G-d Has Granted Us With LOVE This Day of Remembrance (Judgment Day) with Rabbi Aaron Dovid Poston

[music] [singing] [music] [singing] [music and singing] >> Shalom aleichem everybody. Welcome back to the Midrash. Welcome on the Torah. A warm welcome. We are This is the Siftei Chaim Shiur. Uh it's on the tefillot of Yamim Noraim, the High Holidays, meaning Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We started in Elul reading and learning Reb Chaim Friedlander's book. It's part of the series called Siftei Chaim and it's specifically this particular book is called Rinat Chaim. And since we're praying for the whole year on those particular days, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, it's kedai, it's worthwhile to learn during the year because it's the hashkafah we prayed for this for the whole year. Okay? So, we're on page 40, mem. And it says like this. We say in our prayers that on the holidays vetitein lanu Hashem Elokeinu that God should grant us He actually gave us. It's actually past tense. Vetitein um with the vav hafuch and God gave us be'ahavah. Think about this. This is on Yom Hadin, right? Rosh Hashanah. Yom Hadin be'ahavah, with love et Yom Hazikaron hazeh, this day of remembrance. So, it's very important to emphasize and when we say those words, be'ahavah, what it is that we're trying to say. Kodesh Baruch Hu nosson lanu es yom ha'din. That Hashem gave us this day of judgement. Mitoch ahava, from within his love for us. She'oheiv osanu, God loves us. Think about it, is this counterintuitive? That God is going to judge us, and this judgement is out of love. Ki Hu Yisborach ein lo tzorech zman meyuchad la'asos es ha'din. God does not need a unique or special time to judge us. First of all, [snorts] there's a Gemara that brings a machlokes, that is the judgement for the human beings only on Rosh Hashanah, or just specifically Rosh Hashanah? Or perhaps it's actually daily, and the third opinion, it's every moment. And they're all true. We are being judged every moment. We're being judged every day, but there is a unique special judgement on Rosh Hashanah for all creatures, all creation. It's even I would say it's a non-Jewish holiday. It's not just restricted to the Jewish people. Uv'ichlal ein lo tzorech l'din l'din. Not Hashem doesn't even need to judge us. Why? We don't need a specific day. Ki l'fanav hakol yodua. Hashem knows everything. There's no ex zikaron, we're trying to have him remember. The remembrance is mainly for us, so that we can do teshuvah, as you'll see. Because everything is in front of him, every he knows everything. Ela hadin uz uz manu nikvu avoseinu. This whole idea of judgement and the time that's set up for judgement is for us. Avoseinu, it's for our benefit. K'dei, in order, shenikanein v'nisorer lachshov b'teshuvah. So that we are prepared, so we prepare ourselves and we wake up it horror root. This idea of waking up in order to do true love. She in the late came are you missed abroad out there road below road. If it had not been for a special day set up, God forbid, we would just carry on as usual with our many sins. >> [clears throat] >> Mark shows my way as had to show her. We hit the hot chicken the hot time which would make it even more difficult for us to do true love and to fix our behavior to rectify our sins. If we what? Waited until the end of the year, until a special day. We spoke about this is one of one of the reasons it doesn't say in the Torah that this day of Russia Shana the blowing of the shofar is a day of true love because people might think the clear car says people might think like we would all procrastinate and say, "I got time. I don't have to do true love. I'll just wait for the Yom Kippur Din." So the Torah doesn't tell you it's Yom Kippur Din specifically so that you do not procrastinate like human beings would and wait until the end. Yom Kippur Din who Yom Kippur Zikaron HaZeh Shabbat Shabbat who Zocher We call it this day of the day of remembrance because God is going to remember, but it's not just about him. But he's going to remember like if you had a store. Many of us were shop owners once, right? Maybe previous lifetimes. And we didn't take stock. So at the end of the year we have a extra things that didn't sell. Right? We ran out of things that did sell. But if you take stock and you know what you have and what you don't have and what sells and what doesn't sell, you can run a successful