Achim Newsletter
Rosh Hashanah
Tuesday September 7, 2010
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Greetings!
I wish you a Shana Tova, a good year; a year of health and happiness and a year of seeing your dreams realized.
There are many candle lighting times and details
Candle
lighting times time for Baltimore
Wednesday 7:08 pm
Thursday not before 8:15 pm
Friday between 6:04 - 7:05 pm
Shabbos concludes 8:23 pm
Being that this year the holiday of Rosh Hashanah occurs on Thursday and Friday one is required to make an Eruv Tavshilin on Wednesday to allow preparations to made on Friday for Shabbos.
For details how to make an Eruv in English / in Russian
For the details on our Yom Kippur service.
Vsego khoroshego,
Paysach Diskind
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to print this as a web page click here
A sound message
We are about to enter Rosh Hashanah and Shabbos with no
interruption between the two. Rather than addressing the Shabbos Parsha of
Haazinu we will address Rosh Hashanah.
Among the many aspects of Rosh Hashanah I would like to
focus on the mitzvah of Shofar. On Rosh Hashanah there is a mitzvah to take the
horn of a ram and blow a series of blasts. The reason we do this mitzvah is
simply because HaShem so instructed us in His Torah. It can be left as simple
as that. Nevertheless, if we were to leave it on that level of simplicity we
would miss the essence of Rosh Hashanah. On the other hand, however, if we
attempt to delve into the full depth of the meaning and significance of the
shofar and how it relates to Rosh Hashanah we would exceed our self imposed limit
of no more than two pages of text.
Let us therefore attempt to explore one aspect of the
shofar's significance, how it relates to Rosh Hashanah and how we can use it on
a practical level.
We will begin with the Mishna (the canon of the Oral Law) that
states the following. "There are four periods in the year during which the
world is judged. On the holiday of Pesach (Passover) the world is judged
regarding the grain production. On the holiday of Shavuous the world is judged
on the fruits. On Rosh Hashanah every single human being passes in front of Him
for judgment and on Succos the world is judged regarding rainfall."
Each of the three festivals of Pesach, Shavuous and Succos
have their own unique offering that are brought. On Pesach a barley offering,
on Shavuous a wheat offering and on Succos a water offering. The Talmud
associates these unique offerings to the matter that was judged on that
festival, as follows.
"On Pesach HaShem instructs us to bring a grain offering so
as to say 'bring for Me a grain offering so that I will judge you favorably
regarding your grain'. On Shavuous HaShem instructs us to bring a wheat
offering so as to say 'bring for Me a wheat offering so that I will judge you
favorably regarding your fruits'. On Succos HaShem instructs us to bring a
water offering so as to say 'bring for Me a water offering so that I will judge
you favorably regarding your rainfall'.
The understanding of these offerings was that by bringing
these offerings we make a proclamation to HaShem and a statement to ourselves
that we recognize that our grain comes from HaShem and that it is therefore to
be used in His service and in line with His expectations. When we make that
statement with sincerity we can anticipate that HaShem will judge us favorably
regarding the grain. The same notion is expressed with the other offerings of
wheat and water in their respective festivals.
With this in mind what can we offer on Rosh Hashanah
considering that issue that is being judged is every single individual human
being? We have two dilemmas; first, ought we to bring a person offering; HaShem
is not interested in human sacrifice. The second dilemma is that while on the
festivals there was one judgment for
all the grain in the world; hence one offering takes care of that judgment. On
Rosh Hashanah, however, every single human being is judged. The parallel would
be that every person offer himself to HaShem.
The Torah offers the solution. The unique offering that we
bring on Rosh Hashanah is that every individual listens to the Shofar. Through
the listening to shofar blasts we offer ourselves up to the alter of HaShem.
This requires a deeper understanding into the symbolism of the shofar.
The Talmud teaches us that the reason we use a ram's horn
rather than any other animal is to remind us of the ram that was used by
Avrohom Avinu (our forefather Abraham) when HaShem tested him at the Akeida.
We could fill many pages discussing the Akeida but for the
sake of brevity we stick to what is germane to our current discussion.
HaShem tested Avrohom Avinu to give him the opportunity of
demonstrating his absolute dedication and commitment to HaShem. The test was as
follows. Avrohom and his wife Sarah had no children till their old age. In
spite of the fact that HaShem told them that He would make them into a great
nation they still had no children for many years. Finally at the ages of 100
years and 90 years Avrohom and Sarah had baby Yitzchok (Isaac). Thirty seven
years later with Yitzchok still not married HaShem instructs Avrohom to bring
Yitzchok as a sacrifice. Without asking any questions both Avrohom and Yitzchok
move on to carry out HaShem's order. After their three day trek to Jerusalem they build an
alter. Yitzchok mounts the alter and readies himself to be slaughtered by his
loving father. Avrohom takes the knife in his hand and just before the knife
touches Yitzchok HaShem instructs Avrohom not to touch his son. (There are so
many questions that are so worthy of discussion and must be addressed but as I
mentioned earlier we will save that for a different forum.)
Avrohom, having brought himself to such an incredible
emotional level of dedication wanted to act on his dedication. He wanted to
perform an act based upon the level he achieved through this test. (When one
reaches a high level of love, he looks for an action by which he can manifest
his love into something concrete.) He looked around the mountain top where the
alter was constructed and noticed a ram caught in the bushes by its horns.
After wresting it from the bushes Avrohom placed this ram on the alter which
was built for his son, Yitzchok, and slaughtered it. He requested from HaShem
to consider the slaughtering of this ram as if he carried out his original
intent. HaShem granted him his request.
This event is a watershed in the history of our people. This
pivotal event allows us to make the claim that we, yes we ourselves, were
raised upon the alter of HaShem. We, the descendants of Yitzchok, were actually
offered as sacrifices.
When we listen to the ram's shofar we are bringing back to
our minds that HaShem reckons each and every Jew as having been brought up on
the alter of HaShem. It is worth pointing out that the power of the shofar is
only as strong as we commit ourselves to HaShem and to His Torah.
As much as this discussion sounds theoretical and esoteric
its practical implementation is very real.
This Rosh Hashanah there will be a judgment. We will be in
court and will be judged. Every one of us will be reviewed individually by
HaShem. No great lawyers will be available that day, they too will be judged.
Our best strategy is the shofar. We must listen to that shofar. We must attach
our commitment and dedication to our listening; internalizing the message it
carries that I was on the alter and that my entire life with all its joys and
challenges is given to me by HaShem for His purpose.
May we all merit a happy, healthy and meaningful year.
And may HaShem, too, merit a year of His final redemption
and together we will go with Him back home.
Paysach Diskind
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Noteworthy links
Yom Kippur Service From Kol Nidre throught Shofar blowing
Parsha Summary by Rabbi Osher Baddiel in English and Russian
Penetrating Russian insight to the Parsha by Shvut Ami
Programs from which you and others can learn and grow
Etz Chaim Center offering Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur programs
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Хасидская притча
Сказано: Правда сквозь землю прорастет.
Люди хоронят правду, а она
прорастает десятками ростков из одного зерна
р. Менахем-Мендл из Коцка
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