The Revolutionary Teshuva of Rav Kook - Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider

all right I uh let me welcome everyone to uh to the shear to the class uh my name is Rabbi Aaron Gold shider and uh I have the privilege of being the editor of of OU Tora tidbits and uh it's a great pleasure and honor to uh to be able to learn together this evening uh we have uh we have this year now this class which will take us until 9:30 p.m. so it's about a 40-minute class and uh somebody can give me a sign when we're we're two three minutes from that yeah you'll give me the hook and uh Rabbi Shalom Rosner is giving a closing keynote address the power of the chauffeur which I highly recommend if you have the kak to stay up another 45 minutes or so after this class I uh I recommend hearing Rabbi Rosner all right so uh I welcome everyone tonight this is a very very special time to uh to be together as were just days away from rashash Shana and uh to be able to learn together and to think about tshua to think about repentance in these days literally uh we're hours we can begin to count the hours until rashishana and after a long month of Val of preparation this is a beautiful opportunity for all of us to spend some time thinking about chuva and learning about a very interesting perspective on chuva and that is the chuva of Riv cook now rev cook writes a a safer it's a safer called orot chuva which means the lights of chuva and from the name of the safer itself you can already appreciate what ruk is going to contribute to the conversation around chuva around repentance and that is for a long time when people thought about repentance and wrote about repentance especially if you read the rambam if you read ruona the Char Chua if you read a lot of The Works about repentance there is a lot of heaviness around around the uh around that topic the month of elul they speak about in in Europe and Eastern Europe that if you would look into the into the river that you would see that the fish are also shaking at this time these days right before rashash and yam Kipper that they feel it in the air the the trembling that we should feel before rashash and what chu is all about we have to make an accounting of our soul before Hashem as we enter the days of rashash Shana and yum but R cook comes along and says there is another aspect of chuva that needs to be highlighted and he actually in the introduction to the book he says well should I really be writing about chuva when you have so many great people that have written about Chua The rambam Rona a long list of great rabbis but he says you know what I think that this generation needs to hear a message message about chuva that has not been Amplified that has not been conveyed and uh I think he's abs absolutely right I think there's a message that he has for us which is a very important message it's a message that he wrote about in the early 1900s when he was here in Israel when he arrives in Israel and he writes the safeair he writes this book during that time he doesn't write the entire book he begins the book and then his son wrotes Fu the cook that he compiles from other areas of his writings and we have OTA so I would say that one of the contributions one of the unique aspects of the book is about Sim is about the joy around shua that we should feel the joy that we should feel that it's something that is uplifting that it's something that is that is something that brings us meaning and purpose in life and it's not just about the heaviness it's not about transgression it's not about all the things that we have done wrong but all the possibilities all the potential and the joy that we have the Simka that we have when we uh when we engage in chuva so what I'd like to do over the next uh half hour or so is to share with you and you have a source sheet hopefully there are enough copies there are copies up here if anybody did not receive a copy we're going to look at seven8 or nine we'll see how we do uh pieces from rev cook I always like to see the words of rev cook in the uh in the language of rev cook not just to take my word for it but to see the language of Riv cook and um hopefully this evening it's not just a not just a uh a hypothetical or theoretical conversation that we're having having about chuva but something that um that ideally that I hope that we that we can find inspiration as we're entering um the days these very very special days of the yam so let's begin with um with the following this is from you for those that would like to follow along this is from uh you can look at page one this is from orot and it's per and I'm just going to read the first the very first line to you when it comes to the time span the time frame of chuva there are two ways of looking at chuva in terms of the time span of cha now what is CH means that suddenly a person has an epiphany a person has a uh something happens to them possibly something that they hear something that they see and they to make a major change in their life there's a sudden a suddenness to that kind of chuva and that's a chuva that we need to look for those opportunities right that that that we do come across something we experience something we hear something something that touches us something that that moves us and we say you know what we need to make a change that's one kind of chuva but there's another kind of chuva as well and that is what he calls the chuva which means D which means little by little step by step that we're moving in a direction