business. Well, you're a business. Make it your business. Figure out what it is you need to correct. Constantly, Mashgiach uvodecha es kol maasim, that what does Hashem do? He's going to remember, he's going to supervise, and he's going to check out all of our deeds. This is the requirement for us. It's a It's incumbent upon us. We're the ones that need to somehow, uh, you know, greet this day, to be prompted by this day in order to remember and to check all of our actions and to rectify them, to figure out how to improve them, improve our midot. By the way, the word shofar, which we're about to talk about, what in Hebrew, leshapeir, means to improve. Right? We're blowing the shofar to remind us and to wake us up that we need to maybe maybe people don't are not aware that the word leshapeir, it's the same root, a shofar, is to, with the Hebrew speaker, leshapeir is to improve. It's called Yom Teruah. That's what the Torah calls it. And we have two pesukim, right? But we say, Yom Teruah Zicharon Yom Teruah. It's a Yom Zicharon, it's a Yom Teruah, it's a day of blowing the shofar. But even the word Teruah, we have to explain. Zeh al pi pesukim, so you have in Leviticus 23:24, right? Speak to the children of Israel, saying, "In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, it shall be a Sabbath to you." Ready for this? "A remembrance of Israel through the shofar blast, a holy convocation, which is mikra kodesh, which we're going to talk about in a second as well. And the other verse is in Numbers 29:1 and in the seventh month on the first day there should be a holy convocation, that's mikra kodesh, for you and you shall not perform any mundane work. Ready for this? And it shall be a day of shofar sounding for you. So, the words are zikhron teruah and yom teruah. But what is teruah mean, right? It means blowing of the shofar, but it's a language of teruah, ayin resh, to awaken his orus to like not just awake and you're sleeping, now you're awake, but a real I think that it became a very popular word recently to be woke, but they're misusing it. To be really woke is to be in touch with who you are, know who you are and your relationship with the Kodesh Baruchu and the world around you. Mi- mikhaivan she zeh yom zikaron, remember since this is a day of remembrance, zikaron, she Kodesh Baruchu zocher u'pokid es ma'aseinu, that Hashem is going to zocher, remember, u'pokid, it's a language of visit or scrutinize our our actions. Lakhen alenu lezakhram, that's why we It's incumbent upon us to remember our actions, right? To be brutally honest with ourselves. In recovery programs they speak about this that there is it it should work for everybody. The exception why these recovery programs don't work is because people some people have the inability to be honest with themselves. So, it could be painful, I get it, and maybe even traumatic, traumatic, um but it's it's a necessity. Kedei u'kedei lehit'orer u'letaknam, in the only way to fix it to um be awake to truly be awoken and therefore you're able to remedy. That's why God set it up as a Yom Teruah, blowing of the shofar. That the mitzvah of blowing the shofar is unique, it's timely, it's likely to cause and awaken somebody to do teshuvah. Just think about this. There's a possuk that says, is there ever a city that hears the blowing of the shofar and doesn't quake, it doesn't tremble? All right, then we start blowing the shofar the whole month of Elul in preparation, like we spoke about in the previous class. A lot of ideas that we have in Judaism require a lot of preparation. And through all this preparation and doing our own tikkun, then we will merit to a favorable outcome, a favorable judgment. I mentioned it's called mikra kodesh. So mikra kodesh, I think there's a comment down below. What's mikra kodesh? At the very bottom, 28. Although we're not there yet, it's at the end of the line. It's so we're gathering together, they call it a holy convocation. It's a a gathering in order to sanctify the day through prayer and through eating and drinking. Okay, so Rosh Yom Kippur it doesn't exactly fit the category, but we're like angels on Yom Kippur and we don't need to eat or drink. But in the in the general idea is Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are days of gathering to sanctify the day through prayer. Okay, back up top. Yom Hadin who gam Yom Tov, it's a holiday. Right? In kiddush we're saying bi'avah, right? It's it's a