon her by her failures or the chaos of living, but are wholly in her control.

In this framework, that of choosing to right wrongs, to be a better person, doctor, friend, lover, it feels, if not quite safe, inevitable that certain things will need to change, to be done differently in the coming year.  It is still frightening, to imagine all the things she will have to do differently, to do right by Fareeha, to picture what it will look like to be more open about their commitment, and to be honest with herself about the fact that it is a commitment, that she has chosen Fareeha over the freedom to run, but it is freeing, too, to know that she has made a choice, to move past the uncertainty and to know what is going to happen.

(It will not make her any less nervous, the first time she introduces Fareeha as her partner, will not make her sound any more certain when she proposes, will not make it any less uncomfortable to be known by other people, to be recognized, when they are together, as a proper couple, but she will be braver in the face of those things, because she knows it is the right thing to do for Fareeha, the right way to treat her.  With that, with the idea that it is what she must do, that it is the better thing, she will be so much stronger than she would be otherwise.  There is much she can endure, if she knows that it is what she ought to do.)

For too long, she has told Fareeha just to wait until she is ready, until she is more certain.  For too long she has promised Fareeha that someday they will be able to be openly a couple, will be able to go out on proper dates and hold hands and make plans for the future.  For too long, she has asked Fareeha to take on faith that things will change, one day, but taken no steps to move towards that day.  It has hurt Fareeha, she knows it, even if she does not complain to Angela, most of the time, has decided that for now—if not forever—that what they have is enough for her. 

Angela does not want her commitment to be just enough for Fareeha to tolerate, she wants Fareeha to be truly happy, the way she is, wants, at least, to try and make good on her promises, wants to start moving towards the future.

(Fareeha is happy, of course, as things are.  The situation with Angela being closeted, yes, is one she tolerates, but the relationship itself is more than just acceptable, has made her happier and nourished her in much the same way it has Angela.  Still, Angela hates knowing that any part of their relationship is merely tolerable, hates the pain she causes Fareeha when she pulls away from holding hands in public, or stands just far enough away to keep people from getting the wrong—right—idea, hates knowing how avoidable it all is, and knows that she, too, would be happier, if they could do things differently.  Most of all, she hates knowing they could, if she were brave enough to make a change.)

So when she releases her stones into the ocean, that is what is most on her mind, the ways she has failed Fareeha in the past year, the ways she has failed herself, the pain she has caused both of them by promising that things will be different, but not actually making an effort to change. 

Next year, she tells herself, their relationship really will have changed.  They will be engaged, yes, if Fareeha accepts her proposal, but not just because of that; she will be more open about them, will be more able to say, in public my partner—or, by then my fiancée—will not shy away from what they are.  Next year, she will take Fareeha with her to Cima’s Rosh Hashanah dinner, will sit at the table beside her, will dip her challah into honey and then afterwards whisper to her love about the segulah for newlyweds, their challah dipped in honey every Friday for a year.  It is the sort of thing Fareeha might find charming, and so she imagines Fareeha talking her into it, despite her taking no stock in such superstitions.

(For Fareeha, there are many things she might do, might consider, which otherwise she would never.)

Next year, she will look to the future seated beside her love.  Next year, they will watch all the children at play and wonder—should they have one?  Next year, when no one is looking, she will dip another slice of apple into honey and press it to Fareeha’s lips, shocked at her own boldness.  Next year will be sweeter, if only she does what is right this year, if only she does what is good.

And she will.  She will.  It will not be easy, but she must do it, if she wants that sweeter future, and it will be easier, knowing it is not just for herself, knowing that it is what is right for Fareeha, will be possible, because she has promised before God that she will.

For Fareeha, for her happiness, she will do better.

[jjackrabbitt]

That Damned AU, Book 1, Pt. 2

They meet Martin and Amelia at the priest hole for lunch the next afternoon, after Frank and Jacob go bird watching. It’s kind of great. Amelia and Martin are hilarious together and their enthusiasm for the history of the island, and the bombed out orphanage, catch on with Frank. Soon he’s invested too. He doesn’t believe that Jacob will find anything up there more than dust, but the siblings excitement over the history and his sons little pet project are infectious

Martin doesn’t have a day to take off with either of his jobs that first week, so they decide Amelia will be their guide to the other side. Or just up the hill to the orphanage, either one works.

They get rained out that entire week. So they’re stuck with research. The closest they have to a library on the island is the Cairnholm Museum and Historical Society, so Martin does get to be included three out of the seven first days. He’s a great help, he knows just where he put the (admittedly few) texts and pictures of the old orphanage. He’s got some copies of pictures of the kids that were taken by cairnholm residents, some items taken from the house after the bomb, the deed to the land and plans for the house, all signed over to a Miss Alma LeFay Peregrine, and some news clippings talking about what the kids did in town on various dates.

Amelia and Martin are so excited to hear that Abe told Jacob stories about the kids. He can even put a few names to faces and tell them some of what Abe said they were like.

On Friday afternoon they hear over the radio that the skies should be mostly clear next week, and the four of them decide to go up on Monday.

Frank and Jacob have a…complicated relationship with Judaism. Abe lost his family when he was young, and Miss Peregrine wasn’t really equipped to keep him practicing. So his way of practicing was spotty, very pick and choosey. That’s not to say that it wasn’t important. Sure he didn’t go to any synagogue or remember a lot of the songs or celebrate most holidays or read torah or midrash, but he could spend time with Jacob on Saturdays and light the candles and hum the half remembered prayer his mame sang over them and keep kosher.

Frank didn’t really interact with Judaism at all growing up. He knew his father lit candles and hummed and wouldn’t eat a cheeseburger, but he didn’t have a clear picture of what it meant to be Jewish. He didn’t even have a bar mitzvah. He didn’t know that Abe didn’t have one either. Frank had never really felt connected to Judaism, or been concerned with it at all, but Susan had started doing her own research on it after their dad died, so of course he heard all about it. It was…surprisingly interesting. He’d never cared much for poetry either, but there were some interesting pieces about birds. He could see why these long dead people would write about them like they were miracles. He enjoyed the way the words started to make sense, how he no longer had to think about the difference between mikvah and minyan, teshuvah and tzedakah, ahavah and Abba. Of course learning this would never bring him closer to his father now, but it could give him a new understanding. He wasn’t sure he wanted to join a synagogue. But it did make him feel better, gave him something to do, to find his own small practices. He could think of why he was thankful or in awe of something with kavanah, intentional direction of the heart. He could find new restaurants to order from, ones that were kosher. He could do little celebrations with Jacob. The kid needed something good to be happening and as it turns out there’s a holiday almost every month.

Jacob hadn’t always know why Saturdays were his and his grandfathers day. He was so young he didn’t always pay attention to what day it was, just that he was with his grandpa, so he was having the best time. He knew that if he went over there and there were pirogis and the candles and his grandpa told funny stories, both of his childhood and people from thousands of years ago, and they practiced l’cha dodi, the song to welcome in the restfulness his grandfather said, that meant it was Friday night. And in the morning there would be the flea market and estate sales and an endless afternoon on the lanai making their maps. He hadn’t been over as much on Friday nights as he got older. He still hummed l’cha dodi to himself, even when he didn’t know all of the words anymore.

This is all to say that when Jacob and Frank got settled into the priest hole and had their dinner, which included sausage, they both had an extra moment of confusion of what was in the food here. This is all to say that their shabbes candles that week were the kerosene lanterns and Jacob taught Frank the melody to go with the prayer and l’cha dodi. That Frank looked at the lanterns and told Jacob about Channukah, the way Susan had explained it to him. And Frank got that feeling again, like maybe he could be a better father to Jacob than Abe had been to him, maybe they could be close and share things.

So Jacob actually gets to enjoy their trip before everything happens.

Monday morning Amelia and Martin show up to their room early, holding heavy muck boots, and grinning from ear to ear.

While Kev cooks them all breakfast, Martin waxes poetic about cairnholm’s bogs and tells them a million facts about the land. Kev asks if he should be jealous of the island and they all laugh and it’s easy. No one’s in to drink yet so it’s just the five of them and after a week here the food has actually started to smell good and through the narrow windows there’s thick fog and the faint sounds of people stirring.

Amelia rolls out a map of the island and shows them the course she’s plotted for them up the hill. They can stop at a few cairns and then the orphanage at the top of the hill. It should be a pretty easy hike, she’s taken similar routes and knows where to avoid.

Kev is staying behind, after all, if he left who else would be there to give the island population alcohol poisoning?

And up they go, into the hills and fog.

[docholligay]

The Rest is Commentary

 A Patreon release from long ago! I don’t often release my writing about Judaism, but I know a lot of people find it very guiding and soothing in some way, so here is an oldie for these times. 

Want to support my releases? Thank you! Patreon –  Ko-fi

“It all goes back to that old question. Is Judaism ritual, or ethical?”

His dark eyes are sparkling brightly as he answers me in the only way a rabbi can.

“Yes.”

I lean back in my chair, swinging my arm, nails still dirty from pulling potatoes out of the ground, across the back of it, and give him a long look. He’s the student rabbi, our heir apparent, and is only getting to know me.

