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HEBREW
TABERNACLE CONGREGATION |
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We are
currently in the month of Elul. During
this month, we reflect inwardly as the High Holydays approach. Most books
on Judaism translate “teshuvah” as “repentance.” That
is certainly a key element in the concept, but its literal meaning,
“turning,” captures another aspect of the process of teshuvah. To
make teshuvah is to turn inward in self-evaluation, to turn back to look on
one's deeds of the previous year, to re-turn to God. There are
no fast days or festivals in the month of Elul. There is nothing to distract
us from a month of “re-turning” and forgiveness, a month of
asking for Divine mercy. Each day of the month we recite Psalm 27 in the
synagogue, asking God not to turn away from us, to hear our voices and
“be gracious… and answer us.” In Orthodox and some
Conservative synagogues, the shofar (ram’s horn) is sounded after the
Morning Service on each of the 29 days of the month. Selikhot (penitential
prayers) are recited, calling upon the people We now
present a thought for each day of Elul.
Check back every Monday for the preceding week’s thoughts. Day 1 Meditate
continuously on tshuvah and accustom yourself to say again and again:
“Create for me, O God, a pure heart, and renew within me an upright
spirit [Psalm 51:12]. (Rabbi David Lida, HANHAGOT TZADDIKIM [III], vol. 1 p.
113, #30) Yitzhak Buxbaum Jewish Spiritual Practices Day 2 Elul is a
specially favorable time to attain Da’at, knowledge of God. A person
can come to know and understand what he did not know before. New clothes are
fashioned for his soul and he is released from all troubles. Rabbi Nachman’s Advice Day 3 Repentance
is not just a psychological phenomenon, a storm within a human teacup, but is
a process that can effect real change in the world, in all the worlds. Adin Steinsaltz The Thirteen Petalled Rose Day 4 (Note: at
over 400 words, this passage is by far the longest. Most readings are brief.)
There are four components to repentance: first, regretting
having committed a sin; second, forsaking and avoiding it; third, confessing
to and asking for forgiveness for it; and fourth, taking it upon yourself in
heart and in mind never to commit it again. Regret is a sign that the deed you committed has become
disgraceful in your eyes. As it is
said, “One who knows will return and repent, and leave a blessing
behind him” (Joel 2:14), and as it is said about people who continue to
sin, “No one repented for his wickedness” (Jeremiah 8:6). We see,
in fact, that when someone who wronged his friend expresses regret for having
done what he did, that that is the greatest impetus for his friend to forgive
him. Forsaking sin is a sign of your obvious faith in reward and
punishment, as it is said, “The evil person should abandon his ways,
and the cheater should abandon his thoughts: let him return to God, who will
have mercy on him” (Isaiah 55:7). For it is said of one who continues
to sin, “I was angry about his iniquity of coveting and I struck
him. I hid and was angry”
(Isaiah 57:17). In fact we see that when a person who wronged his friend
stops wronging him, after having expressed regret for what he did, his friend
is expected to forgive him and to overlook his transgression. Asking for forgiveness is a sign of your surrendering to and
humbling yourself before God. Confessing your sins then is reason enough for
you to be forgiven for them, as it is said, “But he who confesses and
abandons (his sins) will be shown mercy” (Proverbs 28:13), while it is
said of one who acts in the opposite manner, “Behold, I will enter into
judgment with you because you said, ‘I did not sin’”
(Jeremiah 2:35), and “One who hides his iniquities will not
succeed” (Proverbs 18:13). Thus we see that when someone who wronged his friend
surrenders himself to him, confesses his sins against him, and admits that he
did him wrong and then asks for his forgiveness, that the latter cannot help
but forgive him and overlook the sin as he removes the grudge he bears
against him when the other regrets his sin. And taking upon yourself never to repeat your iniquity is a
sign that you realize how wrong and how serious a sin it is you committed. As
it is said, “If I committed an iniquity, I will no longer (Job
34:32)… When you display these four components of repentance, along
with their conditions…the Creator forgives you for your iniquity, and
overlooks your transgressions. Bachya Ibn Pakuda Duties of the Heart Day 5 Man is
always developing, and that is why his concrete acts in the world (his
performance of the commandments) are given such emphasis. The process of
