You stand this day, all of you, before the Eternal your God: your tribal heads, your elders, and your officials, all the rest of Israel’s citizens, your children, your wives, even the stranger in the camp, from wood chopper to waterdrawer… those are standing here with us this day before the Eternal our God and with those who are not with us here… D’varim / Deuteronomy 29:9-10, 14
The Torah captures this powerful moment by emphasizing the presence of the entire people, all ages and stages, across the spectrum of social standing and economic status. Each person is essential to the success of this covenantal encounter with the Holy One. Echoing their discussion of the encounter with God at Sinai, our sages reflect on the distinctive nature of each person’s experience of this gathering as it is refracted through the prism of their lives.
One major difference from the theophany at Sinai is that there is no designated period of preparation before meeting God as compared to the three-day process prior to the revelatory moment at Mt Sinai. Perhaps, preparation seemed unnecessary after forty years in the wilderness filled with daily encounters with God, the luminous Divine Presence hovering over the Mishkan, the daily delivery of Manna, and the miraculous well that accompanied them. Alternatively, collective preparation was eschewed in favor of a more personal process of getting ready; guided by their own specific needs and desires.
As we prepare to gather for the High Holy Days, Moshe image of the whole people together, physically and virtually, seems incredibly apt, as is the fundamental necessity of each person being in the moment. Like our Israelite ancestors, each of us approaches this portal to the new year with our own reality. As such, I would like to suggest a collective form of individual preparation.
Below is a link to a recording of “Who By Fire?” by Leonard Cohen. This song is based on the prayer, Unetaneh Tokef, which is recited as part of our Musaf liturgy on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The prayer proclaims the awesome power of the Day of Judgment, then goes on to discuss both our responsibility- the choices we have already made, our very own signature in the Book of Life – and our destiny – all the things we cannot control, including health, wealth, and the time and manner of our own death.
The traditional paragraph in the Machzor reads as follows:
On Rosh Hashanah it will be inscribed and on Yorn Kippur it will be sealed:
How many will pass from the earth and how many will be born into it?
Who will live and who will die?
Who shall live out full days and whose life will be cut short?
Who by fire and who by water?
Who by sword and who by beast?
Who by famine and who by thirst?
Who by earthquake and who by plague?
Who by strangling and who by stoning?
Who will rest and who will wander?
Who will be at peace and who will be tormented?
Who will be tranquil and who will suffer?
Who will be impoverished and who will be enriched?
Who will be degraded and who will be exalted?
The passage concludes with this important coda:
U-Teshuvah, But Repentance, uTefilah, Prayer, and uTzedakah, Righteous Giving avert the severity of the decree.
Here is the Leonard Cohen version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=251Blni2AE4&list=RD251Blni2AE4&start_radio=1
Contemplate Cohen’s lyrics, as well as the original prayer
Here are some questions we might then ask ourselves:
• How do I want to live before the angel of death calls?
• What part of me is truly calling upon a Higher Power, and what part of me resists prayer?
• Will I answer the call – by community and conscience, by responsibility and destiny, by God and Israel – to help mitigate painful decrees?
May we enter the new year thoughtfully and prepared. May we be blessed with good health and well-being, happiness and occasions to celebrate.
L’shana Tova Tikatevu v’Teychatemu –
Rabbi David M. Eligberg
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