| Nitzavim
“You are all standing this day before the Lord, your God the leaders of your tribes, your elders and your officers, every man of Israel,your young children, your women, and your convert who is within your camp both your woodcutters and your water drawers,that you may enter the covenant of the Lord, your God, and His oath, which the Lord, your God, is making with you this day”
Moses opens with the above words in his final speech prior to his passing away.
Rashi explains the context “The verse says “this day,” which] teaches us that on the day of his death, Moses assembled Israel in the presence of the Holy One, Blessed is He, to bring them into [His] covenant.”
A simple question can be asked: Seeing as Moses declares “you are all standing this day …” why does he need to continue to enumerate the different categories of people.
Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin (1816 Belarus – 1893 Poland – dean of the famous Volozhin Yeshiva) explains that Moses is teaching us that on the one hand we are all equal before God. We have one overall vision and mission as the Jewish people. However on an individual level each of us has a unique role and relationship with God.
In the run up to Rosh Hashana we reflect on the past year and we think of ways to improve our characters, Mitzvah observance and so on. We want to be better people.The month of Elul which is coming to a close was focussed on the process of Teshuva – returning to Hashem. Or put another way returning to our deeper core- our true selves.
However it is important that we are realistic with ourselves. It is no good trying to attain levels that are way beyond us. We must be honest with our self appraisal so we know “where we stand” vis-à-vis our responsibilities and failings. Only once we face up to our current self can we begin to make small incremental improvements that are more likely to endure.
Remember Hashem is not interested in you trying to be someone else or something you are not. Hashem desires our authentic selves.
A classic story tells about the great Reb Zusha, who was found agitated and upset as he lay on deathbed. His students asked, “Rebbe, why are you so sad? After all the great things you have accomplished, your place in heaven is assured!” “I’m afraid!” Zusha replied, “Because when I get to heaven, God won’t ask me ‘Why weren’t you more like Moses?’ or ‘Why weren’t you more like King David?’ God will ask ‘Zusha, why weren’t you more like Zusha?’ And then what will I say!?”
Teshuva is a deeply personal expression of coming closer to Hashem.
We are all standing before Hashem but each of us with a unique perspective.
Shabbat Shalom & Shanna Tova |
Nitzavim reminds us of the inclusivity of Judaism: there is in the eyes of Hashem no category of persons who can compare with G-d; we are lowly creatures who aspire to rise above the apes but will always be lower than the angels. What I find particularly powerful about Nizavim is we are being addressed directly by these words of Moses, and at Rosh Hashanah it is helpful, at least to me, to keep these words in mind.