By Rabbi Avi Weiss It was during the time of Shavuot that the Jews at Sinai declared to God, “na’aseh ve-nishma, we will do and we will listen (to the commandments).” (Exodus 24:7) This order is perplexing as one usually does the opposite, and listens before deciding to act. In his Michtav M’Eliyahu, Rabbi Eliyahu […]

Yom Kippur is a serious day. It can be argued that a spirit of joy should also prevail. An understanding of teshuvah (repentance) explains why. On a behavioral level, Maimonides writes that teshuvah involves “returning” to a situation in which one had previously failed, and not making the same mistake again. (Laws of Repentance, 2:1) […]