Elul / Rosh Hashanah
Our Own Akeidah
The centerpiece of our Rosh Hashana observance, prayers, and sounding of
the shofar is the remembrance of the akeidah – the binding of Yitzchak to
the altar and Avraham’s apparent willingness to sacrifice him as worship
to God. The akeidah has followed us throughout our long history. There
have been millions of akeidot in Jewish history and most of them ended in
the death of the victim and not in him or her being spared. Yet it is the
utter devotion and tenacity of Israel to do God’s will no matter what the
cost that has sustained us throughout our long and difficult journey
through time. Rosh Hashana therefore serves to remind us of the price that
may be demanded yet of us to protect our Jewishness and project it into
future generations. The tests need not be ones of physical life and death.
They are usually more complicated and subtle than that. Overcoming one’s
own weaknesses and desires, swimming against the current of the prevailing
value system of much of modern society and being steadfast in our faith
and behavior against all comers and events – these are the terms of our
own akeidah. The price of easy Judaism is assimilation and forfeiture of
one’s Jewish future. Rosh Hashana is uncompromising in its demands upon
us. The Baal Shem Tov stressed that a person is judged not only by what a
person is at that moment but also by what a person aspires to be. Rosh
Hashana is the time for renewed commitment to our higher and nobler
aspirations, to dismiss pettiness and selfishness and direct ourselves to
the fulfillment of Torah and Jewish values in our lives and our society.
The shofar therefore serves as our call to arouse our better self. The
rabbis phrased it thusly: “Let one always arouse one’s better nature to do
battle against one’s evil desires.” Passivity in attempting to improve our
nature and behavior is doomed to being a failed tactic. Rosh Hashana
demands from us enthusiasm in the cause of God and Torah and a willingness
to struggle with ourselves – the hardest struggle that we will ever
encounter is with ourselves – in order to arouse our better nature and
aspire to moral greatness and holy behavior. The shofar is proactive. Its
sounds are penetrating and turbulent. It demands and does not soothe. It
is the byproduct of the akeidah. But our rabbis have taught us that our
prayers on Rosh Hashana ascend heavenward through the medium of the
shofar. Only by aspiring to be better and stronger and more Jewish can we
hope to have good standing before the heavenly court on the Day of
Judgment. The sounds of the shofar therefore goad us towards this goal and
achievement in the service of God and humans. In the sounds of the shofar
do we hear our own struggles with ourselves to improve and ascend. This
struggle is an eternal one but so are its rewards and benefits.
I extend to all of you, my beloved friends at Beit Knesset HaNassi and
those around the world as well who have stood by me in my difficult moment
and aided me with your friendship and concern, my heartfelt blessings for
the New Year. May it bring us health and prosperity, longevity and
harmony. May God bless Israel, His people and land, with peace and
redemption .
Rabbi Berel Wein
Rabbi Berel Wein- Jewish historian, author and international lecturer offers a complete selection of CDs, audio tapes, video tapes, DVDs, and books on Jewish history at www.rabbiwein.com
Text Copyright © 2006 by Rabbi Berel Wein and Torah.org
Visit www.rabbiwein.com for a complete selection of Rabbi Wein's books and tapes.