mikra kodesh, it's a time to gather. It's a holy convocation, a time for assembly. Hashem Yisborach Koveis Kol Yimei Hadin B'Shanah B'Moadim. Every one of the holidays is actually a day of judgment. Right? That's why there's in the first Mishnah in Rosh Hashanah, there are four Rosh Hashanahs. Right? And then it really if you read on, there's really eight. But you have Pesach, which is going to be the day that grains are are going to be judged and we bring the Omer offering the following day. Right? On Shavuos, it's the fruits of the tree. Um Bikkurim, right? You have the first fruits. And then you have Sukkos, which is the judgment on water. Rosh Hashanah is going to be the judgment on man. So, keeping that in mind, Pesach is the judgment day for grains. Shavuos is the first fruits or fruits of the tree. And Sukkos is for water, right? We have Simchas Beis Hasho'eivah, the drawing of the water. But it's for ultimately the altar. We Right? We want to pour on the altar. Just think about those three holidays. Pesach, we're bringing the barley offering and there's a major to do and we're counting every day for 50 days till we bring the wheat offering on Shavuos. But Shavuos is a time of first fruits offering. That's when fruits fruits are judged. And of course on Sukkos, as I mentioned, there's actually Nisuch Hamayim on the altar. So, each one of these holidays, there's judgments. Rosh Hashanah is going to be the judgment on man. Vi'af Rosh Hashanah Shehu Yom Hadin L'Cholov Ha'Olam. That Rosh Hashanah actually is a day of judgment for all of creation. O so, Hashem Yisborach Yom Tov, that God created it He made it a holiday, Mikra Kodesh. It's a day of convocation. Zos Biglal Shehu B'Moadim Kol Yisrael Hein B'Madregah Ruchani'it Gevohah Yoter. Because each one of these, right, Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot, each one of the holidays, and Rosh Hashanah included, is since it's a holiday, we have a higher spiritual level. We're on a higher spiritual level, and that's actually going to allow us to be judged favorably. It's part and parcel of why there's going to be a favorable judgment, cuz we're on a higher spiritual level. Bnei she'ainam ameilim leparnasatam, because we're free from work, right? There's you're not supposed to do melachah, as we read in the verse. You stay away from melachah. So, what are you doing instead? It says, "Umeruchakim me'olam hazeh You're distancing yourself from the efforts that you make in this world. "Ve'iskeim yoter baTorah." And you have more free time to learn Torah. And to tefillah, and to be involved in prayer, and the mitzvot hayom, whatever mitzvot there are of the day, right? We just experienced Shavuot. So, what's the mitzvah of the day? Eating cheesecake, and stay and drinking lots of coffee, and staying up all night learning Torah, which we had a wonderful program here. Aidei kach, gedeilim hasikuyim lizchot badin. And through doing the mitzvot, through involving ourselves in Torah, through prayer, is a greater chance that we'll be have a favorable outcome in the judgment. Zot al pi at klal nevu'ar begemara. And this is according to the general rule that was spoken about in Gemara Rosh Hashanah 15b, 16b. Amar Rabbi Yitzchak, Rabbi Yitzchak says, "Ein danin et ha'adam ela lefi ma'asav shel oto hasha'ah." Oto sha'ah. We're going to be judged for the moment. So, we have to be in our, you know, dressed in our, regal, it's interesting, regal, in our holiday clothes, right? And be in the spirit, and be involved in Torah and prayer, and community affairs such as eating. We say "Zecher l'Yetzias Mitzrayim." Now, you may ask, "Okay, I get it. Pesach is related to leaving Egypt. Shavuos even is because it's 50 days after. And Sukkos is to remember that we left Egypt with the Ananei Kavod, with the clouds of glory, and that God made for us booths." Great. But, what does Rosh Hashanah have to do with Yetzias Mitzrayim? But, we say it. It's part of the kiddush, part of the prayers, that we remember the Exodus of Egypt. This holiday is commemorating the Exodus of Egypt. How is it Yesh l'havin. So, think about it like this. Mah kesher, you have to ask the question, mah kesher bein Rosh Hashanah l'Yetzias Mitzrayim? What exactly is the connection? Pesach, Shavuos, and Sukkos, we get. Achein shayachim l'Yetzias Mitzrayim. Mazkirim es nisei Hashem. We're going to remember the miracles that Hashem caused for us when we left Egypt, we were in the