“That’s as may be,” it’s been observed my rural accent gets stronger when I’m doing dirt work, and it isn’t wrong, “but you know damn well people are more one or the other. And I’m not real impressed with ritual.”

I am a doer. It’s funny, for someone whose entire career, entire life, runs around words, and they we use them, and the way we manipulate them, and how they can make a thousand things true or false, in my own personal life I regard them little. Action is all that has ever mattered. There are a million pretty things you can say to make you feel better, but our actions show what’s in our hearts.

But maybe spending all my life using words to paint pictures that may or may not be true is why I don’t trust them.

I am a Jew because I live Judaism in my ethics, in the way I decide to do or not do something, and every aspect of those choices I make is somehow filtered through my understanding of Jewish ethics. I am called to be righteous, and I am called to be just, and any prayer I say or candle I light or service I attend only serves as a reminder that I am called to be righteous, and to be just.

Rabbi Erik thinks I may be a little hard on people.

But that’s why I never became a rabbi.

“Ritual,” he says, “involves habit, and choice. Goodness is a habit, and a choice. If we live the Jewish rituals, we learn to make a constant choice, even if it’s inconvenient.” He takes a sip of his water, “And with Jewish law, it usually is.”

I shake my head at him. “Ritual can remind us of what it means to be a Jew, but it just as often mollifies a guilty conscience. Being a Jew’s what you do..”

“Rituals are doing.”

“Rituals are fucking frosting on Jew cake. Rituals are sleepwalking through something you’ve done a hundred times because you think you’re supposed to. All of Judaism to me, is wrapped up in,” I tap the table as I say it, “Justice, justice, shall you pursue.”

It’s a well known Jewish saying, and he whispers it in Hebrew, nodding, as soon as I say it. A lot of commentary has been spilled on three words that define so much of Judaism, that many Jews, like me, have taken as the moral heart of Judaism, the mast that we lash ourselves to in the face of evil or worse, weakness. Ritual takes obedience. Justice takes strength. Your Judaism is walked, or it is bullshit.

“I’m tired,” I say, looking off, “of people talking about righteousness in torah study and not getting on their hands and knees to help. We’re supposed to repair the world, and maybe I can’t do that, but I can put my hands into the dirt and feed someone.” I look back to him. “Say little and do much, you know.”

I think he’s about to laugh at me, for a minute. I consider myself deeply religious, which I think some of the congregation would find funny, being as I show up to service once a month, maybe. But I’m always to be found packing a box of food or calling a rep or repairing a bicycle for kids. This is my prayer. This is how I show God there was a reason to bring me out of Egypt.

But he doesn’t laugh. He just shakes his head.

“You know a lot of the texts for someone who hates ritual and study.” But he moves on. “This Yom Kippur, I’m going to talk about teshuvah, tefillah and tzedakah.” He looks at me, maybe expecting some note of relief, but these are pretty standard topics, “And how they mean deeper things than repentance, prayer, and charity”

Now he has my attention. Those are not poor translations, if we accept any Jewish concept having a one word equivalent, but they mean so much more than that--teshuvah is more about coming back to what it means to be Jewish than it is to simply be sorry, tefillah is more about keeping the lines of communication open than it is supplication, and tzedakah, tzedakah most of all, is about more than putting coins in a cup, but about seeking to do good, seeking to make the world a more just place. Tzedakah is a verb.

“I want you to make a ritual,” he smiles at me, leaning over for a moment, “of coming more often. Because I want you to talk about tzedakah. Opportunities for  our congregation.” He nods at me. “How to find God in doing volunteer work.”

I laugh. “I’m a born and bred rural Montanan, Erik, I find everything in the dirt, why should God be any different?”

“I love you, you should have a podcast.” Sometimes he is the most L.A. “But that’s what I’m talking about! You’re great with words. You’re something different.”

He’s not completely wrong. Our congregation is a small spattering of Jews who grew up in Montana, and a much larger handful of transplants from both coasts brought here by the hospitals or the colleges. Showing up every Shabbat, picking up and leaving your religion at the door, that’s what they know.

I never had a temple, really, so my temple was in the shadow of the mountains, in the tall grass of the prairie, in a dark bar where Waylon played over the jukebox. I kept my Judaism in my heart because I had nowhere else to put it.

I sigh. Already the goddamn ethical requirement to try and inspire my fellow Jews to be better is weighing on me.

“Fine.” is all I say, but it comes out in my grandad’s voice, country and annoyed “Fahne.”

“Great!” he goes to clap my shoulder, and remembers my Montanan boundaries, lifting his hand. “High five. Good job.”

I give him a high five, and wonder what the fuck I’m going to say.

[dfroza]

we live these lives, temporarily, in a physical body

where life begins at the genesis spark of conception to be protected in a mother’s womb.

and so murder is the taking of an innocent life from this earth at any point thereafter.

yesterday’s message from The Temple Institute in Jerusalem:

"Choose life!"

(Deuteronomy 30:`9)

Elul 26, 5781/September 3, 2021

"You are all standing this day before HaShem, your G-d the leaders of your tribes, your elders and your officers, every man of Israel, your young children, your women, and your convert who is within your camp both your woodcutters and your water drawers... " (Deuteronomy 29:9-10)

"You are all" - all of you - all of us - each and every one of us - standing upright, equal, from the greatest to the least, the oldest to the youngest, the most powerful to the most vulnerable...

"Standing this day before HaShem, your G-d" - this day - today - the only day! Yesterday is gone and is no more. When tomorrow arrives it will be today. Today is the only day! When we stand before HaShem our G-d there is only one day - today - the here and the now. When we stand and share our presence before G-d's presence, there is no past, good, bad or otherwise, and the future will only amount to the strength and integrity of our intentions today.

"You are all" - all of you - all of me, the individual! All of me is standing before HaShem my G-d this day - the best of me and the least of me. Me at my finest and me at my least fine, standing and being accounted for, standing and saying to G-d, "I am whom You have created, I am a work in progress, steadily working to improve and perfect my being, my north star being the Me that You intended when You first breathed life into the dust of my earthly being."

The Torah reading of Nitzavim - Standing - is read every year just before Rosh HaShana, and its soaring message of accountability, of the potential for teshuvah - repentance and return to G-d - of the accessibility and nearness of G-d's requirements, and of the open path toward life and happiness in the presence of HaShem, serves as a guide book for the day of Rosh HaShana and for the entirety of the holidays, (Rosh HaShana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Shmini Atzeret), which make up the month of Tishrei, the first month of the new year.

We are all G-d's children, equal in His eyes, we all have the honor and distinction, the privilege and responsibility, of standing directly before G-d. We are all granted the limitless opportunities of standing before G-d today, with no past to weigh us down and a future that is ours to shape.

"For this commandment which I command you this day, is not concealed from you, nor is it far away. It is not in heaven, that you should say, 'Who will go up to heaven for us and fetch it for us, to tell it to us, so that we can fulfill it?' Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us and fetch it for us, to tell it to us, so that we can fulfill it?' Rather,this thing is very close to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can fulfill it." (ibid 30:11-14) So close! So accessible! So achievable! G-d only asks of us what He knows we can fulfill, if only we set our hearts, our minds and our souls to it, if only we persist!

"I command you this day to love HaShem, your G-d, to walk in His ways, and to observe His commandments, His statutes, and His ordinances." (ibid 30:16) To love, to walk and to observe! "To love HaShem, your G-d, to listen to His voice, and to cleave to Him. For that is your life and the length of your days" (ibid 30:20) To love, to listen, to cleave to!

Our Torah reading ends with a dramatic crescendo, a daunting challenge, and then - an insider's tip from HaShem! "Behold, I have set before you today life and good, and death and evil!" (ibid 30:15) What will we choose? The choice is ours, and on Rosh HaShana G-d opens up before us our Book of Life, opens it to a blank page, and hands to us the pen with which to write our own fate, our own destiny, our own purpose. And as G-d hands to us His pen, He whispers in our ear, each and every one of us, "Choose life!" (ibid 30:19)

•

Tune in to this week's Temple Talk, as Yitzchak Reuven talks about the wordless sound of the deepest prayer, standing before HaShem today - every day - and Rosh HaShana, and celebrating the birthday of Man with our Father & Creator!

Rosh HaShana - the birthday of Man - is right around the corner, and all we need to do is show up and make ourselves heard through the sounding of the shofar. It is we, ourselves, who write our names into the Book of Life, and it is we, ourselves, who determine who we are going to be in the upcoming year. Choose life and attachment to HaShem - and have a sweet and blessed year!

[samskarawisdom]

Intermittent fasting

There are many amazing natural remedies to drive down inflammation, intermittent fasting is one of those.

Intermittent fasting is when you go without food for a certain amount of time.

Many religions engage in fasting as part of their practices, such as in the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, the Christian season of Lent, or the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur. These practices are not harmful in themselves, but can be triggering to people at risk of an eating disorder, in the stages of an eating disorder, or in recovery, and may intensify and accelerate eating disorder symptoms.

