Modern Masters: Rav Kook’s Recalibration of our Understanding of Teshuva

All right, good morning everybody. So this coming shabas of course we'll read the two parios of and parit of course contains within it theukim that we refer to as para chuva and therefore we know that we are in the days leading up to roshash shana and chuva is on our minds and I want to do something maybe what might be a little bit different for many of us that are tuning in. I want to do something a little different in terms of a different approach or beginning to think of chuva in a slightly different way. Specifically, we're going to look at chuva through the lens of RV cook. Um RV cook of course wrote a an absolute masterpiece on Jewish philosophy on Jewish thought called Oroto Chuva. Um and we're going to hear Cook's words about Chuva throughout this uh our time together this morning. But specifically, I want to suggest that Ruk kind of helps us to recalibrate our entire orientation to the concept of chuva. And that as we're going to see that if we can begin to embrace the way understands chuva that perhaps it it changes these days ahead from we call these days the days of awe. That doesn't mean that they're awful days, that they're meant to be awful days. They're meant to be a meant to be awesome days, days full of awe, of excitement, of feeling close to the ribon shaolm. And and I I think that Ruf Cook's orientation towards Chuva, if we can on some level begin to embrace, even though it might be very very different from the way we perceive this concept of Chuva up till now, the way it's always been taught to us throughout our lifetimes, if we can begin even to embrace some aspect of Rook's recalibration in terms of how we understand the entire concept of Chuva, that it's going to change our entire experience the during these days ahead of the Yamina writings. So we're going to begin. We're just going to jump right in with Cook as I mentioned. Um we know that he has so many so many beautiful works. Works about the sanctity of Israel [snorts] and the connection between Israel works about of works of commentary on on on various of of of Talmud. But to me in my personal eyes the RV cook's magnum opus is his work on chuva known as a rot chuva. And we're going to just learn a few a few short pieces from a roto chuva together this morning. We're going to begin with a a couple of snippets from the hakam cook's introduction to his work on chuva. And this is what this is text number one on our sheets. So cook says the following. He says he says it's been for quite some time now I've been fighting an inner battle with there's been a battle raging within me and the spirit from within has been pushing me to speak about chuva and all my thoughts seem to be focused and and directed towards this idea of speaking about chuva. Chuva encompasses a large place, a very large place within the Torah and within our within life in general. Okay. upon which chuva the all the hopes of individuals and community are built upon this this concept of chuva heitz it's chuva is a mitzvah from hem that on one side is seems to be the easiest of mitzvah here are chuva chuva they're just a simple thought of chuvas considered on okay are ready to be to be an accomplishment of chuva. Even if we don't take that thought and and and and let it play out actively into action, the thought already the the idea the very thought of of trying to change and improve my situation is already part of the process of chuva. So on one hand you can say chuva is one of the easiest mitzvah. Therefore chuva that a very thought of chuva [cough] is already considered chuva. But on the other side, it's the most difficult because we haven't seen it fully manifest in the world or in our own lives. Okay? There are things in our lives, all of us know there are things that we really want to prove in our lives and sometimes we're able in our human frailty to accomplish that that change and other times we're struggling and we don't know how to overcome it and therefore on one hand chua may be the easiest amits because a thought very thought of is already considered accomplishing that change. On the other hand, it might be considered amongst the most difficult because we're human and we're imperfect and we struggle. Okay. So now look what says next column. But I'm pushed I'm compelled from within to to speak about chuva. And then he says the most beautiful thing and I'm but I'm hesitant. Okay. And I begin with my thoughts. Why? and begin and I begin to think to myself cook says is it appropriate for me Rabbi Abraham Isaac to speak about chuva okay the the the greats of previous generations has spoken about this concept of chuva the prophets and and sages who were more pure than Idim the pious ones who who are greater than me. And who am I? Says to be included amongst them. But I want to let any weakness in the world hold me back from this inner inclination. Okay. I feel compelled to speak about this concept of chuva. So the comma the comma the comma if Rafuk was hesitant to speak about chuva then certainly Sam Shore is very hesitant to speak about chuva but like RV cook says in his beautiful introduction the he feels compelled to speak about chuva for me the the calendar compels us to speak about chuva chuva is on everyone's mind this time of year and therefore today we're going to delve in and speak about chuva okay so text number two in Aurora Chuva has this. We're going to look at a number of short pieces from Aurora Chuva today. Text number two. Take a look at this very powerful short teaching. The essence of all our failings, our struggles, our shortfalls. Anytime we fall short, okay, what is that a result of? Kaluta shalt all of our struggles as human beings emanate from this very idea scruff cook that we don't embrace the abil the the the simplicity in which we can em embrace change and grow and change our circumstances and