Most students are familiar with Rabbis’ sermons on the High Holidays. But there’s an old custom for Rabbis to give a long sermon on the Shabbos before Yom-Kippur, and on the Shabbos before Passover. Since we’re not into long sermons, here’s what we did at Shabbos House Chabad this year. At lunchtime on Shabbat, we asked each student to share something inspiring or meaningful about Teshuvah (repentance, personal change/growth) or memorable about Rosh Hashanah. A lot of people spoke, it’s hard to remember who said exactly what (and since it was on Shabbos we couldn’t write anything down) but we will give it a shot:
Rabbi Mendel: For me personally, Teshuvah is about specific behaviors or actions, areas in which to improve. But for some, it is a whole life-changing process. That’s what inspires me about Teshuvah, people who make such major, transformative steps, that affect every aspect of life. That’s a heavy Teshuvah thought. And here’s a light Teshuvah thought: A guy was sitting in the bathtub one day and realized that he is starting to get wrinkled. Now for several year he had been thinking of getting more involved Jewishly, but the wrinkles were the catalyst to get going. (I think that was Moshe Yess’ story, but not sure). I like that story because it shows that Teshuvah can happen anywhere, even in unexpected places, and not necessarily the holiest ones.
David W. For me I like to think of Rosh Hashanah as a day to reconnect, more than as a day of Judgement. That’s more like the Chassidic perspective. There’s a specific part of the daily prayer that crystallizes our role as Jews. It begins L’Olam Yehei Adam.. and runs through the Lefichach before Shema. On one hand it shows us how small we are and how little we matter, then it speaks of our rich heritage and inheritance, and leads into “Therefore..” we do what Jews do. It’s a balancing perspective, and introduces that early morning Shema.
Rebecca W. Some people are in a position of influence and can hopefully inspire a lot of people to make positive changes in their lives. But then there’s us? We may have a small circle of friends, a few co-workers, family. I’d like to think that we too can make a difference in our surroundings (even if its only local and not global) and make meaningful changes that is beloved and appreciated by Hashem.
Eden B. Last year I spent the holidays in China, away from any major Jewish center there. I was alone and was a little sad during the holidays. I tried explaining some of it to my Chinese friends but they didn’t get it. I guess distance/absence makes the heart grow fonder, I appreciate the holidays more this year.
Rebecca P. I like how Rosh Hashanah falls at the start of a school year. You get to look back at the past year and make resolutions and changes as the new year begins.
Aaron W. I was always taught the power of words, even meaningless words without intent can have an effect and we ought to be careful with them. But one word that doesn’t work without intent is “Sorry!” Mere saying sorry doesn’t do much for anyone, and not for yourself either. Sorry works when we invest it with thoughtfulness and meaning, and a resolve to be more sensitive and careful in the future.
Mike I. Somehow I always knew deep down that I wanted to become more religious, even at a young age. And now that I have become more religious, I find myself doing things that I feel connected with but can’t always explain or understand. For me it’s a lot about faith, that transcends reason, rationale and explanations.
Sam S. I’d like to share something about my father. He was sick for a long time, he suffered from depression. One day my mother called and said she wanted to make a party at the house for my brother’s birthday. We were taken aback, because we haven’t had that for a while, but hey – we all came together and had a nice party in the house. It meant a lot to my father, he really appreciated having the family together. Here’s the miracle thing: Not long after that party, he developed a medical condition and passed away soon after. It was as if it was meant to be for him to have this party in the house, and have all the family there together in a joyous way.
Sam J. For the New Year, I’m at a new job and hope that works out well. On terms of Teshuva, I have some little things to fix up for my final course that will allow me to graduate this program. Teshuvah is like a fix for a problem.
Dan J. My father had synagogue seats in the way back, where you couldn’t see the page-number score-board. On High Holidays they didn’t have a Kids Minyan so you had to sit with your parents. It was interesting because you got to see how things changed over the year. Some old folks didn’t come back because they passed on or moved away, some people had different families, moved in or out of the neighborhood. And I remember the Tashlich ceremony in Flushing Meadows Park, the site of the old Worlds Fair. All the synagogues, all types of people got together on Rosh Hashanah afternoon and it was a very nice communal memory.
Laiky R. I have a Rosh Hashanah memory of my grandmother. Her family had been in Jerusalem for seven generations (!) and I was staying with her at home while studying that year in seminary. I was tired, and slept in late. I got up, embarrassed that I slept in, but she didn’t criticize me. She was busy saying her Psalms, diligently, seriously, one chapter after another. I remember her saying it, I remember how she said it. It left a deep impression on me.
Raizy R. Last winter break I went up with two Shabbos House alumni to speak for a girls school/camp visiting Saratoga to tell them about Shabbos House and what we do as Chabad on Campus at UAlbany. One of the alumni shared this story: It was at a stage in her spiritual journey that she committed to keeping Shabbos, but was just beginning. Once she had to attend a club meeting and they asked for a volunteer, and she volunteered and ended up having to write on the board – on Shabbos. This was extremely uncomfortable for her, and she later came to Shabbos House and spoke to me about it. She expected to be criticized or frowned upon, but I was encouraging. Change happens in steps, and sometimes a step backward is part of the process, and to be expected. Don’t beat yourself up about it, don’t be too hard on yourself. Just keep trying and doing your best. I don’t even remember the story, but obviously this attitude and perspective meant a lot to her. It’s a good message to remember about Teshuvah.
Atara M. There are too common mistakes when attempting to fix something. Sometimes we try to do too much at once, bite off more than we can chew. And sometimes we push it off and procrastinate. Ideally, we should start right away, with small steps. That’s how I look at the “10 Days of Repentance” it comes right after Rosh Hashanah, no waiting around, no cooling off period, but it is small steps, one day at a time.
Mushky R. When I think of Teshivah I think of 2 objects (my father’s parables): A slinky because of how it goes around and around in circles, but spirals upward, never on the same level. Also of the Return-Key, that is now known as Enter.
Binyamin M. You can’t judge a book by its cover, and the same goes for Shehechiyanu fruit. Some of the new fruits on Rosh Hashanah looked quite nasty on the outside, but were quite tasty on the inside.
David W. Never give up! Chizkiyahu was told by a prophet that he was decreed to die, and nothing could change that decree, but Chizkiyahu said, we learn even as a sword dangles on your neck, never give up hope! He prayed, and he recovered.
Rabbi Shmuly R. There’s a statement in the Talmud: Tzadikim can’t reach the level of Baalei Teshuvah. The basic understanding of this is because tzadikim (righteous people) may never have to make the gut-wrenching, earth-shattering life-altering choices that a Baal Teshuvah makes. There’s a deeper understanding as well. Kabbalistically, everything in this world has a spark. We try to elevate those sparks by doing Mitzvot with the objects in our world. But what about that which is forbidden? How do we elevate the sparks in a non-Kosher pig? The normal method is to elevate it by rejecting it. A Baal Teshuvah takes it a step further. His act of Teshuvah, the turnaround he/she makes in his/her life, is a product and result of all past choices and behaviors, and elevates them along with his new journey.
Lily H. I’m usually home for the holidays, but not this year. My father called just before the holiday. He sensed I was a little sad. He reassured me, “Don’t worry. You’ll always have me, you’ll always have G-d”. I like to look for an omen at the start of the year, something that will carry me through, and this was that line for me.
Moshe R. My favorite part of Rosh Hashanah was the end of the davening on the 2nd day of Rosh Hashanah. Not that I was happy to be done with it, but I was happy to have accomplished it. I was there for all of it, and prayed the whole thing.
If we remember more, we’ll post it soon! You can remind us: mail@shabboshouse.com