If you or someone you know is in this category, it may be useful to consider the following before engaging in a cultural or religious fast:

Most religions believe that you should not fast if you are not healthy enough to do so. This includes mental health concerns or eating disorder issues. Across the religions, fasting is often about becoming closer to your God(s), or refocussing your mind on spirituality. Ask yourself if fasting at this stage in your life will bring you closer to your God(s) or instead put your mental and physical health at risk?

There may be other ways you can observe your religious practice without fasting, such as a non-food ‘fast’, extra prayer, or giving back to the community. Think critically about what the purpose of fasting is, and whether it can be achieved through other actions. You may like to discuss this with your health practitioner or religious leader for advice or guidance.

Lent

Churches have some variation in how they participate in Lent, but ultimately the rationale is to challenge yourself to become closer to God. Remember, you are not expected to fast if this is a health risk. If you have an eating disorder or are in recovery, the biggest challenge might be to not give in to the pressure to fast, and to seek God’s guidance through this time.

If you’d still like to fast in another way, you can consider the following:

Fasting from media and/or technology.

Fasting from negative self-talk, or from comparing your body with others.

Think of something you tend to buy in excess of your needs. Give up buying these during Lent, and donate the money you would have spent to a charity you care about.

Remember Lent isn’t all about fasting. You can still participate in prayer and almsgiving. Instead of giving something up for Lent, consider taking something on. This could be community service, extra prayer, or donating to charity.

If you decide that fasting from food is important to your relationship with God, it’s recommended that you speak with your health professional and religious leader for support and guidance during this time.

Ramadan

In Islam, you are excused from fasting if you are suffering from a health condition.

Ibn Qudaamah (may Allah have mercy on him) said in al-Mughni (4/403):

“The kind of sickness in which it is permitted to break the fast is intense sickness which will be made worse by fasting or it is feared that recovery will be delayed.”

“The healthy person who fears that he may become sick if he fasts is like the sick person who fears that his sickness may get worse, they are both permitted to break their fasts.”

This could be interpreted to mean that if you are recovered (healthy), but fear fasting would cause you to relapse, this is valid reason not to fast. If you do not fast, you instead pay Fidya to feed someone for each day you do not fast.

Whether or not you decide you are healthy enough to fast, Ramadan may still be a very challenging time as your community’s behaviours are centred around fasting. It’s a good idea to set up create a supportive environment around you during this time.

Remember that in Ramadan, a person abstains from food not because the food offered up is bad, but because it is good. It is a way of resisting what is good for you so that you are also able to resist what is bad. However, if resisting the goodness of food leads you towards harmful behaviours or negative feelings, this denies the purpose of Ramadan.

You can still participate in Ramadan other ways. Ramadan is also about restraining anger, doing good deeds, exercising personal discipline, and preparing oneself to serve as a good Muslim and a good person.

Yom Kippur

For many in the Jewish community, fasting is an important and difficult spiritual exercise, reminding them of their attachment to the physical, and helping them focus on teshuvah and spiritual growth.

For individuals who have an eating disorder or are in recovery, eating on Yom Kippur can actually be a holy act. Rather than finding ‘purity’ or ‘spiritual growth’ through denying yourself food, the act of eating itself can be an act of teshuvah.

Before eating or drinking, you can offer a small thought, or kavanah (intention), and the traditional blessing over that item.

Hinduism

In Hinduism there are a diverse range of fasting practices which depend on factors such as personal beliefs, local customs and preferred deities. Consider carefully whether fasting will help you refocus your spirituality and lead you towards peace, or if it may cause health difficulties at this time in your life and lead to spiritual conflict. There are also ongoing dietary practices that many Hindus follow which you may find difficult during recovery. You may like to work collaboratively with a dietician to create a meal plan which leads you towards recovery while maintaining your spirituality.

There are many more religions which involve fasting as part of their culture, whichever religion you may follow, you may feel a lot of pressure from your community to participate in fasting or certain dietary practices. You may like to speak about this with your religious or community leader in conjunction with a health professional. The purpose of fasting is not to punish, and if there is a risk of harm, religious leaders will be able to work with you as an individual to create an acceptable alternative.

Let’s talk about intermittent fasting health benefits now.

Heart health.

Now, I know what you're probably thinking: What’s wrong with eating whenever you want as long as your meals are from healthy, whole-food sources? Well, giving your body a break from food allows your gut time to rest and inflammation to cool down, thus producing some amazing benefits to your overall health:

Intermittent fasting is thought to lower heart disease risk due to its ability to lower triglycerides and blood pressure and raise beneficial HDL cholesterol.

Improves autoimmune conditions.

A fasting-mimicking diet under 1,000 calories a day for three-day cycles has been shown to improve symptoms associated with autoimmune conditions like multiple sclerosis as well as lupus.

Improves blood sugar.

When it comes to managing blood sugar, intermittent fasting takes center stage. With its proven ability to lower insulin resistance and increase metabolism, it's one of my favorite tools to recommend to patients with blood sugar problems.

Encourages weight loss.

Weight-loss resistance can often be due to an underlying hormone imbalance. Leptin resistance occurs when your brain stops recognizing leptin's signals to use your body’s fat stores for energy. This causes your body to continually store fat instead of using it. Intermittent fasting has been shown to improve chronic inflammation that can dull the brain’s leptin receptor sites.

Curbs cravings.

If you're worried you’ll be starving while fasting, you’ll be pleasantly surprised! Intermittent fasting decreases your hunger hormone ghrelin, which in turn can increase dopamine levels in the brain. (Just another example of the gut-brain axis at work.) Fasting can also help free people from emotional eating and kill cravings by transitioning your metabolism from unstable sugar-burning to steady fat-burning.

Increases cognitive function.

Studies have shown that intermittent fasting can improve degenerative brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

Improves lung health.

One study showed intermittent fasting’s ability to decrease asthma symptoms as well as reduce oxidative stress.

Helps heal the gut.

Lowering inflammation in the gut with intermittent fasting improves inflammatory gut problems such as IBS, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s disease.

While the idea of fasting can be overwhelming, especially if you haven’t done it before, intermittent fasting can actually be a lot easier than many other types of eating plans. Since you are fasting for a good chunk of the day, you’ll be eating less food, which eliminates a lot of the stress around having to meal prep. When you are eating, you’ll still want to focus mainly on healthy fats, clean protein, and carbohydrates from whole food sources— but this isn’t an excuse to hit the drive-thru and load up on sugar the rest of the time!

How to schedule meals: Intermittent fasting for beginners.

Before you start your IF plan, it's important to talk with a professional to make sure it's right for you. Women should be especially cautious as there are some mixed opinions on whether or not certain fasting protocols are healthy for female hormone balance. In addition, if you have adrenal fatigue or gut health issues you'll want to proceed with caution. If you have a history of disordered eating, you'll probably want to avoid fasting altogether..

Once you start your IF journey, you’ll most likely find that you feel fuller longer and can keep the meals you do eat very simple. There are a few different ways you can fast, so I broke up each of the different plans below into beginner, intermediate, and advanced along with a typical meal plan for each day. The combination of nutrients will give you the energy you need to enhance the benefits of your fasting journey. Just make sure to take into account any individual food intolerances, and use this as a guide for your particular health case, and adjust from there.

Intermittent fasting protocols can be grouped into two categories: whole-day fasting and time-restricted feeding.

Whole-day fasting involves regular one-day fasts. The strictest form would be alternate day fasting (ADF). This involves a 24-hour fast followed by a 24-hour non-fasting period. The alternate day modified fasting (ADMF) and 5:2 diets—the latter defined as five days per week not fasting and two days per week either total fasting or modified fasting—both allow the consumption of approximately 500–600 calories on fasting days.

Time-restricted feeding (TRF) involves eating only during a certain number of hours each day. A common form of TRF involves fasting for 16 hours each day and only eating during the remaining 8 hours, typically on the same schedule each day. A more liberal practice would be 12 hours of fasting and a 12 hour eating window, or a stricter form would be to eat one meal per day, which would involve around 23 hours of fasting per day.

Variants include modified fasting, such as ADMF, with limited caloric intake (20% of normal) during fasting periods rather than none at all. Intermittent fasting has a different duration (up to 48 hours) than periodic fasting (more than 48 hours).

1. The 8-6 window plan for beginners.

Eat only between the hours of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. This is a great way to dip your toes in the fasting waters because it allows you to eat every meal plus some snacks but still get 14 hours of fasting within a 24-hour period.

2. Intermediate fasting plan: 12-6 window plan.

This is the same as the 8-to-6 window plan, but you are extending your fasting time an extra four hours. If you are not a breakfast person, you can practice this plan during workweek just enjoying a few cups of herbal tea to start your day. With this plan you will be eating only between the hours of 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. for a full 18 hours of fasting within a 24-hour period.

Even though you aren’t eating breakfast, it's still important to stay hydrated. Make sure to still drink enough water. You can also have herbal tea. The catechins in tea have been shown to enhance the benefits of fasting by helping to further decrease the hunger hormone ghrelin, so you can make it until lunch and not feel deprived. Since you’ve increased your fasting period an extra four hours, you need to make sure your first meal (at noon) has enough healthy fats.