improve our circumstances for far too many people look themselves in the mirror and say I'm too far gone okay I've already I've already messed up so many times in my life. I've already abandoned everything. There's no there's no hope for me. I can't even tell you how many times in my in my career as a rabbi where people come to me and said, "Rabbi, a sinner like me, I'm so far gone. There's there's no there's no hope for me to change or grow." And Ruk says, "No, that's absolute heresy." Okay? And with such as Ruk, we'll see we'll see at least a glimpse of some of the masters. Theidic masters tell us no. That chuva is a promise. the that we we're going to learn in this week's para it's not to be read simply as a mitzvah that you shall change but rather it's a promise it's inevitable it's inevitable you'll be able to come back to Hashem because why because Hashem has unending love patience and compassion for every single member of and therefore therefore Hashem doesn't expect us to be perfect Hashem just expects us to what? To try to grow okay Judaism has never been an all orno enterprise. Never. That was never the expectation. Okay. And so cook says the the reality is that we're human beings. Human beings are imperfect. Human beings are going to make mistakes. And what ends up happening is that all too often when we make a mistake, we fall into despair and we say, "Okay, I messed up already." So there's no there's no coming back from it. So I'm just going to I'm just going to throw out my hands and I'm not going to make any effort to try to improve my situation. And Rook and theic masters say no. That's heresy. A person has to realize how easy it is to change and improve and grow. Okay. So now we're going to learn another piece. Text number three. Listen to this powerful piece from every Now the word we like to say sin translate as sin I think that's kind of like uh missing the mark and I say that pun intended the word in modern Hebrew and soccer okay if you you say it means that what you miss the goal okay you miss the mark okay the word is related to the idea of of being put off course okay we're put off course. We're no there's a certain trajectory that we're meant to be on and for whatever reason at certain times in our life there are experiences that put us off course and what's the result? Listen to Rev Cook's words because this is very powerful and that's why I'm specifically defining it this way. Every transgression or mistake even the seemingly harm most harmless of them. Okay. It it implants within a person which is resentment for any uh for some for for another person let's say and through chua the love and okay returns and enlightens our life once again what Rakook is saying here is something very powerful you think about think about this even let's let's look at the earliest examples of in humanity that the Torah gives us of missing the mark of making mistakes. Okay, first let's begin with Adam. Okay, what what happens after from from Okay, what does what does say comes to Adam and said say what did you do? What's Adam's answer right away? Right away he's he's he's deflecting. He's right away what? Casting apersion. Right. Right. There's resentment both towards and towards this is towards was given them as a gift is the one who gives him the fruit to eat. And when Hashem comes to Adam and says, "How can you do such a thing when I gave you implicit instructions not to eat from the fruit of that tree?" What's his answer? The resentment comes out. Okay? And also also the same same is true of the next generation kil. When a when when a kajbar comes to cen and says what have you done? What is cayenne's where's your brother? What have you done? What is Ken's answer? Okay, the the resentment comes out in both of those instances. And that's exactly what is saying here. All too often in our lives, okay, when we make a mistake, we either try to justify it or we deflect by what? By casting aspersions and projecting rejection on someone else. And therefore the process of chuva says RV cook is not solely to correct our mistakes or not solely to to to leave our mistakes in the past but rather that's only part of it. What's the ultimate goal? A restoration of harmony and respect and love for our fellow human being. Okay. Now let's take a look at the next piece from Chuva text number four. Listen to this powerful idea because Book is going to build on this and take this idea even further and offer us an incredible kesh in terms of what the word chuva really means. I know we like to translate chuva as repentance, right? But chuva comes from the shish of shu which means to return. So what's being returned? Okay, what's the process of chuva of returning? Listen to Rkook's beautiful words. Any throughout the entire period that a person does not return from his misdeeds and he's not set out the path upon which he's going to uh return and change and improve himself. He becomes crippled so to speak. He becomes burdened by the pain and the consequences of his choices and the guilt of those inappropriate acts and all the difficult results the painful results of those poor choices are weighing upon him. Okay, we become crippled by our guilt says but immediately after that re revelation of chuva appears in his mind and in his heart he immediately is able to return retroactively all the deficiencies in his life and all the acts acts and deeds that he's done that from the human perspective are not good and all the the consequences of those bad choices which are so bitter to him. Where is he where is he returning them? Where is he sending them retroactively? The rash hagavoa. He's giving those deeds back to whom? To hashem. They're going back to the heavenly rash to the to the to Hashem's the and at that point they all become calculated outside of his choices and his and and and his will and they become included not on our ledger but on the allegger of what of