STAM
TORAH
YOM
KIPPUR 5777
“ON THE MARK”
The Dubner Maggid[1] was
legendary for his uncanny ability to answer virtually any question with an
engaging and apropos parable The Vilna Gaon[2] once
asked the Maggid the secret of his skill to imagine innovative parables on the
spur of the moment. True to his legacy, the Maggid replied by relating a
parable:
There was once a prince who desired to master the skill of archery. He
spent hours each day studying the acumen of the greatest archers in the
kingdom. With time the prince himself became renowned for his precision and
exactitude as an expert archer.
One day the prince was traveling through the forest when he noticed an
arrow which cut right through a bull’s-eye on a nearby tree. At first the
prince thought nothing of it, but then he noticed numerous bull’s-eyes
throughout the area. The prince could not get over it. What marksmanship this
archer must have! The prince insisted that his men seek out who was responsible
for the incredible display of talent.
After some time, they returned to the prince with an unkempt child. The prince was astounded, “Was it really you
who hit every bull’s-eye in this forest? Please tell me your secret. I have
never seen anyone with your talent and ability.” The child began to laugh,
“Your graciousness, I will show you the great secret of my talent.” With that
he pulled out an arrow and shot it haphazardly at a nearby tree. After the
arrow landed clumsily, the child took out some chalk from his pocket and drew
circles around the arrow, until it appeared like a perfect bull’s-eye.
The Maggid concluded, “You see I too first imagine my parables. It is
only later that I seek a question which can be answered with the help of the
parable!”
The Shulchan Aruch states that even one who is not particular to only
eat Pas Yisroel[3]
during the year, should be particular to do so during the Ten Days of
Penitence.
What is the meaning behind this law? Are we trying to fool G-d during
this intense time of judgment and scrutiny? Why should one engage in seemingly
hypocritical acts during these days, when he is well aware that he has
absolutely no intention of maintaining these stringencies after Yom Kippur is
over?
In the pizmun[4]
recited on the morning prior to Yom Kippur we beseech G-d, “O gracious One,
favor Your people who believe in Your Name, assign for me an advocate (angel)
who will conceal my inadvertent sin; who will suppress my guilt with his left
hand, and elevate my merit with his right… On the morrow, may this sign be.”
Why do we ask that our sins be concealed; would it not be more logical
to request that our sins be obliterated completely, as the prophets stated[5]?
After having sought refuge from his brother Eisav’s wrath for over two
decades, Yaakov Avinu began his journey back home. When he finally encountered
Eisav, the Torah[6]
relates, “Eisav ran to greet him, and he embraced him, and he fell upon his
neck, and he kissed him and he cried.”
Rashi, quoting the Sifrei, offers two very diverse explanations of
Eisav’s ironic behavior. One opinion is that Eisav’s emotional display was an
insincere external front. However, the other opinion is that at that moment
Eisav was overwhelmed with compassion for Yaakov and indeed Eisav embraced Yaakov
wholeheartedly.
The Shelah explains that both opinions are true:
Chazal[7]
note that the word Satan (שטן) has a numerical value of 364. This alludes to the fact that Satan has
the ability to prosecute us in heaven during 364 days of the year. However,
there is one day a year when he is not granted permission to speak negatively
about the Jewish people, and that is on Yom Kippur.
The Pirkei d’Rebbe Eliezer[8]
states, “When Satan sees that he is not allowed to prosecute on Yom Kippur, he
comes before G-d in order to be a good advocate, and speak in defense of Klal
Yisroel. He says, “Master of the World, You have one nation analogous to the
ministering angels in heaven. Just as the ministering angels do not eat or
drink, so too the Jewish people do not eat or drink on Yom Kippur; just as the
ministering angels are barefoot, so are the Jewish people barefoot on Yom
Kippur… Just as the ministering angels are pure of sin, so are the Jewish
people pure of sin on Yom Kippur”.”
This is an absolutely astounding thought. It
is inconceivable that Satan – the angel devoted to prosecuting against us in
heaven constantly – should suddenly become a passionate advocate on our behalf,
simply because he is denied his usual role. How can the prosecutor become our
supporter in our greatest moment of need?
There is a known adage in the world of
education that the worst thing a “spirited child” can do for himself is to have
a perfectly behaved day in school. For inevitably his parents and teachers will
use that day against him, constantly pointing out that, “See you could do it if
you really put your mind to it. Remember that other day when you had a perfect
day? That means the rest of the time you’re just not trying enough!”