that we are improving now that's important because I think often when we think about the chuva of rashash ker the chuva we think about the idea that we have to make radical changes all these things that are wrong all these things that need to be changed in my life that we have to make you know that Sudden Change CH and R cook says there's another kind of Chua that we need to be aware of and that we need to be appreciate and that is that little by little that we are improving as well and to appreciate that to see that as part of the process of chuva and yes we can look at our lives and say we've we Daven better than we did 10 years ago we're giving more Sedaka than we did years ago to see that also as a process of chuva the way that we keep chabas the way that we're learning Torah little by little and we may not notice that it may not be something that's that's obvious but to be aware of that to recognize that and again I think R cook is is looking also for the optimism to see and to recognize within oneself yes I'm moving in a in a positive direction little by little and that's uh that's important so that is uh lesson number one from rev cook appreciate the the darga little by little as we're moving steady steadily that we're moving forward in terms of our commitment in terms of our devotion in terms of our AEM if you turn to the next side of the uh of the source sheet this is Page uh yes where it says the number two on top and a gimmel at the very top of the page Ru cook talks about the idea of Hur Chua Hur Chua means just the very thought of chuva alone that when a person they haven't a person doesn't necessarily make any change per se but a person is beginning just to think about doing chuva that's here Hur chuva and I think maybe for many of us coming here this evening and listening and learning tonight that's that's a there's here Hur chuva in that that we're we're opening ourselves up to the idea of chuva Ru cook says that openness to chuva opening our heart and opening our mind to chuva is already a major change that's already significant because if we're thinking differently than we thought earlier in the day or the day before the week before that means we've made a shift we've already we're moving in a positive direction and ruk writes again the beautiful language of R just the thought of CH we're hearing the voice of God we're we're in touch with the emotions of our heart and this desire for good that's something that can strength strengthen within a person in other words to look at the positivity of that just the openness that we're opening our minds and our hearts at chuva means that there's now great potential if that's the beginning right that's the the beginning of the process is first an openness and to feel that we want to make some adjustments some change some tikun some fixing in our lives and here I find this line really fascinating he says he says that the the the body itself that was involved in the sin that the body or the skin itself becomes more refined more Supple until Chua enters the person in the full sense so if we want to have better skin says R cook if we want to be healthier and this is really true R cook is writing this a 100 years ago but we know that this is true in terms of our emotional lives our inner lives the way that affects the body the effect that that has on the physical body as well and RI cook says once you begin thinking about juuva if that's if you're if you're inspired by that idea and it begins to enter your soul that doesn't just stay in your soul that's not only in the emotion that's not only the reges it affects the body as well affects the body in a positive way I think that's a sort of a breakthrough idea of R cook I don't think anyone else I haven't seen anyone else say anything along those lines in terms of a Chua the effect that it has on the body and here in the next piece R cook also speaks about the the body and the soul in terms of chuva and this is one of the unique contributions of rev cook where he speaks about the importance and he writes this in his classic work oot the importance of exercise it was one of the controversial things that the the uh sort of the Old Guard in Jerusalem when they read that and he spoke about how important it is for Jews to be healthy and to exercise they didn't they weren't that crazy about that idea what pug is that in the Torah where does it say that we're supposed to exercise every morning but this is what ruk writes he says so this is what I mentioned a few moments ago when he speaks about chuva here chuva is not something that's hard That's Heavy what does he say it's the feeling that is the best feeling in the world that's what he writes it's the healthiest feeling when you feel that you are growing when you feel when the feeling that you are changing that you're doing something better than you did that you're working towards a goal spirituality closeness to God that you're better in terms of your relationships when you're improving in that area and in your life in that way there is no better feeling than that that's what he writes and we think about chuva in that sense so that's we all want a piece of that or we all want a piece of that kind of chuva that we're going to feel great that it's going to be uplifting and he says Bri a healthy soul and here I underline the f in Words Be he says a healthy soul in a healthy body again I don't think I've seen this anywhere else any other Rabbi talk about chuva that you need a healthy Soul everybody's