teshuvah, centered as it is upon the action of man, is never finished. God
helps man only after man himself has taken the first step…Teshuvah is
man’s response to the divine call. God, out of his love for man, calls
out to him, ‘Where art thou?” – meaning, where are you in
the world? What is your place? Stirred by these questions, man begins to
reorient himself in the world, to move toward an authentic mode of existence. “Repentence” by Ehud
Luz Contemporary Jewish Religious
Thought Edited by Arthur A. Cohen &
Paul Mendes-Flohr Day 6 Repent
even when you have ascended to a high state of holiness. Repent even when you
have descended to a low state of uncleanness, as we are told: ‘If I
ascend up into the Heaven, Thou art there; if I make my bed in the
netherworld, behold, Thou art there’ (Psalm 139:8). Whatever your
state, you must return unto the Lord. The Bratslaver Rebbe on Repentance The Hasidic Anthology Edited by Louis I. Newman Day 7 Return, O
Israelites to Adonai your god. (Hosea 14:2) This verse
means: One must return to the place where the Adonai is your God; that is, to
the divinity that is within you. Rabbi Yisrael, the Maggid of
Kozhnitz Hasidic Wisdom Edited by Simcha Raz Day 8 There are
some people who believe that every good prospect and hope in the Almighty is
gone for them: they have lost every chance for life in the world-to-come.
Nothing could be further from the truth. This itself is the counsel of the
Evil Inclination, that seeks to entangle a man in its net. The Hafetz Hayyim on the Days of
Awe Day 9 The main
element of sin is not how a person sinned, for he is only human, and he could
not withstand the test. The main element of sin is that man may repent at any
moment, but he does not. And this sin is greater than the transgression
itself. The Sayings of Menahem Mendel of
Kotsk Edited by Simcha Raz Day
10 I
heard from my grandfather [the Baal Shem Tov] that the Hebrew word for sin,
Chet…is written with a silent Alef for the following reason. Even in
sin one can find the Prince (Aluf) of the universe, even though He is covered
and concealed. Without His power, no man could lift his hand to do anything,
great or small. Degel Machaneh Ephraim Rabbi Moshe Chaim Ephraim of
Sudylkov The Light Ahead: Adventures in
Hassidic Thought Edited by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Day
11 “I
know so well that I did it, and I am so terrified by the greatness of my
master, yet I simply dare not confess.” This
is the nature of the servant with his master, but should not be the way of
man with his Creator. Our masters teach us not to be frightened of confessing
our misdeeds, for our God is merciful, and confession will surely arouse even
greater kindness and mercy. As Solomon said (Proverbs 28:13): He who
confesses and abandons sin will be treated with mercy. Light of Life Writings of Rabbi Chaim Ben Moshe
Attar Day
12 Certain
sages go so far as to include repentance among the entities created before
the world itself. The implication of this remarkable statement is that
repentance is a universal, primordial phenomenon; in such a context it has
two meanings. One is that it is embedded in the root structure of the world;
the other, that before man was created, he was given the possibility of
changing the course of his life. In this latter sense repentance is the
highest _expression of man’s capacity to choose freely – it is a
manifestation of the divine in man. Man can extricate himself from the
binding web of his life, from the chain of causality that otherwise compels
him to follow a path of no return. Repentance
also comprises the notion that man has a measure of control over his
existence in all dimensions, including time. Time flows in one direction; it
is impossible to undo or even to alter an action after it has occurred and
become an “event,” an objective fact. However, even though the
past is “fixed,” repentance admits of an ascendancy over it, of
the possibility of changing its significance in the context of the present
and future. This is why repentance has been presented as something created
before the world itself. In a world of the inexorable flow of time, in which
all objects and events are interconnected in a relationship of cause and
effect, repentance is the exception: it is the potential for something
else. Adin Steinsaltz The Thirteen Petalled Rose Day
13 Every
thought of penitence joins all the past to the future and the future is
uplifted through the ennoblement of the will inspired by penitence out of
love. Rav Avraham Kook The Lights of Penitence Day
14 When
someone wants to purify himself and return to God, they tell him
“Wait!” (Yoma 38b-39a). It is true that he should hurry to
release his soul and flee from the darkness. But he shouldn’t be