The reality is that “even a stopped clock is
right twice a day”, i.e. even a child who has a very difficult time in school
will have a good day on occasion. But for such a child, the good day is the
anomaly, not his usual rambunctious behavior.[9]
The Bobover Rebbe, Rabbi BenZion Halberstam
shlita, explains[10]
that in truth Satan has no intention of being an advocate for us. In fact, au
contraire, he remains true to his mission. However, on Yom Kippur his
prosecution is stated with devious deceit.
Satan stands before G-d and preaches about
the holiness and purity of the Jewish people on Yom Kippur. He emphasizes their
sincerity and devotion on this most sublime of days. The implication is that if
the Jews can reach such a level on Yom Kippur, they could be living on such a
level throughout the rest of the year. The fact that they do not proves their
unworthiness and insincerity throughout the rest of the year.
This is essentially what occurred during the
fateful encounter between Yaakov and Eisav[11]. Eisav ran towards Yaakov and kissed him
wholeheartedly because his compassion was truly aroused at that moment. That
feeling was actually rooted in Eisav’s apathy and disdain for Yaakov, and that
encounter symbolically foreshowed what occurs every year. On Yom Kippur Satan
embraces us with seeming love and devotion. Truthfully however, that love
really masks his efforts to destroy Yaakov completely in a most vile and deceitful
manner.
It is for this reason that we ask that our
sins be concealed but not totally eradicated. We want to impede the cunning
prosecution of the evil inclination on Yom Kippur. Let him not be able to say
that we have no sin. Rather, that we have transcended our sins and raised
ourselves close to G-d, despite our mishaps and failings. Indeed we hope that
G-d will pardon and forgive our sins completely, but Satan should not be able
to use that against us.
During the days preceding Yom Kippur and on
Yom Kippur itself we behave above our usual level of observance and adherence.
It is analogous to a woman who comes down the
steps one morning, completely disheveled, and still half-asleep. As she walks
past the mirror she is appalled by her appearance. “What has happened to me?”
she wonders. But then in the corner of her eye she sees her wedding picture
hanging next to the mirror. There she stands alongside her new husband,
beautifully made up, and looking her best. She realizes that the woman in the
picture is her, and that she is truly that beautiful - if she only took the
time and had the patience to make herself look like that again.
It is true that we do not live on the same
level as we do during the Ten days of Penitence. But throughout the year, in
our lowest moments, when we feel distant and frustrated with ourselves and our
spiritual state, we suddenly remember the levels we reached during the sublime
Days of Repentance. We remember that we truly are great people, if we only have
the fortitude and confidence to raise ourselves back to those levels.
In that sense Yom Kippur is the bull’s-eye, around
which we must paint our year. At times we may feel that we have strayed, even
to the perimeter of those surrounding circles. But as long as Yom Kippur remains
the center point, we are still somewhere ‘on the mark’.
“And he kissed him and he cried”
“On the morrow, may this sign be”
Rabbi Dani Staum, LMSW
Rabbi, Kehillat New Hempstead
Rebbe/Guidance Counselor – ASHAR
Principal – Ohr Naftoli- New Windsor
[2] Rabbi
Eliyahu Kramer, 1720-1797
[3] Bread baked
by a Jewish baker; although Pas Akum – bread baked by a non-Jew for private use
may never be eaten by a Jew, Pas-Paltar – commercially baked bread by a non-Jew
(e.g. Freihoffers, Thomas, etc.) is permitted. During the Tens Days of
Penitence the custom is to refrain from eating Pas-Paltar as well.
[4] Liturgical
prayer containing a refrain, and recited responsively between chazzan and
congregation
[5] e.g.
Yeshaya 43:25 “I, only I, am he who wipes away your willful sins for My sake,
and I shall not recall your sins.”
44:22 “I will have wiped away your willful sins like a
thick mist, and your transgressions like a cloud; return to Me, for I will have
redeemed you!
[6] Bereishis
33:4
[7] Yoma 20a,
and Vayikra Rabba 21:4
[8] Perek 45
[9] This
obviously does not apply to most children (thankfully). This was only said
regarding the child who is simply ‘not wired’ for the classroom.
[10] Erev Yom
Kippur 5766
[11] Satan is
the angel of Eisav
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