saying that that the soul has to be healthy but he says it has to be in a healthy body that combination if physically you're strong if you're healthy if you're eating well if you're exercising you're swimming at the ACH pool if you're doing that on a regular basis Rook says and you're learning Torah and you're combining both of those you got it made that's the that's the best combination we need to be healthy healthy body healthy in body and healthy in Soul you can underline this put on your fridge that is the greatest happiness of chuva that is that's chuva at its best and then you're going to feel a great sense of on natural it's natural natural to the body natural to the soul okay so that's spiritual health physical health that's part of chuva again as I as I've said I'm not sure if anyone else has spoken about chuva with that language and with his emphasis put this on the fridge yes yeah exactly right exactly right that's what I'm suggesting this is on the fridge um the next piece from froma this is UD and ruk is very concerned and that's one of the themes that I'm highlighting that Chua should not be something that we feel Melancholy that we feel heaviness that we feel sadness around cha I was listening to a sheer recently which really is like a classic sheir on chuva where the rabbi is talking about the battle that one has with the Yar you have the Y you have the Y and you're constantly battling one another and this season is all about you know being successful in that battle right overcoming the yahar again that that's kind of like the the classic teaching around around chuva what I grew up hearing around chuva so if if that's the kind of chuva that we hear about going to battle and battle with the a how many people are interested in going to battle right how many people want to get up in the morning and go to war right we're in a war where it's it's not a pleasant thing it's not what we want to hear it's not how we want to start our day okay you're about to start your day go to battle with the with the evil inclination so that's what we've heard for a long time it's how rabbis have spoken about chuva there's a lot of Truth to that and and it does take effort it's not something that's simple but ruk is not using that language he's using a language of on of sim of joy and he says in this piece they're about to read if there's any kind of melancholy atut if you're feeling any sadness around this process of chuva if it's bringing a heaviness into your life he says run the other way that's not Chua and it's not Chua that's going going to be effective because nobody want we have enough anxiety in our lives we have enough tension in our lives we don't need chuva to add another layer of tension right we're not going to be interested in that kind of chuva so this is what he writes let's see the words of this idea this conception of Hol if it's bringing it's bringing this is in middle of the page for those that like to follow along if it brings sadness we need to move away from that kind of that kind of CHA because the foundation of Joy which is connected in the depth of Holiness that's the greatest thing we call so ruk writes that there's nothing better than joyous cha that's full of sim that's what kadus is that's what Holiness is Holiness is about Joy if you're moving TOA if the D of your chuva your path of chuva is the D of if there's a sadness around that chuva you should quickly move away from those thoughts get your get your thoughts straight again right you you that's not the kind of thinking that's going to bring truth or you're not going to be interested again in something that brings any kind of sadness or Melancholy or tension or anxiety to your life that we have already right we have enough of that there's enough of that in our life we don't need Chu to to be to be added on to that but yes one should accept one should receive the yam the a of God yes it's year but with a great amount of Joy the joy of being able to engage in chuva the joy of growth the joy of commitment the joy of of strengthening my relationship with hashm the joy of strengthening relationship with people that I may have had a falling out with to come back to have closeness there's a joy in that and to see the joy to see the potential in that and he says only if you see it in that light only if you see as a joyous path then you're going to be successful in that he says that's real to being OEM again different than the way I heard about being OEM for a long time I heard about OEM means you got to work right Abdus it's the servitude to God it's the heaviness R cook says no do not think about service of God in that way God wants us to be happy God wants joy and only with joy only with a joyish joyous path is there going to be a successful chuva okay please please right right right right I think they right right no it's a it's a good question one answer is there there may be Alo of Al in other words they may be different paths and as I mentioned earlier R cook say something very interesting in the introduction and that is what was effective in previous generations may not be effective in this generation in other words the way the rambam wrote for his community and rabenu Yono wrote for his community and a rabbi spoke when I was growing up or a 100 years ago or 50 years ago maybe that was effective maybe that's the fire and brimstone is what the congregation needed to hear but 100 years ago R cook said I think this generation needs to hear a different message they