The Weekly D’Var Torah – Rosh Hashanah

Rosh HaShanna is the first and most important holiday of the year; it commemorates the exact date that G-d put the finishing touch on the world by creating man.

The main ‘Mitzvah’ of this day, the first of the year and perhaps the most important commandment in Judaism is sounding the Shofar.

Besides the fact that the Shofar announces that Judaism is the only religion that celebrates and sanctifies the creation of the world, it also commemorates and reminds us of the reason that man was created; namely to be partners with G-d in maintaining and improving the entire creation…. by doing His commandments!

That’s right! Since the first Rosh HaShanna over five thousand seven hundred sixty six years ago all creation, both physical and spiritual (including the ‘gods’ of the other religions), has been sustained and blessed only through the efforts of the Jews learning the Torah and doing its commandments.

And the Shofar is the grand commandment!! Here we take a lowly ram’s horn and use it to influence the Creator to reveal Himself as King of the Universe!!

In fact there is probably no commandment with so many deep kabalistic and esoteric explanations as the Shofar – because all the worlds, upper and lower, depend on it!!

But Rosh HaShanna also has its dark side; it was day that man sinned, brought death into the world and was evicted from Paradise!

This is not a very encouraging message to begin the year with!! Especially considering that Adam was ‘perfect’, sinless (he had been created just hours earlier!) and had unlimited spiritual vision. If he nevertheless sinned, so what chance do we have?

To understand this, here is a story. (Sipuri Chasidim, Rav Zevin, Torah, story #204)

Rebbi Menachem Mendel (nicknamed the Tzemach Tzedek) was a great Tzadik (totally holy Jew). He was the third leader of the Chabad movement and had thousands of followers.

In addition to his unmatched knowledge in the mysteries and all other aspects of the Torah he was possibly the outstanding expert in Jewish law in his generation.

But he couldn’t be compared to his departed grandfather, the first Rebbe of Chabad; Rebbi Shneur Zalman, (nicknamed ‘The Alter (old) Rebbe’) who was the author of the masterpieces; ‘Tanya’ and ‘Shulchan Aruch HaRav’ that totally revitalized Judaism and whose knowledge was simply above all description.

So occasionally, whenever his grandfather saw the need he would visit his grandson and answer any difficult Torah questions that he had.

And even after the Alter Rebbe passed away he would still make these visits!!

[This may seem unusual but it was almost commonplace to the Tzadikim (totally holy Jews). Elijah the prophet appeared many times even thousands of years after his passing. The Baal Shem Tov was taught for ten years by Achia HaShiloni who had died some 2,000 years earlier. The Alter Rebbe himself was visited by his ‘departed’ teachers the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid of Meseritz, and the last Lubavitcher Rebbe would converse regularly with his ‘deceased’ father in law – the previous Rebbe. To mention a few.]

This story takes place after the passing of the Alter Rebbe.

Once the Tzemach Tzedek had several very difficult questions in Torah that troubled him and for which he could not find a solution.

He tried and tried to solve them with no success and as the days passed the problems, instead of dissolving, became even more complex and seemingly unanswerable. But for some reason his grandfather did not appear to him and so he kept trying to answer the problems on his own.

One day, early in the morning, he was on his way to pray in the synagogue of his uncle, the Mittler Rebbe (the second Rebbe of Lubavitch) deep in thought as he walked through the town square of Lubavitch.

It was market day and the vendors were busy setting up their booths all around him. The smell of fresh vegetables and the cackling of chickens and other farm-animal sounds filled the busy summer air but the Rebbe didn’t notice. He was pondering the questions that were plaguing him.

Suddenly his thoughts were interrupted by a voice. “Excuse me Rebbe!”

A simple Jew stood in front of him with his hand on the Rebbe’s shoulder. “Rebbe, please excuse me. I need a loan. Can you loan me three rubles until tomorrow morning? I’ve tried everyone but no one seems to have it. Can you help?”

The Tzemach Tzedek recognized the man. He was an honest hard working fellow and probably needed the money to buy something for market day. He searched his pockets but they were empty, there wasn’t even a kopek. It simply wasn’t his custom to carry so much money with him. What bad luck!