discouraged and depressed when he sees how far he is from true prayer and
other holy devotions. It is a necessary part of the process that he should
wait. In the end he will be worthy of making amends completely, and all
will be restored. Understand this well (Ibid). Rabbi Nachman’s Advice Day
15 A
Prayer for The Month of Elul Master
of the Universe: Help me to follow the path of perfect Teshuvah at all times,
and especially during the holy days of Elul. During
the holy days of Elul, help me to attain perfect Teshuvah, and let the
holiness of Elul be drawn into the entire year, until we are able to follow
the path of perfect Teshuvah at all times and to walk all the pathways of
Teshuvah perfectly all our days and for ever. In
Your abundant kindness and mercy, accept all the different aspects and levels
of our Teshuvah with love and favor, and enable us to “search and
examine our ways and return and rise towards HaShem, for Your right hand is
stretched out to receive those who wish to return.” The
Fiftieth Gate: Likutey Tefilot Reb
Noson’s Prayers Day
16 God’s
Name is more sanctified when the wicked repent than when they are destroyed. Light of Life Writings of Rabbi Chaim Ben Moshe
Attar Day
17 The
Hebrew word for repentance, teshuvah, has two distinct meanings. The first
derives from the verb “to return”; when used in this sense, it
signifies going back to one’s point of origin, returning to the
straight path, coming back home after a period of absence. The second derives
from the verb “to reply,” and denotes response to a question or
call that has come from without. The Jewish idea of teshuvah embraces both
these meaning: It is a movement of return to one’s source, to the
original paradigm of human – or national – life, and also,
simultaneously, a response to a divine call. The act of returning to
one’s original self is thus in and of itself a return to God and His
teaching; and this is true on both the individual and the national levels. “Repentence” by Ehud
Luz Contemporary Jewish Religious
Thought Edited by Arthur A. Cohen &
Paul Mendes-Flohr Day
18 The
fact that teshuvah is characterized by a desire to cleave to God demonstrates
that it relates to a state of Godliness – and a state of the soul
– in which the possibility of separateness exists. Hence teshuvah is a
soul’s response to its descent into our world where God’s
presence is concealed and in which our spiritual endeavors are beset by
challenges. Timeless Patterns in Time Chassidic Insights into the Cycle
of the Jewish Year Adapted from the works of the
Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson Day
19 The
more a person contemplates the nature of penitence, the more he will find in
it the source of heroism and the most basic content for a life of
practicality and idealism. Rav Avraham Kook The Lights of Repentance The
advantage of teshuvah over all other ventures is that even losses are
converted into profits. Rav Yosef Yozel Hurwitz Sparks of Mussar Edited by Rabbi Chaim Ephraim
Zaitchik Day
20 Two
things are necessary for man’s self-perfection. One is to arouse and
inspire himself. The other, by far the harder, is to carry out his good
resolutions and retain the inspiration when it comes down to action. Rav Naftali Sparks of Mussar Edited by Rabbi Chaim Ephraim
Zaitchik Day
21 Rabbi
Bunam was asked: How can a man know when his repentance is genuine?” If
he loses the desire to commit these very offenses again,” answered the
Rabbi. The Hasidic Anthology Edited by Louis I. Newman Day
22 Failure
to repent is much worse than sin. A man may have sinned but for a moment, but
he may fail to repent of it moments without number. Rabbi Bunam The Hasidic Anthology Edited by Louis I. Newman Day
23 Rabbi
Nathan David Sidloftzer, son of Rabbi Yerachmiel said: “We read:
‘as far as the East is from the West, so far hath He removed our transgressions
from us.’ (Psalm 103:12) When a man stands facing the east, he needs
but a turning about to face west. Likewise a sinner needs but a slight mental
turning about to be far removed from his transgression.” The Hasidic Anthology Edited by Louis I. Newman Day 24 The paths
of the penitent and of the man who has merely lost his direction differ only
in terms of the aim, not in the going itself. The Jewish approach to life
considers the man who has stopped going – he who has a feeling of
completion, of peace, of a great light from above that has brought him to
rest – to be someone who has lost his way. Only he whom the light
continues to beckon, for whom the light is as distant as ever, only he can be
considered to have received some sort of response. The path a man has taken
is revealed to him only in retrospect, in a contemplation of the past that