need to hear more embracing a more loving a more uplifting a more inspiring message I think he's right and I think the Jewish World sees that I think it's one of the reasons why the world of kidus as that the teachings ofus and kabad why it's become so popular because this is this message is really a kabad message his mother was a kadik he comes from that line as well he was he was an intermarriage of a Lithuanian his father of Lish learning and his mother who is kabad and he took the best of both worlds and again I think he he's speaking to a uh he's speaking to what he believes a generation that needs to feel embraced and uplifted and more joy okay so let us move now to the last the last piece on page two this comes from well and he writes something here which is very very very beautiful there may be more than one interpretation but here we go this is the way that I understand the very last paragraph on page two which is lamid by the way it's interesting that it's lamid because he's going to talk about lamid what's a lamid the L right the sikim the sikim hidden sikim sikim that uphold the world interesting this is peace L you'll see in a moment if you want to be a full-fledged sad is everybody want that we all want that we all want to beik andos we want to be righteous then it's difficult to be about now what does he mean by that we'll see in a moment it's appropriate for a person a person should always have desire the desire to be person should always be thinking should be embedded in this idea entr trench in the idea of that a person should try to actually izes then the CH can raise him to a high place to reach this level of a even higher this is the way that I interpret this piece again the opening he says if you want to be a sadik then in order to be a sadikur it's difficult to be about Chua now what does he mean by that I think what he means is the following one way of understanding sador is a that is g g it means he has found his place as a sadic right garu we've we've come to an end in other words I've reached my place of righteousness this is how much I Davin this is how much sadaka I give right this is the the that I do this is my Judaism right and I have defined that and that's the box that I'm in that's thead we're all sadik gor that we have reached a place where we have sort of decided that we've that we we are at peace as to where we are as sikim as righteous people but ruk says that's not the way to think about being a sadic because once we are gamur once we have decided that we've concluded that we are sadic in that sense then there's not going to be any more growth say cook Al a person has to always think about the idea that he is a Bak do you have to think of yourself as a b we often you know think of this one and this one and CH I know that one he's a BAL Chua she's a BAL Chua R cook says all of us need to think about being Bal Chua we should not think about ourselves as being sikim oradim gamur and I would translate that as a sadik who is now gamur who has kind of like reached a certain place a certain status right that you've decided that that who you are as a Jew you have found your place you should never do that says Riv cook you always have to be striving you always have to be looking at opportunities for growth we should be picturing every person should picture themselves as a BAL Chua in the process of being balet Chua okay so that is the end of page two we now go to the last page page three and I think this is U what R cook says is about to say in this piece is something that is uh very very contemporary and again I I find it amazing some of these ideas from R cook that he's writing 1900 1910 writing this over a 100 years ago and um how applicable they are for us today so he says the following this is the top of Page Three when we forget the very essence of our soul when we forget Who We Are when we don't look inside at the very essence of Our Lives then everything becomes mixed up everything becomes mupac in doubt and the way that I understand this piece is that we often don't look at ourselves we don't look at ourselves our own Souls our nishas our own yearnings our own desires who we are but we're comparing ourselves with others we're judging ourselves based on what others are doing we're doing what others are doing as opposed to what it is that speaks to us that speaks to our soul that our soul is uh is saying to us I think in the world of uh the age of social media this is even more pronounced as we're we're seeing what others are doing where others are going what others are saying and very often we lose a sense of who we are and this R cook says that part of what chuva is is to be more in touch with yourself with your desires right with your aspirations what it what is it that speaks to you what is it that brings out the best in your personality what are your aspirations what are your goals not what everyone else is doing around you what speaks to you what's important to you so this is what Ru cook speaks about vit in the very first step of chuva third line on that first paragraph on page three that opens up or that lightens all the Dark Places the first step is for a person to return to himself or herself to the very root of your soul and that's what it means to return to God to know yourself is to return to God to return to the soul of All Souls God and with that you can then move higher and higher Hal Mal malaar so ruk says think a little bit less about what others are doing what others believe other P other