Nuts and seeds make great snacks that are high-fat and can be eaten around 2:30 p.m. Soaking these beforehand can help neutralize naturally occurring enzymes like phytates that can contribute to digestive problems. Eat dinner around 5:30 p.m., and just like the 8-to-6 window plan, a dinner with some sort of wild-caught fish or other clean protein source with vegetables is a great option.

3. Intermediate fasting plan: The modified 2-day plan.

For this plan, eat clean for five days of the week (you can pick whatever days you want). On the other two days, restrict your calories to no more than 700 each day. Calorie restriction unlocks a lot of the same benefits as fasting for an entire day. On your non-fasting days, you’ll need to make sure you're getting in healthy fats, clean meats, vegetables, and some fruits, and you can structure your meals however best works for you. On restricted days you can have smaller meals or snacks throughout the day or have a moderate-size lunch and dinner and fast in the morning and after dinner. Again, focus on healthy fats, clean meats, and produce. An app like MyFitnessPal can help you log your food and keep track of your calories so you don’t go over 700.

4. High-intermediate: The 5-2 plan.

On this plan you'll eat clean five days of the week but will not eat anything for two nonconsecutive days of the week. For example, you can fast on Monday and Thursday but eat clean meals on the other days. Food on these five days will look just like the rest of the fasting plans—healthy fats, clean meat sources, vegetables, and some fruit. Keep in mind that this plan is not for beginners, and you should always talk to your doctor before starting any fasting regimen, especially if you are on medication or have a medical condition.

5. Advanced: Every-other-day plan.

Even though this plan is advanced, it's very simple. Don't eat anything every other day. This is the most intense form of fasting but can produce amazing results. Every other day, eat healthy fats, clean meat sources, vegetables, and some fruit, and then on your fasting days, you can consume water, herbal tea, and moderate amounts of black coffee or tea.

With this information in hand, you should know exactly how to schedule meals when starting an intermittent fasting plan. And while it might seem complicated at first, once you get into the habit of fasting, it will feel like second nature and fit pretty seamlessly into your days. Just remember to always start slow and gradually work up to more advanced plans.

References:

Cultural Fasting and Eating Disorders: Akgul, Derman & Kanbur, 2014

Ramadan

http://muslimmatters.org/2014/06/30/chronic-illness-and-ramadan-coping-tips-and-strategies/

http://waragainsteatingdisorder.wordpress.com/2013/07/22/eating-disorders-and-blessings-of-ramadan/

https://www.b-eat.co.uk/latest/1633-ramadan-and-eating-disorders

Yom Kippur

http://www.ritualwell.org/ritual/when-fasting-not-teshuvah-yom-kippur-eating-disorders

mindbodygreen.com

Wikipedia

[thebeautyoftorah]

Vayigash

bs'd

Shalom. This Divreh Torah is based on my newest book 'Healing Anger' that just came out. It's a practical guide completely based on Torah sources to overcome anger and acquire peace of mind. This is the link to Feldheim Publishers  http://www.feldheim.com/healing-anger.html

You can also buy it as an e-book (not recommended), at HTTP

://bit.ly/healinganger

If you want to buy it from me (hard copy) in Israel let me know.

Feel free to forward these words of Torah to any other fellow Jew. Enjoy it and Shabbat Shalom.

Vayigash-The Power of Forgiveness and Admitting Our Mistakes

In this week's  parsha the Torah begins describing the confrontation between two of the leaders of the Jewish people, Yosef and his brother Yehuda, and seemingly Yosef was the victor. The entire future of the Jewish nation was in Yosef's hands, since he was the facilitator who sustained Yaakov's family. As a matter of fact, Yosef played a pivotal role in their destiny as long as he remained alive.

Yet interestingly, Yaakov overlooked all of this and put the future leadership of the Jewish people into the hands of Yehuda, from whom comes the dynasty of King David and ultimately the melech HaMashiach.

Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz brings the Tosefta [1] and writes that one of the reasons behind this is that Yehuda had the ability to admit his mistakes: “Because of what [action] did Yehuda merit Kingship? Because he admitted his responsibility in the incident with Tamar.” When she was about to be burnt for seemingly transgressing the laws of immorality, Yehuda realized that he was the father of the twins Tamar was bearing. He could have remained silent and saved himself from embarrassment, but he publicly admitted his mistake, saving three lives in the process. Any kind of leader, whether a parent, teacher, a president of a company, a king or anyone else, has to have the inner strength and the sense of responsibility to acknowledge his mistakes and change direction if necessary. If a person can't admit that he is wrong, the results most likely can be catastrophic. Yet, someone who is willing to take ownership for his mistakes brings blessings upon himself and those around him for all eternity, just as Yehuda brought blessings to himself and to the Jewish people through the kings who descended from him.

The Torah tells us that, "Yosef sustained his bothers" (2). One of the signs of a highly developed spiritual person is his capacity to forgive. Maimonides teaches us that, when approached for forgiveness by someone who has done us wrong, we should forgive wholeheartedly and neither bear a grudge nor show cruelty by a refusal to accept the apology[3]. No matter how weak or insincere we feel the apology is, and this is a very difficult thing to do, we should be gracious and forgive anyway. [Needless to say that the one who is asking for forgiveness must try to do it wholeheartedly showing sincere remorse for his actions].

In this parsha we see the greatness of Yosef and we can understand why he was given the appellation of "righteous" -Yosef HaTzddik. His brothers never apologized to him -- not for selling him into slavery or for causing his separation from his family for 22 years -- but Yosef was willing to forgive them, and he even supported them and treated them graciously.

Maybe this is the reason he was able to achieve so much in life[4]; rather than focusing on what had been done to him, he focused on what needed to be done. Rather than becoming angry and full of self-pity over what happened to him, he chose to be gracious and optimistic. [The Zohar Hakadosh in parashat Miketz tells us about the great level of Yosef, who did not harm his brothers, but treated them with grace and rectitude. Likewise, Hashem treats the righteous with mercy in this world and in the world to come].

When we forgive others, it is more for our benefit than for the benefit of the one we are forgiving. Resentment is a form of anger that does more damage to the holder than the offender. Holding a grudge is letting the offender live rent-free in our heads. So why not evict him today? Making the decision to "let go" and forgive can transform us and free us from our pettiness. Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does definitely improve the future.

We say in our morning prayers --tahanun, 'forgive my iniquity because it is great'. Rashi explains that we ask Hashem, 'it is befitting Your greatness that You forgive it'[my iniquity]. The gemara[5] teaches that there is a mitzva to emulate the attributes of G-d; just as He is gracious and compassionate we should also be gracious and compassionate. Forgiving will align us to be like Hashem, Who despite our faults and mistakes, treats us with compassion and continually blesses us.

_______________________________________________

[1] Berachot 4:16.

[2] Bereshit 47:12.

[3] Hilchot Teshuvah 2:10.

[4] Yosef is the only person in the Torah who is called 'Ish Matzliach'--a successful person.

[5] Shabbat 133b.

Le Iluy nishmat Eliahu ben Simcha, Mordechai ben Shlomo, Perla bat Simcha, Abraham Meir ben Leah,Moshe ben Gila,Yaakov ben Gila, Sara bat Gila, Yitzchak ben Perla, Leah bat Chavah, Abraham Meir ben Leah,Itamar Ben Reb Yehuda, Yehuda Ben Shmuel Tzvi, Tova Chaya bat Dovid. Refua Shelema of Yaacov ben Miriam, Yehuda ben Simcha, Menachem Chaim ben Malka, Naftali Dovid ben Naomi Tzipora, Gila bat Tzipora, Tzipora bat Gila, Dvir ben Leah, Elimelech Dovid ben Chaya Baila, Eliezer Chaim ben Chaya Batya, Noa bat Batsheva Devorah,Shlomo Yoel ben Chaya Leah   and Dovid Yehoshua ben Leba Malka.

Atzlacha to Shmuel ben Mazal tov and Zivug agun to Marielle Gabriela bat Gila, Naftali Dovid ben Naomi Tzipora, Yehudit bat Malka, Elisheva bat Malka.

[shefa]

Facing the Storms in Our Lives

FACING THE STORMS IN OUR LIVES

FIRST DAY ROSH HASHANAH SERMON 5778 – 2017

Rabbi Stephen Weiss

B’nai Jeshurun Congregation, Pepper Pike OH

I’m going to be honest with you. This summer just has not quite turned out the way that I had planned. It was supposed to go something like this: After sharing in my favorite holiday tradition – the all-night study on Shavuot, I would head to Europe to lead our congregation’s Jewish Heritage Tour of Budapest, Prague and Berlin. The rest of the summer would be punctuated by two bike trips I was planning to take. I would ride my bicycle from Cleveland to Cincinnati and then along the Erie Canal from Buffalo to Albany. And of course, the piece de-resistance – the most important, the single most important event of the summer by far – was that at the end of August we would celebrate our daughter’s wedding.

Well, the wedding was unbelievable – beautiful, joyful, the happiest day of my life. I still pinch myself. It’s hard to believe that it was real; and for that I will forever be grateful to God. It was a weekend filled with absolute magic.