He apologized, explained himself, and told the fellow that in two hours after he had finished his praying he would gladly give him the loan if he came to his house. But it was out of the question to go back home and get it. He would miss the minyan (praying with the congregation).

The villager understood. He wouldn’t dream of interfering with the prayers of a Tzadik! We have no idea what such prayers can accomplish… especially when the Tzadik prays with a congregation of other Tzadikim!!

In fact the entire world exists only by virtue of the prayers of such holy Jews! He would wait and everything would be all right; he would get his loan and the world would have its prayers. He shook the Rebbe’s hand, told him he would see him in a couple of hours and watched as the Rebbe continued on his way.

But when the Tzemach Tzedek arrived there and took out his prayer shawl (Tallis Gadol) to prepare for prayer he hesitated.

Something told him that he made a mistake.

He thought to himself; “That fellow probably wanted the loan in order to buy merchandise for the market day, what will he do without the money? But on the other hand, he told himself, how would I find him now? And if I run home to get the money I’ll certainly have to pray alone!

But he knew that all these considerations, as correct and logical as they were, would not give this fellow the three rubles he needed.

He left his Tallis and Tefillin on the table. Exited the synagogue, went home, got the money, returned to the market place and began searching for the villager.

But it wasn’t easy. The market was packed and it was very difficult to make out faces or to find anyone but he persisted until he saw the villager walking about aimlessly looking at the wares in the other stalls.

He gave him five rubles, received an I.O.U. and returned to the synagogue.

The prayers had already finished and the room was almost empty. He was also a bit weary from all the running he had just done so it took him a while to get in the mood again to begin praying.

But as soon as he put on his Tallit and Tefillin, the Alter Rebbe suddenly appeared before him beaming with joy, answered all his questions one at a time without him even having to ask and then added;

”One who gives a loan to his fellow man (especially a Jew to a Jew) with a complete heart and without any ulterior motives or does a favor with love, as it says in the Torah “Love your friend as yourself” the gates of the highest spiritual realms are opened to him.

Now we can understand our questions.

True, the final day of creation was the day that sin, death and destruction entered the world via man, and if man hadn’t been created everything would have been the way G-d made it.

But that is exactly the point of Rosh HaShanna. The reason man was (and is, G-d forbid) ABLE to sin is because he senses that G-d created a basically meaningless, ‘neutral’ world and his job is to change it; to make it holy, positive and good.

Adam thought he could do this by eating from the tree. He wanted to use the physical world to serve G-d and wasn’t afraid even of death! But he made a big mistake. His ulterior motives blinded him.

The Torah tells us that wanted spirituality; to be like G-d; like the Creator and forget the mundane creation (Gen. 3:5).

Something like how the Tzemach Tzedek in our story almost opted for the spiritual realms of prayer instead of helping the lowly villager.

But when he reversed his priorities and thought of others before himself, he revealed the true goal of man: Something above even death (like the Alter Rebbe in our story.) In other words; through his prayer he could sustain the world but through charity he could TRANSFORM it.

This is why we celebrate Rosh HaShanna and sound the Shofar – to show that the holiest thing is THIS physical world, and the purpose of man (who was created on this day) is to reveal G-dliness and spirituality HERE and rise above even death (as it was before the sin of Adam).

This will be fully accomplished only by Moshiach and the Raising of the Dead.

And for this we pray three times a day “Sound the GREAT Shofar to free us”.

This great Shofar of Moshiach, explains the Lubavitcher Rebbe, will be the result of the echo of screaming and pleading Jewish souls who are so lost in exile that don’t even KNOW they are Jewish!

Something like the needy villager in our story but infinitely more so!

On that day Moshiach, like the Tzemach Tzedek in our story, will disregard all spiritual considerations and help each and every Jew (and through them all mankind) to have all they need spiritually and physically.

Then the true purpose of creation will be revealed.

This Rosh HaShanna when we hear the Shofar blow we must all think only one thing – we want Moshiach NOW! And we are willing to do EVERYTHING in our power to bring him – even one moment sooner.

Wishing all our readers a happy, healthy, successful, meaningful, blessed and sweet new year with Moshiach NOW!!