others perspectives what is it that you think what is it that your soul what's driving you what brings you happiness what brings you meaning what brings you purpose in life and when we return to that Ru cook says that is a that's really a step towards chuva it's a very the very opening it's opening the door to chuva okay the next SCE which is from yudal L giml 1433 from his chuva and the question is when do we do chuva when is the the opportune time to do chuva there are different times in our tradition to do chuva we know of course that the month of el that we're in right now traditionally that's 30 days and we're blowing the chauffeur every morning during this time the that we're adding to ouro certainly rashash on the days of Rashana and then a Chu and yum Kipper these are days of chuva these are the optimal times of chuva R cook talks about another time of chuva which again I think is somewhat unique I have not seen this in other writings he speaks about that ER of chabas right before chabas and also right after chabas are opportun time opportune times for chuva so let's read this and I I'll try to uh elucidate it a bit he writes the following this is the Second Source page three Shabbat right before Shabbat KES right before the holy shabas want is to do chuva on everything that transpired over the week it's quite an interesting idea I'm not sure if I've ever done this in my life but uh ruuk suggests that Arab chabas is a time to do chuva right before chabas maybe it's part of cabala chabas as we're bringing in chabas as we're thinking about the past week that every week it's not just an El not just a rashasana but weekly we have this idea that we should bring in chabas without anything that hinders bringing in chabas in the full sense also interesting I don't know if I've ever done this in my life but ruk says as chabas comes to an end what should we be doing those last moments of chabas or maybe around havdala maybe the few minutes afterwards Mal he says is also a time that one can do chuat the very essence of the light of chabas he loves the word light the light of chabas and here he seems to be referring to the idea that we should bring into the week that light of chabas that's part of the experience of chabas is to take that experience that was uplifting that was a truth experience and how to bring that into the week you know very often on chabas I think we for me in my experience and maybe uh you experience as well we kind of see people a little bit differently on chabas the way that we greet people on on the street on chabas that we say shabbat shalom that we look at one another right during the week we just everyone puts their head down and just passes one another but on chabas right we say good chabas to one another around the table the children who didn't really look so pure during the week that somehow they look a little bit pure on Friday night we see people differently their faces look a little bit different on chabas so R cook says take some of that into the week as well bring that that's part of the chuva at the end of chabas to bring that into the week yes Doug very good very good very good excellent yes 100% when um when R cook speaks about this generation and what this generation needs to hear part of what he's referring to as Doug just pointed out is the fact that we are back in the land of Israel he's writing this in the land of Israel he's writing this in yafo he's writing this a few blocks from here in yalim in his home he's writing this in ER Israel where he feels that there's a new reality for the Jewish people and part of that new reality yes is our physicality is something that is Sanctified here in the land of Israel and to appreciate that he speaks about that the Exile is something being outside the land of Israel yes there is a heaviness to our Judaism because it's not the right place for Judaism the only place in the world for Judaism in the full of sense is in the land of Israel so he writes and this is it's based on ramban the ramban says that every Mitzvah that's done outside the land of Israel is not a full-fledged Mitzvah it's not the full Mitzvah he writes it's h it's just a preparation for coming back when we keep he writes when you keep chabas when you keep kosher it's not the full chabas it's not keeping Kosh your fully it's only in the land of Israel that one can fulfill these mitzvot in the fullest sense so I think you're absolutely right it's not only the generation it's the generation that's in the land of Israel and being in the land of Israel things change and maybe that's part of what he's referring to in terms of as you said the exercise in terms of the uh the Simka that one is to feel around around chuva there was a place for that that was the reality an unfortunate reality of the Exile that we were just trying to survive and we spoke about Chua we spoke about it with the harshness which was part of the harshness of of of living in aetel and just trying to survive and and kind of chuva took on you know took on that that that uh that tone as well but that's not the tone of er Isel the tone of er Isel is Sim is joy is being back is the naturalness is the TV is the onig all these words that he's using that all relate to the land of Israel very very good and we'll see one last piece in just uh a minute or two where he's going to talk about chuva in the land of Israel what's unique about chuva in the land of Israel and so with that where are we TimeWise by the way five five minutes okay so let's