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What If?

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What if the shofar sounded last week, last month, last year?

And what if we slept right through it?

We all have moments when we feel something deep within our hearts and souls. When the core of our being tells us that something is so. Tells us we must do something, and do it now, or an opportunity will be forever lost.

I’m swimming in one of those moments. And I feel like I can barely keep my head above water. Call it what you want. Intuition. Gut feeling. A “sense.” Whatever it is, it’s haunting me, and has been for quite some time now. I suspect that you too may be haunted.

For me, it all began on a return flight from Israel. From an Israel I barely recognized. In the heart of Jerusalem, A Sbarro restaurant and dozens of beautiful Jewish kids, and moms, and dads, and babies had been blown to bits. And the streets of Jerusalem were desolate. Almost unrecognizable in their emptiness, in their silent aloneness. Today those streets are once again as beautiful and vibrant as they have ever been. But all of that is a story for another time. Sort of. Though it is where the story of my gut feeling begins…

As a Jew, I look to more than just gut feelings to give direction to life. I look to the Torah.

The Torah is those remarkable words that were given to the Jewish people at Sinai. And ever since that day, those words, refracted through the souls, and minds and hearts of countless Jews have swollen into a torrent of endless wisdom. And boundless light. And so I look to that light, to those words, and I ask. To where are they pointing me? Me and my gut.

I’d like to share with you some of the words of Torah that shape my life, and my gut feelings. These are some of the words that are responsible for the moment I am now swimming in. I invite you to listen to these words and to ask yourself – “If these are the words of my Torah. My world, my life… then what? What do they mean? What do they imply? What do they demand of me?”

Listen to the words –

Word number 1: History:

History, like life, has meaning and a purpose. I’ll say the words again: History. Like life. Has meaning. And a purpose. If those are your words, your inner world, your Torah and your guts, then let them fill you. Breathe them in. History, like life, has meaning and a purpose.

Word number 2: Am Yisrael

Am Yisrael, the Jewish nation, is central to the meaning of history, and the purpose of life. I’ll say the words again: Am Yisrael. The Jewish nation. Us. We are central to the meaning of history. And the purpose of life. If you believe these words. If these are your words, the words of your Torah and your guts, then let them fill you. Breathe them in. Am Yisrael. The Jewish nation. Is central to the meaning of history. And the purpose of life.

Word number 3: You and I

You and I each have a role to play in the mission and destiny of Am Yisrael. I’ll say the words again: You and I each have a role to play in the mission and destiny of Am Yisrael. If you believe these words. If these are your words, the words of your Torah and your guts, then let them fill you. Breathe them in. You and I each have a role to play in the mission and destiny of Am Yisrael.

Word number 4: Eretz Yisrael. The Land of Israel

The meaning and purpose of Jewish history, and Jewish life, is inextricably bound to the Land of Israel. I’ll say the words again: The meaning and purpose of Jewish history, and Jewish life, is inextricably bound to the Land of Israel. This means that the definition of a spiritually healthy Jewish life is either one that is lived in The Land, or one that is lived in a state of near desperate longing to do so. If you believe these words. If these are your words, the words of your Torah and your guts, then let them fill you. Breathe them in. The meaning and purpose of Jewish history, and Jewish life, is inextricably bound to the Land of Israel.

One More Word:

There’s one more word I want you to consider. No. I’m begging you to consider. The word is teshuva. You’ve heard it a thousand times. So have I. But have you ever heard it? Do you know how one hears teshuva? With a shofar. You hear teshuva with a shofar.

Now I can welcome you to that return flight from Sbarro. That is the moment that haunts me. The moment that gives me no rest. It’s a shofar moment. A moment that begs for teshuva. A moment that demands teshuva. A moment that says, “Ignore me, and you ignore the meaning of history. The purpose of life, and the place of your life in the history of your people.

What I am sharing with you is personal. My guts, and heart, and soul. Why do I do this? Because so far, I have failed. I have failed to listen to the gnawing, blistering voice within. I have failed to listen to the sound of the shofar. And so, perhaps, by letting my failure be known, I will finally find the courage to listen.

You see, what teshuva is about, is courage. It’s about having the courage to embrace the meaning of history and the purpose of life. We are Jews, and for us, that’s all there is. The meaning of history, and the purpose of life. Life is funny. It’s so full, and vibrant and tantalizing – and yet – it begs us. It seduces us. It lures us. Where? To sleep. To a place of deep sleep. A dullard’s sleep. A stupor. One moment life beckons us to live, and the next. To sleep.

Maimonides tells us that the essence of teshuva is shaking free from the brackish, life-draining grip of sleep. And the shofar? Well, the shofar is the only instrument in the universe with a voice loud enough – to wake us up.

Rosh Hashanah is almost upon us. Consider this: What if. What if. What if in addition to the shofar that is sounded in synagogue there were another shofar. One that sounds over and over. One that we ignore, again and again, at our own peril. The peril of history. The peril of life. The peril of sleep. The peril of no teshuva. No real teshuva.

What if the shofar sounded last week, last month, last year? And what if we slept right through it?

What if?

Rabbi Shimon Apisdorf is author of “The Survival Kit” series and the High Holiday Cheat Sheets.

 

The words of this author reflect his/her own opinions and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Orthodox Union.