But the rest of the summer? Well by now you all know about my car accident in May – yes, for the record: car, not bike! Despite my repeated attempts to force myself back into the world, my injuries were severe enough that I was basically out of commission the whole summer. Two weeks before the wedding I was still unsure I would be able to enjoy my daughter’s big day. Even now, though I have returned fully to work, a number of problems related to the injury persist. I won’t be riding my bike any time soon.

So, this summer did not turn out in the way I had planned for and expected. The truth is, that’s how life is for most of us.

As the Yiddish proverb says, “A man plans and God laughs.” Except it’s not always funny. Many times, when our life goes “off script” we find ourselves confronted with tremendous, even overwhelming adversity.

For Sheryl Sandberg, the C.O.O. of Facebook, life went “off script” when she found her husband lying dead of a heart attack on the floor of a gym at the resort where they were vacationing in Mexico. In her book, Option B, she tells the story of how, weeks later, she and a friend, Phil were planning a father-child activity. They came up with a plan for someone to fill in for her husband, Dave. She cried to her friend, “But I want Dave.” Phil put his arm around her and said, “Option A is not available. So, let’s kick the ‘heck’ out of Option B.”

That statement pretty much sums up life’s challenges. For better and for worse, few of us live a life that is always Option A. We live a life that is always some form of option B.

Raise your hand if your life is turning out exactly the way you thought it would, if your life followed the trajectory that you expected and there have been no surprises, pleasant or unpleasant along the way…. Go ahead…. You see, no one goes untouched.

There is an expression in the Talmud, the rabbis said: Tzarot rabim chatzi nechama – “the troubles of the many are a half-comfort.” It helps to at least know that we are not alone.

If our lives sailed along as we planned and envisioned them, we would have no need for these holidays with their soul-searching and introspection, their pleas for forgiveness, for blessing and life. We would not sing through our tears as we chant the Unetaneh Tokef prayer: “On Rosh Hashanah it is written and on Yom Kippur it is sealed: Who shall live and who shall die, who shall wander and who shall be at peace, who shall wax rich and who shall be impoverished, who shall be exalted and who shall be brought low?” No… in place of the Unetaneh Tokef prayer – if our lives were Option A – we would come, offer a prayer of thanksgiving, have some apples and honey and call it a day.

We are here because too often life throws at us challenges that come from nowhere and seem utterly insurmountable. It might be a sudden injury that brings our lives to a grinding halt. Or the shattering of a relationship around which our world was built. Or the loss of a job leaving us unsure how to meet our needs and the needs of those we love. It might be suddenly confronting serious debilitating, degenerative or God forbid terminal illness. It might be our grief over the death of a loved one, especially when that death comes unexpected and too soon, most especially if it is the loss of a child. And this year, in this congregation, as I look out at all of you, I know that we have seen far too many storms.

Like the Hurricanes which brought such devastation to Texas, Florida and the Caribbean, these events sweep in with a force that cannot be deterred and utterly change the landscape of our lives. Sooner or later it happens to all of us, sometimes repeatedly, sometimes coming as many storms at once. And after the storm, we are never the same.

In her book, Sheryl Sandberg uses her experience to guide us through the challenges of accepting Option B and learning how to confront and move beyond adversity and rebuild our lives. In doing so, she turns to the writings of the founder of positive psychology, Martin Seligman. Dr. Seligman underscores what he sees as three impediments to our ability to recover from adversity and go on. He calls these three impediments the Three P’s: Personalization, Pervasiveness and Permanence. Learning how to avoid these three Ps would take us a long way toward nurturing the resilience that we need to overcome the challenges in or lives.

Personalization is the belief that we are at fault. When something goes wrong in our lives there is a great tendency to want to blame ourselves. Sheryl tortured herself with the illusion that she had been responsible for her husband’s death. If only she had gotten to the gym in time she could have saved him. If only she had realized that he had heart disease, she could have saved him. That guilt in turn spilled over into her apologizing for everything in her life: to her mother, who put her life on hold to stay with her, to her friends who dropped everything to come to the funeral, to her clients for missing appointments, to her colleagues for losing focus. It took her a long time to understand that if the doctors didn’t know that her husband was going to have a heart attack, how could she? Her psychologist made her ban the words “I’m sorry” from her vocabulary.

Now you may be thinking, “Rabbi, isn’t that what these High Holidays are all about? Aren’t I supposed to feel guilt for the things that I’ve done wrong? Shouldn’t I apologize to those people that I’ve hurt? In fact, isn’t the whole point of the Unetaneh Tokef prayer to move us to teshuvah, to repentance?”

And the answer is yes… yes, of course it is. This is the season of teshuvah. And teshuvah is fundamentally about recognizing where we have fallen down, what we have done wrong, who we have hurt; and seeking to change. That is the prime goal we engage in at this time of year.

But sometimes when we are hurting, we can confuse what we have done wrong with the hurt that we are feeling. There is a difference between apologizing for that which is within our power and feeling guilty for that which is beyond our control. Let me say that again: There is a difference between apologizing for that which is within our power and feeling guilty for that which is beyond our control.

That’s why over and over again during these holidays we will ask God for two things: selichah and mechilah. Those two words are repeated over and over again in the High Holiday liturgy.

Selichah means forgiveness. God should forgive us for the things that we have done wrong, for the people that we have hurt, for the ways in which we have turned away from God’s commandments, for our failures of morality and ethics. Selichah is forgiveness for our sins.

Mechilah is often translated into English in our prayerbooks as “pardon;” but that’s not really an accurate translation of the word. To be “moichel” somebody – maybe some of you recognize that word if I say it in the Yiddish. It’s the same word – to be “moichel” somebody means to relieve them of responsibility. Somebody has an obligation to me and I say “I moichel you” – “you don’t have to do that.”

Selichah is God forgiving us for what we did wrong. Mechilah to be “moicheled” is God releasing us of the burden of those things for which we are not responsible. God is saying to us: “Let go of that! You did not control that. Don’t let that weigh you down.” God forgives us for those things too because sometimes we have to learn to forgive ourselves, to let go and to be able move on. We have to be able to move past personalization.

The second P, pervasiveness, is the belief that an event will affect every aspect of our lives. It is the belief that if we are suffering or grieving or struggling over one thing in our lives, then we must suffer, grieve or struggle in every other part of our life as well. Everywhere we look we see pain and sorrow. And should we feel momentarily happy, we beat ourselves up and feel guilty about it.

In her book, Sheryl Sandberg writes: “As I blamed myself less, I started to notice that not everything was terrible. My son and daughter were sleeping through the night, crying less and playing more. We had access to grief counselors and therapists, I could afford childcare and support at home. I had loving friends and colleagues.” Being able to feel success, joy, love and peace in other aspects of our lives allows us to access our spiritual reserves, to find the strength to go on.

This is what our sages called “hakarat ha-tov” -- recognizing and acknowledging the good in our lives, taking stock of our blessings and expressing gratitude. That may seem obvious to you or, if you are hurting right now, it may seem incredibly hard. But our tradition is clear that as Jews we are bidden to find sources of joy in our lives even in our times of sorrow, and to find good that we are thankful for even when we are struggling.

When someone passes away, we observe the rites of mourning. During shiva, for seven days, we don’t leave our homes. We wear the torn garment. We engage in all the mourning practices. Except for one day of that seven. Which day is that? Shabbat. Shabbat overrides the mourning. The rabbis teach that Shabbat counts as one of the seven but we don’t observe it as one of the seven. We are not allowed to mourn or grieve on Shabbat. Why not? Because on that day we have an obligation to express our gratitude to God for the gift of creation, of peoplehood, of Torah. We have an obligation to be with community and feel appreciation for the other lives that touch us, support us and uplift us. Hakarat ha-tov: Even in our deepest pain, we have to recognize the good.

So many good things happen in our lives every day, small and large, that we too often take for granted. The very fact that we are alive and breathing, that we have family, friends and community. The beauty of our natural world. It can be as simple as, for me, the small miracle of the invention of silicone ear plugs that enabled me to dance at and enjoy my daughter’s wedding despite the loud volume of the band! For others, maybe it’s the miracle of cochlear implants, or of a walker that allows you to be more active and get around and not be tied down, or recovery from a recent illness, or getting a job, making a friend, or finding love. Maybe it’s just a beautiful day, or having just a little less pain today than yesterday. There are so many good things that happen in our lives at every moment. Far more than the dark moments we face. And when we can recognize and acknowledge them, when we can tackle the pervasiveness, we are on the road to healing.

The third impediment to our recovery -- the third P, permanence -- is the belief that the aftershocks of the event will last forever: that because one relationship ended we will never find a new partner, because we failed once we will always fail, that because we are grieving a loss we will never again feel joy. Sandberg shares that “For months, no matter what I did, I felt like the debilitating anguish would always be there. Most of the people I knew who had lived through tragedy said that over time the sadness subsides… I didn’t believe them.” She goes on to say, “When my children cried, I would flash forward to their entire lives without a father. Dave wasn’t just going to miss a soccer game, but all the soccer games. All the debate tournaments. All the holidays. All the graduations. He would not walk our daughter down the aisle at her wedding.”