go to the last piece let's go to the last piece and Doug thank you for for the segue into the very last piece the very last chapter and by the way I highly recommend the reading of this safer of ruk I've given you seven or eight highlights from the book it's a big book and uh it's made up of 17 chapters each chapter has about 15 pieces or so in every chapter and at the in the very last chapter of the of this book aot chuva he talks about chuva in the land of Israel what's unique about chuva in the land of Israel now chuva is everywhere in the world is it not you could be in Mount Kisco New York you could be in Hong Kong and it's the same Mitzvah of chuva but ruk says no there's something different about chuv in the land of Israel and this is what he writes and we'll close with this he writes the nation of Israel coming back to life the Revival of the nation of Israel and that's what's happening he's seeing that by the way how many Jews are in Israel 1900 Riv cook and he's talking about the Revival of the nation Israel how many Jews are living here 50,000 50,000 Jews it's like a little little little small group small group of Jews and he says I see the tri he says I see 7 million Jews today 7 million Jews living in the land of Israel how many Jews were there by the way with the the Declaration of uh the state of Israel 600,000 which was the same number of Jews that left mitzraim that left MIM so it's quite an amazing thing many point to that as a a sign from Hashem that that return 1948 600,000 Jews the same number which represents the nation of Israel quite an amazing thing so that's true that's true you're right so it doesn't work 100% but it sounds good it sounds good yeah you know sometimes these gatas these numbers you don't you don't ask too many questions just just enjoy it okay so the last piece so the Revival what's like the Resurrection coming back to life the Jewish people as Doug as you said before it's the Resurrection it's the Jewish people coming back to life after 2,000 years of Exile he this is part of a great chuva movement now here Ru cook says something amazing if we talk about chuva there's the personal chuva right I have to get up I should be getting up for daving I should get the Shou on time I should be making brod better I should really stop saying all the lashara that I'm saying right that's personal chuva but then there's National chuva and again R cook is unique talking about National chuva not just individuals what we're doing but how does it happen to the nation as a whole and he says coming back to the land of Israel is an opportunity for the Jewish people as a whole to have there'll be a movement of chuva some are talking about that today what's happened over the last 11 months that there's been a kind of Revival that those that are an interest in in wearing seit andin and davening and and things of that nature so of cook says the return of the Jewish people to the land of Israel is the beginning of a great Chua movement chat this is the ultimate Chua that's going to happen a chuv of the Jewish people as a whole and here this is also unique for R cook chuva is not only for the individual and it's not only for the nation but who is chuva for ultimately that's right the entire world the entire world and that the Jewish people for the first time in 2,000 years can Inspire auua can Inspire morality and ethics For All Mankind and is that not the war that we're in right now is that not the battle the very essence of the battle that we're in right now it's not just Gaza not the north it's the message of the Jewish people to bring a light of what is good and what is evil in the world what is right and what is wrong and cook says that is chuva that is repentance it's the ultimate repentance it's a repentance of the Jewish people okay coming back to Torah but it's a repentance that we can for the very first time that we have an opportunity to inspire the entire world to see the light to see what is good to see the word of God to see the greatness of Torah of the Bible that we can do for the very first time cook says that's a chuva that that we now have the opportunity to do we're all a part of that to some degree living here living in that we're learning together that we're growing here together R cook says what an amazing opportunity this is for the Jewish people back in the land of Israel on a personal level we should all have a great blessing Theus the Merit to do trua to be inspired by our Jewish lives here we should be inspired as a nation right to bring this great light this great message to all mankind and R cook saw that as the great potential the great possibility and the ultimate dream of chuva let me end there just because I know TimeWise but I'm happy to take any any questions yes please please yes this is one of the beautiful ideas that RI cook speaks about this is before we have a state of Israel this is before a government this is before sah before an army but he sees the great potential of coming back to the land of Israel uh and the chuva ult the ultimate chuva the repentance the renewal the U the recognition of God and goodness IM morality in the world I want to wish everyone a sh it should be a year that's filled with only happiness and joy and blessing I thank everyone for coming tonight there is another Shear for those that have there's a closing Shear not just another Shear a closing Shear social hall with Rabbi Shalom rasner I highly recommend if you have the right next door my pleasure yes [Music]