desert, the chassadim Yetzias Mitzrayim, and all the kindnesses that he per- he he performed for us and granted us on our way out of Egypt. V'chein yesh l'shoel b'Yom Kippurim, that you could ask, just like we're going to ask about Rosh Hashanah, what's the relationship, so too you can ask about Yom Kippur as well. V'veir b'kitzur. Now, in short, the answer is as follows. Kol hamoadim v'yemei hadin shebitocham, with all the holidays and the days of judgment that apply to each one of the holidays, mataratam l'izkor l'izkor u- l'romem es Klal Yisrael, al yedei zeh nizkar shekol metzius Am Yisrael nihyata al yedei Yetzias Mitzrayim. >> [clears throat] >> That we should remember, right, the leaving of Egypt, because the very essence of who we are, right? The goal of remembering and to become Sorry, to become purified and to be uplifted. That's the goal, right? That through all that we're remembering that we were created as a nation unlike any of the other nation. All the other nations, when they became a nation, it was a result of their own cultural, environmental, and political endeavor. But Hashem created a nation the only one nation like us, and that's Am Yisrael. And that happened at the at the leaving of Egypt. That's when we became a nation. So, we have to remember that unique aspect about us. And on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, it doesn't seem to really relate to leaving Egypt in a historical sense, but in a in an essence that we are who we are. Because God created us as a nation when? When we left Egypt. Masha'ein kein I skipped something? Oh, yeah, I did. Um lo b'chol lo k'chol ha'amim, not like the other nations. She'ni she'nit'ahazu la'amim me'aleihem, that they became a nation, let's say, on their own, as opposed to Am Yisrael, which became a nation through God's action. Masha'ein kein Am Yisrael. So, the nations became their nations on their own, which is not the case by Am Yisrael. Hashem Yisrael oso osam la'am b'tzeit Mitzrayim. He created us, we became a nation only as we left Egypt. Lo la'am ragil k'sha'ar ha'amim, ela la'amo, Am Hashem. Rather, he created didn't create us like the other nations, but rather as his nation. We are actually his nation, Am Hashem, the nation of God. Like it says, it says in Exodus chapter 6 verse 7, I will adopt you as a nation for me and act as a God to you. So, I don't know. I always want to throw in something about these anti-Semites. If they're anti-Semitic, it means they're anti-God. Okay, that's as clear as you could be because God says, I take you special to me and I'm going to be for you a God. This is actually the the purpose and goal of leaving Egypt. And to be his children who fulfill God's will. Like it says in Exodus chapter 19 verses 4 through 6. I'm just going to skip a few. He says, I'm going to lift you up and carry you on the wings of eagles. From all the nations, you're the ones who are chosen. To be a nation of priests and a holy nation. This is all in order that we should be the nation of God. That God provide for us, he gave to us all the possibilities, all the opportunities, all kinds of vehicles in order to serve him and be the best servants to Hashem we could possibly be. And part of the vehicle, part of the part of the the opportunities are the holidays. Um holidays. v'ahadin kol Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. And it's logical, of course, it includes both Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. V'ayidati aleihem and by you know, experiencing them, growing, being uplifted through the holidays, nizkar et You don't have this. Just two lines. Yetziat Mitzrayim Matzrata. We're going to remember the goal of who we are as a nation, that we left Egypt, and the purpose of leaving Egypt, l'iyot am Hashem, to be the people of God. And that's why we say zecher l'yetziat Mitzrayim. In case you're wondering, what does Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur have to do with leaving Egypt? I think Rav Chaim Friedlander laid it out very well. And b'ezrat Hashem, next week we'll continue and we'll do another piece in Rinat Chaim. For now, have a great week and a great life. We'll see you next week. >> [music] >> Yibaneh, [singing] yibaneh, yibaneh Hamikdash. Yitzion, [music] Yitzion. >> [singing] >> Yibaneh, >> [music] >> yibaneh, yibaneh Hamikdash. Yitzion, Yitzion. >> [music and singing] >> Yesh sham Hashem >> [music and singing] >> Eloheinu uvinchanan >> [music]