Here’s the thing: it’s all true. Her husband would not be at any of those events. But what is not true is that all those events would therefore completely void of any joy, that she would feel the same grief then that she felt at the time of his passing. The human soul is hard-wired for optimism and hope. Give us a cloud and sooner or later we will find a silver lining. In fact, Sheryl Sandberg brings studies in her book that show that we all tend to overestimate how much negative events will affect us.

In one study, some students were asked to imagine their current romantic relationship ending and predict how unhappy they would be two months later. Other students were asked to report their unhappiness two months after an actual break-up. Guess what? Those who experienced a real split were far happier than expected. In other studies assistant professors thought being denied university tenure would leave them despondent for the next five years. College students predicted they would be miserable if they got stuck in an undesirable dorm. Both turn out to not be true. The bottom line is we are very bad, and overly pessimistic, in predicting our future emotional state.

How do you combat that feeling of permanence? By banishing words like “never” and “always.” Instead of saying “I will always be struggling,” say to yourself “today I am struggling.” Instead of saying “I will never again know joy,” try saying “sometimes I can’t feel joy.” Live in the moment; and if the moment is sad, or difficult, or frustrating that’s okay. But you own that moment, don’t let that moment own you. Don’t let the moment define you. Remember that what you feel today does not determine what you will feel tomorrow. Leave yourself open to the possibility of feeling joy and joy will find you.

At the end of her book, Sheryl Sandberg writes: “But just as grief crashes into us like a wave, it also rolls back like the tide. We are left not just standing, but in some ways stronger.”

The challenges and storms in our lives don’t need to be personal, pervasive or permanent; but resilience can be. We can build it and carry it with us throughout our lives. We can recognize when to let go of guilt. We can learn again to feel gratitude. We can rise above our grief and allow ourselves to rediscover love and joy. For all those who suffered the effects of Irma, Harvey and Maria, and for each of us facing storms in our personal lives, may the coming year be a year of resilience, a year of rebuilding, a year of hope and healing and blessing.

[yhebrew]

JESUS-YESHUA THE LIVING TORAH

The Word (Jesus / Torah) was made flesh. Yeshua is Living today. Torah is among us confirming Fathers words.

Tuesday, May 11, 2021 by Ministries of New Life Copied in its entirety from Ministries of New Life December 30 2022 Teaches & observes the written Torah (Article excerpt from 2016 Teshuvah Prayer Guide,pg. 62) Think not that I have come to destroy the Torah/Teachings, or the Prophets/Tanakh:  I have not come to destroy, but to fulfill.  For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass…

[yhebrew]

KEEPING THE SABBATH HOLY

Cultures change. Does God change?

Wednesday, July 27, 2022 Copied in its entirety from Ministries of New Life website December 30, 2022 (Article excerpt from 2016 Teshuvah Prayer Guide, pg. 72) On the seventh day YHVH finished His work that He had done, and He rested on the seventh day…So YHVH blessed the seventh day and made it holy…Gen. 2:2,3 In six days YHVH made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was…

[dfroza]

A Letter to encourage and to unite hearts

Today’s reading of the Scriptures from the New Testament is the 3rd chapter of the Letter of First Thessalonians:

But after all our attempts to come to you were frustrated, we decided it was best for Silvanus and me to stay behind in Athens by ourselves and to send Timothy (our dear brother [and servant of God], our partner in the good news of the Anointed One) to strengthen, comfort, and encourage you in your faith so that you won’t be shaken by the sufferings and wither under this stress that we know lies ahead. Certainly you remember that when we were with you, we warned you of the suffering we would have to endure; now, as you well know, it has happened. This is why I couldn’t stand it anymore and sent Timothy to report on the state of your faith: because I was worried the tempter had tested you and, if so, all of our hard work would have come to nothing.

You can imagine my relief and joy when Timothy returned to us with such good news about you, about your faith and love for us, about how you have such good memories of us and long to see us as much as we long to see you. Hearing this about your faith, brothers and sisters, brought comfort to us in our stress-filled days of trouble and suffering. For if you are set firmly in the Lord, then we can truly live. What thanks would ever be enough to offer God about you for all the jubilant celebration we’ll feel before our God because of you? We remain vigilant in our prayers, night and day praying to once again see your faces and to help complete whatever may be lacking in your faith.

May God Himself, our Father, along with our Lord Jesus, [the Anointed One,] navigate our way to you. May the Lord flood you with an unending, undying love for one another and for all humanity, like our love for you, so that your hearts will be reinforced with His strength, held blameless and holy before God, our Father, when our Lord Jesus, [the Anointed, the Liberating King,] appears along with all His holy ones. [Amen.]

The Letter of First Thessalonians, Chapter 3 (The Voice)

Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments is the 21st chapter of the book of Jeremiah that continues with Jeremiah delivering God’s message:

[Start Each Day with a Sense of Justice]

God’s Message to Jeremiah when King Zedekiah sent Pashur son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to him with this request: “Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has waged war against us. Pray to God for us. Ask him for help. Maybe God will intervene with one of his famous miracles and make him leave.”

But Jeremiah said, “Tell Zedekiah: ‘This is the God of Israel’s Message to you: You can say good-bye to your army, watch morale and weapons flushed down the drain. I’m going to personally lead the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans, against whom you’re fighting so hard, right into the city itself. I’m joining their side and fighting against you, fighting all-out, holding nothing back. And in fierce anger. I’m prepared to wipe out the population of this city, people and animals alike, in a raging epidemic. And then I will personally deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his princes, and any survivors left in the city who haven’t died from disease, been killed, or starved. I’ll deliver them to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—yes, hand them over to their enemies, who have come to kill them. He’ll kill them ruthlessly, showing no mercy.’

“And then tell the people at large, ‘God’s Message to you is this: Listen carefully. I’m giving you a choice: life or death. Whoever stays in this city will die—either in battle or by starvation or disease. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who have surrounded the city will live. You’ll lose everything—but not your life. I’m determined to see this city destroyed. I’m that angry with this place! God’s Decree. I’m going to give it to the king of Babylon, and he’s going to burn it to the ground.’

* * *

“To the royal house of Judah, listen to God’s Message!

House of David, listen—God’s Message to you:

‘Start each day by dealing with justice.

Rescue victims from their exploiters.

Prevent fire—the fire of my anger—

for once it starts, it can’t be put out.

Your evil regime

is fuel for my anger.

Don’t you realize that I’m against you,

yes, against you.

You think you’ve got it made,

all snug and secure.

You say, “Who can possibly get to us?

Who can crash our party?”

Well, I can—and will!

I’ll punish your evil regime.

I’ll start a fire that will rage unchecked,

burn everything in sight to cinders.’”

The Book of Jeremiah, Chapter 21 (The Message)

A link to my personal reading of the Scriptures for friday, September 3 of 2021 with a paired chapter from each Testament of the Bible along with Today’s Proverbs and Psalms

A post by John Parsons about the eternal:

The underlying assumption at work behind the call to do teshuvah is that your life matters and your actions carry profound significance - both in this world and in the world to come. Sin is so dangerous because it damages our very essence, and if unremedied, such damage will be irreversible. Therefore today is the day to seek healing, for your days are numbered in this world and every day you live ratifies the end of your life. The sages say "mitzvah goreret mitzvah" (מצווה גוררת מצווה) - "the reward for a mitzvah (i.e., blessing) is another mitzvah" (Avot 4:2), though of course the logical corollary is also true, "the reward for a sin is another."

“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree [going] to one or the other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all of our dealings..." (C.S. Lewis: Weight of Glory)

In the Talmud (Makkot 2:6) we read, "They asked of Wisdom: 'What is the sinner's punishment?' It replied, "Evil pursues the sinners" (Prov. 13:21). They asked Prophecy: 'What is the sinner's punishment?' It replied, "The soul that sins shall die" (Ezek. 18:4). Then they asked the Holy One, blessed be He, 'What is the sinner's punishment?' He replied, "He should turn to me and be forgiven. This is the meaning of the verse, "Therefore he guides sinners in the way" (Psalm 25:8) - God guides sinners to do teshuvah in order to find life. Teshuvah is for life! [Hebrew for Christians]

and another:

"Be holy as I am holy" (Lev. 19:2). This doesn't mean wrapping yourself up in some protective cloak of religious rituals as much as it means accepting your own atonement: reconciling who you are with your past, finding healing and real love, and walking in genuine hope... Holiness isn't as much "separation" from the profane as it is "consecration" to the sacred, and in that sense it is teshuvah, a turning of the heart back to reality.... Negatively put, "being holy" is turning away from fear, despair, and anger; positively put, it is embracing the worth and value of life, learning to see the sacred, honoring the Divine Presence, and walking in the radiance of God's love. Now that’s the reason for teshuvah! Hashivenu Adonai - turn us to you, O LORD! [Hebrew for Christians]

9.2.21 • Facebook

Today’s message (Days of Praise) from the Institute for Creation Research

September 3, 2021

Faith, Substance, and Evidence

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

The 11th chapter of Hebrews, known as the great Hall of Fame of Faith reciting the faith and resulting action of many Old Testament heroes, begins with a description of what faith is.