Hashem's divine supervision what we call rashut to the rashoa to hashem's heavenly rash chuva the word what's being returned it's not only us returning towards hashem turning again towards hashem it's what says cook in his beautiful piece it's the ability to let go of the guilt that can us as he says in the beginning the whole time that we haven't embraced what the the power of chuva we become crippled by those mistakes and we we're on of all too often unable to move forward and become whom we're truly meant to be to improve our circumstances. But at that moment when we embrace what chuva is really all about. He says that's the language of chuva. What's being returned? We're we're returning those mistakes back to we're saying to Hashem you know these are no longer on our ledger they're on your ledger. And the great the great master and this little oneliner in text number five is you'll see that the bold is rutsk's words and the explanation of rutsk's words from rabbi shiman roenberg lovingly known as shagar shagar was one of the great rashi yeshiva in the hes yeshiva world he for served for a for two or three years as the roshiva in yeshiva kotel He also was one of the founders of numerous other yeshivas includ andar takes this oneliner. First we're going to look at the oneliner from andagar is going to explain it for us even further. Take a look text number five. Wow. What does what say? A Jew has to realize a person has to recognize that even our mistakes are part of Hashem's divine will. Now Rag Shagar is going to explain this. Listen to what he says. >> Listen what says in other words. Okay. What is ultimately? accepting yourself with your flaws and imperfections. The idea of recognizing that we human beings are imperfect only is perfect. And if we believe we believe that Hashem ultimately has and is orchestrating everything that comes into existence, that means that is the one who enabled us to make whatever choices we make and face the consequences. For whatever reason, Hashem had a reason, a calculation that we were meant to experience that particular misstep and grow from the consequences in the process of coming back from that misstep. Okay? That's me and I and that level of chuva that embracing our imperfection being able to move forward to leave to leave the our mistakes in the past to give them back to says and that's what alludes to it's the capacity to what to accept ourselves and recognize that everything that I do ultimately is being calculated from above. The way in which a human being with all our imperfections, okay, can resolve any any inner conflict that he has between the way he's lived his life up till now, okay? And any dissatisfaction he has with his own choices. It all begins with what? accepting that I am human and I am imperfective imperfect and I am flawed. And if we can accept that that human beings are not meant to be perfect, that human beings inevitably for whatever reason we don't understand why, Hashem orchestrates it, that we are meant to go through life, experience challenges, experience choices that maybe we then face consequences that at least initially don't appear to be very much very good for us. If we're able to let go of the guilt associated with those mistakes and embrace the capacity to move forward to accept that for whatever reason because of the big picture we were meant to experience that misstep and learning from that misstep and growing and moving forward that says and as explained is critically important to the way we understand chuva and the way we relate to. So between those pieces we've looked up looked at up till now both through Cook and Rosetta give us a critically important recalibration of Chuva. Okay. It's it's a chuva of moving beyond the pain and guilt and consequence and achua of embracing the ability to move forward to have the confidence the self-esteem to let go of our mistakes and move forward change and grow and improve our situations. That is the working definition of chuva. That restoration of harmony as we said in the beginning that Rifk Cook introduces for us. So now we're going to turn the page and we're going to learn a few additional pieces from OA. So Rook says here in text number six, all every thought of chuva joins together the past with the future. We're going to explain this in a moment. And the future becomes elevated through the elevation of the will that comes as a result of doing chuva as an act of love. Chuva out of fear of consequence is a lower form of chuva. Chuva out of love, out of a genuine desire to improve our circumstances. a genuine desire to once again feel close to not a fear of consequence that if I don't do x y and z it's going I'm gonna face a rash of punishment but rather chua as a means of expressing our love to hashem and feeling close to hashem once again of genuine commitment that has the capacity not only to change us in the moment but change the future as well it's very interesting you think about the word cook uses the beautiful language of every act of chuva link joins together the past with the future. Think about it in modern Hebrew. The word okay of moving forward is kadima. When the shel kadima is the word kadum that which came before okay one can only move forward when we have the context of where we come from. Okay. And this is a very important idea. All too often people as they begin the process of growing ink of of grow chuva they have in this in in their minds that they have to what forget their past they have to pretend as if the things they've done the mistakes they've done in the past the various things we've done in our lives in the past uh they never really happened cook says no cook says cook says what in order to move forward and grow okay we have to be reflective on the past contextualize the past and say it's what it's now behind me. It's not that it never existed. It's so it's an experience that I went through that