Rosh Hashana 5768

September 13, 2007

Today is Rosh Hashanah, the first day of the New Year 5768.

One of the times I feel closest to Judaism, is around these High Holidays. There are four major holidays within about a 4 week period. They are Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkoth, and Simchat Torah. Today is Rosh Hashanah and I think this time of year is practical and is, indeed, a spiritual gift.

It is, traditionally, a time to reflect on what we have done the past year and to own the wrongs we have done and to work to repair the damage done to the people in our lives. Hail Mary’s and self-punishment do not work in Judaism. We are required to go directly to the people that we have wronged, ask them to forgive and work to repair the damage. And, they are not required to forgive, nor are they looked down upon for not having forgiven. The magic number is three times. That is, they do not have to forgive until we have owned the wrong, done everything possible to correct the wrong, and asked up to three different times for their forgiveness. Of course, there is no reason for one not to forgive, especially once someone has worked so hard to free you of their power over you that comes in the form of anger or resentment.

It is believed that G-d decides who will live and who will die during the next year during the week between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We talk about G-d’s metaphoric “Book of Life” that list those that will live for the next year. Jews are expected to do heavy reflection on the beginning the month before Rosh Hashanah (Elul in the Jewish calendar) and certainly during the week between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. It is a time of reflection and action to do the work of reparation. On Yom Kippur, only after righting the wrongs done to people, we ask forgiveness to G-d for all of the wrongs that were not so directed at others.

All of this is in order to start the New Year with a clean slate. The toughest forgiveness for me, at least, is to forgive myself. I met an American this week that informed me that I am a victim of an overly strict conscience and that I should lighten up a bit to have more fun. I took it as a compliment, though I think he was trying to get me out of my comfort zone to be in a more decadent life. Once we are free of burdens and resignation the past, we can create our future without dragging the baggage all of the way into the future. Or, better said, we don’t have to place that past in our future. Think of baggage being taken on a trip. They were in your past, are slowing you down now, and limiting where you can go in the future. Letting go of our image of ourselves as being a product of our past liberates us to create a new way of being in the world.

So, all we have is today. There is no past and there is no future. We can choose to create the future that feels fulfilling, contributional to our communities, and that gives us energy that pulls us into that future. This inspires us to move forward into places that we learned in the past that we could never go. I choose to let that past go. After all, I forgive or give forward the life that fulfills me. We can all do that. It is liberating and frees us from the easiest way of living that is cynical and resigned. I keep telling Israelis who feel they cannot change the way their government works that cynicism and resignation are the lowest way of living and their power over us keeps us from taking action. There is no shame in not knowing what to do. It is perfectly healthy to be in the inquiry and to be searching for our next course of action in our lives.

Several of my friends have very negative outlooks on organized religion and they are right that organized religion has done great damage to the world. It has also done a lot of good as some people feel the need to be told what to do and when to do it. For some, choosing a path is overwhelming. It also gives us a sense of not being alone and helps us feel that we are not living a futile existence. I respect those that are observant and those that choose not to follow rules of others.

L’shana tova tikatevu