grants confidence in what lies ahead. This awareness is in fact the reward,
and it is conditional on the continuation of the return. Adin Steinsaltz The Thirteen Petalled Rose Day 25 There was still another parable that our master [Rabbi Hayyim
of Zans, 19th cent.] used to relate: There was once a poor countrywoman who had many children. They
were always begging for food, but she had none to give them. One day she
found an egg. She called her children and said, “Children, children,
we’ve nothing to worry about any more; I’ve found an egg. And,
being a provident woman, I’ll not eat the egg, but shall ask my
neighbor for permission to set it under her setting hen, until a chick is
hatched. For I am a provident woman! And we’ll not eat the chick, but
will set her on eggs, and the eggs will hatch into chickens. And the chickens
in their turn will hatch many eggs, and we’ll have many chickens and
many eggs. But I’m a provident woman, I am! I’ll not eat the
chickens and not eat the eggs, but shall sell them and buy me a heifer. And
I’ll not eat the heifer, but shall raise it to a cow, and not eat the
cow until it has calves. For I’m a provident woman! And I’ll sell
the cows and the calves and buy a field, and we’ll have fields and cows
and calves, and we won’t need anything more!” The countrywoman was speaking in this fashion and playing with
the egg, when it fell out of her hands and broke. Said our master: “That is how we are. When the Holy Days
arrive, every person resolves to do Teshuvah, thinking in his heart,
‘I’ll do this, and I’ll do that.’ But the days slip
by in mere deliberation, and thought doesn’t lead to action, and what
is worse, the person who made the resolution may fall even lower. Therefore
every person ought to exercise great caution so as not to fall even lower,
God forbid.” S. Y. Agnon Days of Awe Day 26 Repentance
never stops. It is a continuing process. Even at the very moment a person is
saying, “I have sinned, I have transgressed, I have rebelled,
etc.” it is still impossible for him to say the words with complete
sincerity without a single extraneous motive. Thus he must repent for his
earlier extraneous motive – namely the flaw in his previous confession. Rebbe Nachman’s Advice Day 27 A person should not be disturbed by impediments in meeting the
claims of penitence. Even if his difficulties stem from offenses against
other persons, and he knows he has not redressed the wrongs and he finds
himself too weak to mend his relations with his fellowman, let him not
entertain in his heart any discouraging thoughts that disparage the value of
penitence. Undoubtedly, once he redresses wrongs where no impediments
interfere, God will also help him to redress great impediments that he cannot
presently overcome. The fact that the would-be
penitent is at times confronted by great difficulties, whether in the duties
between man and God or in the duties between man and man, should not impede
the spiritual essence of penitence. Once there is a reaching for penitence,
there is the reality of penitence, and the person involved becomes a new
being. Avraham Kook The Lights of Penitence Day 28 Late one night, R’ Yisroel [Lipkin of Salant] chanced to
enter a shoemaker’s home. The shoemaker was sitting and doing his work
by the flickering light of a candle that was about to go out. “Why are
you still working?” asked R’ Yisoroel. “The hour is late.
Besides your candle will go out soon and you won’t be able to
finish.” “That’s no problem,” answered the shoemaker.
“As long as the candle is burning, it is still possible to work and to
repair.” R’ Yisroel was deeply impressed by these words, for if
one must work for his physical needs as long as the candle is lit, how much
more so must a person work for his spiritual improvement so long as the soul
– “God’s candle” – is in him. For many days
after, R’ Yisroel was heard pacing his room, chanting with great
fervor, “As long as the candle is burning, it is still possible to work
and to repair.” Sparks of Mussar Edited by Rabbi Chaim Ephraim
Zaitchik Day 29 Generally
people work on repentance during the Ten Days of Penitence from Rosh Hashanah
to Yom Kippur. The more pious ones begin to work on repentance from the
beginning of the month of Elul. But I say that repentance must begin right
after Ne’ilah. Rav Yisroel Lipkin of Salant Sparks of Mussar Edited by Rabbi Chaim Ephraim
Zaitchik - - - - -
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Elul is ending. We hope these meditations have helped you
prepare yourself for the Days of Awe. Remember that the Gates of Repentance are never closed. May you and your loved ones be inscribed for a good year. |
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