First, we see that it is the “substance of things hoped for.” Biblically, we know that the Christian “hope” is a hope so real it has substance in the present. None of the people of faith recited in this chapter actually saw the promises made to them come to fruition, but they so believed in them that they lived in the present as if the future were reality.

The word “substance” occurs only two other times in Hebrews. It is used to speak of Christ as the exact representation of God’s essence and nature, “who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person [i.e., substance]” (Hebrews 1:3). It is also translated “confidence,” “for we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end” (Hebrews 3:14), and speaks of a deep assurance. Putting this all together, our text could then be rendered “faith is the essence of our assurance of things yet in the future.”

The word “evidence” could be translated “conviction,” or even “proof.” The word implies a logical, airtight argument. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof [same word as ‘evidence’], for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). This sort of evidence is something we know to be true, something about which we have such conviction we act accordingly.

The first half of the verse brings a future truth down into the present; the second half commits our lives to that truth. JDM

[dfroza]

it doesn’t matter what the fear of man tries to force in this world

because there is no fear in the sacred truth of Love.

and Love is Light that gives us assurance of the eternal hope we treasure in the heart. and so we are meant to fear God which is a state of humility that guides our words and behavior.

in Today’s reading Paul writes of this hope at the start of his Letter of First Thessalonians that illuminates a new covenant of grace in the Son:

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church gathering in Thessalonica, those living in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus the Anointed.

May grace and peace be yours [from God our Father and the Lord Jesus the Anointed].

We always thank God for all of you in our prayers. Your actions on behalf of the true faith, your tireless toil of love, and your unfailing, unwavering, unending hope in our Lord Jesus the Anointed before God our Father have put you consistently at the forefront of our thoughts. O brothers and sisters loved by God, we know He has chosen you. And here is why: what you experienced in the good news we brought you was more than words channeling down your ears; it came to you as a life-empowering, Spirit-infused message that offers complete hope and assurance! We lived transparently before you so that you would know what sort of people we truly are. We did it for your sake, and you have modeled your lives after ours just as we are modeling ours after the Lord. You took to heart the word we taught with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, even in the face of trouble. As a result, you have turned into a model of faith yourselves for all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. In fact, not only has the message of our Lord thundered from your gathering into Macedonia and Achaia, but everywhere we go, your faith in God is talked about so we don’t even have to say a thing! You see, they go on and on telling us the story of how you welcomed us when we were introduced to you; how you turned toward God and realigned your life to serve the one true living God—leaving your idols to crumble in the dust— and how you now await the return from heaven of His Son, whom He raised from the dead—namely, Jesus—our rescuer from the wrath to come.

The Letter of First Thessalonians, Chapter 1 (The Voice)

Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments is the 19th chapter of the book of Jeremiah that pronounces Judgment for turning from God:

[Smashing the Clay Pot]

God said to me, “Go, buy a clay pot. Then get a few leaders from the people and a few of the leading priests and go out to the Valley of Ben-hinnom, just outside the Potsherd Gate, and preach there what I tell you.

“Say, ‘Listen to God’s Word, you kings of Judah and people of Jerusalem! This is the Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel. I’m about to bring doom crashing down on this place. Oh, and will ears ever ring! Doom—because they’ve walked off and left me, and made this place strange by worshiping strange gods, gods never heard of by them, their parents, or the old kings of Judah. Doom—because they have massacred innocent people. Doom—because they’ve built altars to that no-god Baal, and burned their own children alive in the fire as offerings to Baal, an atrocity I never ordered, never so much as hinted at!

“‘And so it’s payday, and soon’—God’s Decree!—‘this place will no longer be known as Topheth or Valley of Ben-hinnom, but Massacre Meadows. I’m canceling all the plans Judah and Jerusalem had for this place, and I’ll have them killed by their enemies. I’ll stack their dead bodies to be eaten by carrion crows and wild dogs. I’ll turn this city into such a museum of atrocities that anyone coming near will be shocked speechless by the savage brutality. The people will turn into cannibals. Dehumanized by the pressure of the enemy siege, they’ll eat their own children! Yes, they’ll eat one another, family and friends alike.’

“Say all this, and then smash the pot in front of the men who have come with you. Then say, ‘This is what God-of-the-Angel-Armies says: I’ll smash this people and this city like a man who smashes a clay pot into so many pieces it can never be put together again. They’ll bury bodies here in Topheth until there’s no more room. And the whole city will become a Topheth. The city will be turned by people and kings alike into a center for worshiping the star gods and goddesses, turned into an open grave, the whole city an open grave, stinking like a sewer, like Topheth.’”

Then Jeremiah left Topheth, where God had sent him to preach the sermon, and took his stand in the court of God’s Temple and said to the people, “This is the Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies to you: ‘Warning! Danger! I’m bringing down on this city and all the surrounding towns the doom that I have pronounced. They’re set in their ways and won’t budge. They refuse to do a thing I say.’”

The Book of Jeremiah, Chapter 19 (The Message)

A link to my personal reading of the Scriptures for Wednesday, September 1 of 2021 with a paired chapter from each Testament of the Bible along with Today’s Proverbs and Psalms

A post by John Parsons that takes a look at sacrificial Love:

As I’ve mentioned over the years, the word “love” (i.e., ahavah) first appears in the Torah regarding Abraham’s passion for his son: “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love (אֲשֶׁר־אָהַבְתָּ), and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you” (Gen. 22:2). After journeying three days to the designated place, Abraham told his son that God himself would provide a lamb (אֱלהִים יִרְאֶה־לּוֹ הַשֶּׂה), and then bound Isaac, laid him upon an altar, and raised his knife to slay him (Gen. 22:8-10). At the very last moment, the Angel of the Lord called out: “Abraham! Abraham! Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your “only son” (בֵּן יָחִיד), from me” (Gen. 22:11-12). Abraham then “lifted up his eyes” and saw a ram “caught in a thicket” which he offered in place of his son. Abraham then named the place Adonai-Yireh (יהוה יִרְאֶה), "the LORD who provides" (Gen. 22:14). The sacrifice of the lamb for Isaac portrayed the coming sacrifice of Yeshua, the great “Lamb of God” (שֵׂה הָאֱלהִים) who would be offered in exchange for the trusting sinner (John 1:29). Indeed the story of how God provided the lamb at Moriah (and later during the Passover in Egypt) foreshadowed the greater redemption given in Messiah at the "Passover cross," and may be understood as the “Gospel according to Moses” (Luke 24:27; John 5:46). Therefore, during Rosh Hashanah, the Day of Judgment (יוֹם הַדִּין), we listen to the sound of the shofar (ram’s horn) to remind us of the provision of the Lamb of God given in place of Isaac... In other words, Rosh Hashanah is decidedly a holiday that commemorates and celebrates Yeshua our Messiah... [Hebrew for Christians]

and another about repentance:

The theme of the High Holidays is teshuvah (תְּשׁוּבָה), a word often translated as “repentance,” though it is more accurately understood as turning back (i.e., shuv) to God. In spiritual terms, teshuvah may be regarded as a practical turning away from evil and a turning toward the good, though it is simpler to regard turning to God as the means by which we turn away from evil. Indeed the Greek word translated repentance (i.e., μετάνοια) means going beyond our habitual thinking, changing our mind, and learning to see from a radically new perspective. As we turn to God, we see that “everything is new.”

Teshuvah, or “repentance,” believes that the kindness of God can give life to our dead hearts, and therefore it is first of all a matter of faith, trusting God to perform the miracle for us. However, even though it is a great gift from heaven, repentance requires honesty and acknowledgment of the truth. We must confess our inner poverty, our neediness, and mourn over the loss and harm caused by our sin (Matt. 5:2-8). Repentance turns away from our attempts to defend or justify ourselves and instead turns to God to heal our separation from Him (Rom. 8:3-4). Teshuvah buries our old nature by being made into a new creation.

It is no small thing to believe the message of Yeshua, and indeed, it involves a passionate inwardness that “scandalizes” the rational mind. Our father Abraham is extolled as the model of righteous faith, but he was tested to sacrifice the moral law (e.g., “thou shalt not murder”) when he lifted up the knife to slay his beloved son Isaac. Faith requires you to change your everyday thinking, to go beyond natural expectations, to “walk on water.” In the case of Yeshua, we are confronted with the “Absolute Paradox,” namely, the God-Man, the Infinite-made-Finite, the Holy-made-Profane, the Sinless-made-Sin, who says to you: “I AM the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26). You will never die; you will never hunger; you are made whole through my brokenness; you will be cleansed by my defilement, and so on. It’s not just hard to believe, it’s impossible, which is why it is a miracle of God to be saved (Matt. 19:26). “It is the Spirit that gives life; the flesh is no help at all” (John 6:63). The difference is Yeshua: “Salvation is of the LORD.” We are enabled to love and know God by means of his inner life and spirit, not by means of good intentions or religious zeal. Faith itself is a miracle, the power of God. [Hebrew for Christians]

8.31.21 • Facebook

Today’s message (Days of Praise) from the Institute for Creation Research

September 1, 2021

Stand Ye Still

“Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem...to morrow go out against them: for the LORD will be with you.” (2 Chronicles 20:17)

The Ammonites and Moabites and Edomites had organized “a great multitude” seeking to destroy Judah under King Jehoshaphat. But the king and his people came together to “seek the LORD” in prayer for deliverance, and God answered. “The Spirit of the LORD” spoke through Jahaziel, assuring them that “the battle is not yours, but God’s” (see 2 Chronicles 20:2, 4, 14-15).