I was meant to grow from and it's now behind me. It's in the past. So, it's very interesting. If you take a look at the next piece of cook, he's going to develop this idea even further in terms of of the idea of embracing embracing our past mistakes as a springboard for growth. Take a look at text number seven. the A person has to believe. Okay. to really d delve deep and believe in the concept of chuva and beak be certain that with a thought of chuva alone he not only fixes a lot within himself but also creates a fixing a tremendous fixing in the energy in the world around And therefore he is compelled that with every thought of chuva he becomes happier. He becomes more self more more secure in him in in himself okay than he was beforehand. Chuva is not what meant to make us feel guilty or that we're terrible. Chuva is meant to what? Make us feel good. Because why? Because we're able to improve. Human beings have the capacity to learn from our mistakes and grow. And if we're able to do that, says Ruk, we're able to what? We're able to move forward. And therefore chu the process of cha should not be a process of sadness but rather what a process of joy. Well, one one of the greatest example of this is you know when we recite the vidy of the right okay and and and the asham the first part of the voy okay you ever wonder that whenever we do that we we have this little niggan that we hum is that is that a little bit strange we're sitting here confessing we're guilty we did this okay so what's that all about why are we singing a niggan of joy. So it says the reb >> and it's a joyous. It's a niggan humming along and everyone everyone joins in. Ah yeah. It's not a it's not a sad pensive niggan. It's a very joyful thing. It's like a little jingle. So says the rebi of vision says the rebi of vision it's all about the same idea that chuva that chuva is not a and the process of chuva is not meant to make us sad it's meant to make us happy and says the rebi of vision says the reb there's a reason for that and that is that what chuva is not about sadness it's not about feeling guilty chuva is about being happy that we can leave we believe with full confidence. By the way, that's why we call we're going to start saying we don't call we don't call them we're that we're asking God to forgive us. We call them which means forgiveness meaning what that we go into the whole process believing that who is the ultimate is going to forgive us. Okay. And if that's our understanding of the process, okay, that we are going to be forgiven because Hashem loves us unconditionally, then we don't have to feel sadness at all. And that's exactly what is saying here. And that's exactly what the original is telling us about that little jingle, that little niggan that the process of chuva is not about sadness. It's quite the contrary. The fact that we're able to look at our look at the past and say it's behind us. Hashem is going to give us another chance. Let's let's let's grab that moment. That is a reason for great joy says cook and cook echoes this in the next piece as well. A person has to delve deep into the fundamental. Okay. We have to believe in the depths of this concept of chuva until we are enlightened by by recognizing and knowing that every thought of our past mistakes doesn't doesn't what conjure up sadness or guilt but rather conjures up great why by knowing and embracing that the great merit that okay then lightens us through the holiness of that is the light of God as it works to fix the world which is the essence of all of creation and therefore says the process of chuva is what a process that we should be happy about and listen Rafil who's one of me who wrote a beautiful commentary commentary on Rafuk's Aroachuva. This is text number nine. You see Filra's note that just brings us all together and this is going to answer some of the questions about but what about you know you still feel some sense you still we saw this idea of a vidoy and karat and remorse. So how where does that fit? So look what Filbert says in the lower stages of chuva. In the beginning of cha when a person first begins to to look himself in the mirror and say what do I have to change most specifically during the time when we express our regret and remorse that notice in the beginning of the process a person looks back and it could and when he thinks about his mistakes it could cause him discomfort and pain. But as the more a person learns and embraces what the process of chuva is really all about and he recognizes the great opportunity that has been given to him through the pro okay that he merits to be able to have the capacity to experience the process of chuva of improving his circumstances and when he comes to that level of understanding. It's that it's not only that he no longer should feel pain and and and and discomfort reggisha but rather he should even now experience a deep sense of joy great joy says Rafilurn explaining cook's own words that chuva is the ability to let go of that guilt to forgive ourselves acknowledge and accept that we are imperfect that for whatever reason any mistakes, challenges or consequences of our choices were all part of the ratm. As we learned from whatever reason we were meant to experience those those missteps, the missing of the mark in order that we should grow, leave those misdeeds in the past and move forward. If this becomes our paradigm, my friends, of how chuva works, the ability to let go of guilt, okay, and the pain and embrace the opportunities of growth and transformation and moving forward, not only will we be za, please God, to leave those mistakes in the past, experience a sense of invigoration and renewal and self-improvement and self-awareness in a way that perhaps we hadn't to hadn't been able to up until this point, but we'll also find a deep sense of not only relief but great simka in the words of Rkook Zatal. Have a great week.