Then the Lord sent what may have seemed a strange instruction. “Stand ye still,” He said. Just watch God do it! And He did. All their enemies were constrained by the Lord to fight and destroy each other, without the Israelites having to fight at all. Similarly, at the Red Sea when everything looked hopeless, “Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD” (Exodus 14:13). So, they did, and all Pharaoh’s armies were overthrown in the midst of the sea.

In Isaiah’s day, when Israel was tempted to call on pagan Egypt for help against pagan Assyria, God said concerning Israel’s armies, “Their strength is to sit still” (Isaiah 30:7). As the ship was being buffeted in the storm, and the sailors in panic were about to flee in the lifeboat, Paul said, “Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved” (Acts 27:31). So, they stayed, and God spared every man.

There are times for action, of course, but the principle is this. When we have done all we can, and the situation seems hopeless, this is the time to sit still and trust God to work it out in His own good way. “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). Got any rivers you think are uncrossable? God specializes in things thought impossible! HMM

[thebeautyoftorah]

Rosh Hashana

bs'd

Shalom.

l'm very happy to announce that my newest book 'Healing Anger' just came out. A practical guide completely based on Torah sources to overcome anger and acquire real peace of mind.

This the link in Feldheim publishers

http://www.feldheim.com/healing-anger.html

If you want to buy it from me in Israel let me know.

Feel free to forward these words of Torah to any other fellow Jew. Shana Tova and Shabat Shalom.

Rosh Hashana-Resolutions for the New Year

Many people before Rosh Hashanah and especially during the ten-day period until Yom Kippur do teshuvah, and we promise G-d that we will make positive changes in our lives in the hope of meriting a good year, yet pretty soon after we hear that shofar blast at the end of Yom Kippur, we are already back to our old ways.

This sad reality is reflected in a verse that we read only a few weeks ago in Parsha Ekev. There, the Torah states that the “eyes of G-d” are always upon the Land of Israel “me’reshit hashanah, from the beginning of the year, ad acharit shanah, until year’s end” (see Devarim 11:12). The verse speaks of the beginning of “the year until year’s end”; it does not say to the end of the year.

The Satmar Rav, Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum ZT”L, points out this glaring lack of parallel structure in the verse, and offers a homiletical interpretation: Commonly, people approach Rosh Hashanah with a powerful resolve to improve themselves and stop their negative behaviors once and for all – and that the coming new year will be hashanah, “the” year. But as time goes on, their resolution quickly weakens, and they slide back into their old ways, so that by the time the year is over it is acharit shanah, the end of just another year.

It is no wonder then that so many of us feel that our prayers each year on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur aren’t being answered. Maybe if we were more sincere in our promises to Hashem, and our resolutions lasted longer than just till the end of Yom Kippur, we would get what we asked for. But if we just pay lip service to G-d on the High Holidays without any real intention or gameplan to actually change our ways even a little bit during the coming year, what can we really expect Hashem to do for us on his end? There is a fascinating interpretation by the famous Maggid Rabbi Yaakov Galinsky of a very strange statement made by the Gemara [1]: "It is as difficult [for G-d] to provide a livelihood for a person as it was to split the Red Sea”. Why is either of these so “difficult” for Hashem to do, and what is the parallel between them?

Rav Galinsky explains: The Midrash [2] tells us, based on a verse in Shemot 14:27, that G-d made a “condition” with the Red Sea when He created it that it would split for the Jewish people when they needed it 2448 years later. If this is so, we can ask why it was so difficult for the sea to split at the stipulated time. The answer is that the sea had agreed to split for the children of Abraham, Yitzchak and Yaacov. But by the time the Jews left Egypt and stood at the Red Sea, they looked very different than their forefathers. Over many years they spent in slavery, the Jewish people had adopted many of the idolatrous ways of their Egyptian hosts and no longer resembled their holy ancestors.

The same “difficulty”, says the Maggid, exists with regard to providing a livelihood for the Jewish people. We are taught that “all of a person’s sustenance [for the entire year] is determined for him [during the ten days] between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur” (see Betzah 16a). So a Jewish person – let’s call him Moshe - goes to the synagogue during the High Holidays, wraps himself in a tallit, and prays with intent and feeling, sincerely regretting his past misdeeds, and making promises to be better in the future – all in the hopes that in the coming year G-d will give him that extra $40,000 that he needs in order to redo his kitchen and to buy a new car. The “ministering angels” in heaven take note of both his sincere and heartfelt repentance and his special request – and they take a “snapshot” of him and write on the back of the photo “Moshe needs an additional $40,000 this year”, and they file it away with all the other New Year’s requests.

When Chanukah comes and goes and the money still hasn’t come, Moshe starts praying to G-d again, asking for his special Rosh Hashanah petition to be filled. The ministering angels quickly run over to the file cabinet and pull out Moshe’s picture. The “difficulty” with granting his request is that by now Moshe no longer resembles the guy they took a picture of on the High Holidays! Then he was wearing a tallit and praying with fervor and promising G-d everything – and taking his Judaism and his relationship with Hashem seriously – but soon after Yom Kippur ended, Moshe let it all slide and was back to the way he was before the High Holidays began!

So what can we do to make our Jewish New Year’s resolutions stick – so that even when Chanukah comes around, we will be able to say that we have kept our promises to G-d and we still resemble the way we were during the High Holidays?

I would like to share with you one profoundly simple idea from our Sages that I think can help all of us succeed with our own Rosh Hashanah resolutions this year.

The Midrash, expounding on a verse in Shir Hashirim 5:2, states that G-d lovingly tells the Jewish people: “Open for me a hole like the eye of the needle, and I will open for you [the rest] like the entranceway to a great hall”. The commentators explain that Hashem is telling us that we don’t have to do the whole job ourselves. If we want to make a teshuvah “breakthrough” and effect positive changes in our lives for the coming year, all we need to do is to make a tiny little hole – like the size of the eye of a needle – and G-d will help us take care of the rest. The one condition, however, is that the little hole that we make has to go all the way through to the other side, i.e. whatever small resolution we do take upon ourselves during the Ten Days of Repentance has to be one that we know we will definitely be able to fulfill. And when Hashem sees that we were sincere with that one small resolution - and that we actually came through on it during the year - He will “make our little hole much bigger” and help us come through with all our other challenges as well.

The basic idea is to pick one small area in our lives that needs improvement and commit to changing it during the coming year – but we need to make sure that we’ve picked something which we can virtually guarantee that we won’t fail at.

Working in our midot (character traits) is a critical and very difficult area that we all have to set realistic goals. So for example, many have anger issues. We can commit ourselves to minimizing anger episodes at home.This is one small but significant commitment we can make for Rosh Hashanah and we were able to stick to it throughout the year.

I would like to conclude with the second part of the Satmar Rav’s homiletical interpretation mentioned above:

In the Kedushah recited during the cantor’s repetition of the Mussaf prayer on Shabbat and the Holidays (according to Nusach Sefardi), we say: “He is our G-d, He is Our Father, He is Our King, He is Our Savior. He will save and redeem us a second time, and will tell us in His mercy for all to see, ‘I have redeemed you - acharit k’reshit - at the end (of time) as at the beginning, to be to you for a G-d’.” Hashem is hinting to us with these words that we will be redeemed from the current exile acharit k’reshit – i.e. when the end (of the year) is like the beginning (of the year). The time will come when we won’t just begin the year with the hope that this will be “the” year, but when we will be able to look back at the end of the year and declare proudly, “This was indeed ‘the’ year.” When that time comes, G-d will bring the ultimate redemption. May this be “the” year! Shana Tova Umetuka! ______________________________

[1] Pesachim 118a.

[2] Shemot Rabbah 21:6.

Le Iluy nishmat Eliahu ben Simcha, Mordechai ben Shlomo, Perla bat Simcha, Abraham Meir ben Leah,Moshe ben Gila,Yaakov ben Gila, Sara bat Gila, Yitzchak ben Perla, Leah bat Chavah, Abraham Meir ben Leah,Itamar Ben Reb Yehuda, Yehuda Ben Shmuel Tzvi, Tova Chaya bat Dovid. Refua Shelema of Yaacov ben Miriam, Naftali Dovid ben Naomi Tzipora, Gila bat Tzipora, Tzipora bat Gila, Dvir ben Leah, Elimelech Dovid ben Chaya Baila, Noa bat Batsheva Devorah and Dovid Yehoshua ben Leba Malka.

Atzlacha to Shmuel ben Mazal tov and Zivug agun to Marielle Gabriela bat Gila, Naftali Dovid ben Naomi Tzipora, Yehudit bat Malka, Elisheva bat Malka.