Rabbi Yerahmiel Barylka
When the earth shakes
Since the great earthquake of 1985, I cannot free myself from that situation. At 7:19 a.m. on September 19, 1985, the country's capital was shaken by an 8,1 magnitude earthquake. The movement devastated the downtown area, caused severe damage to hundreds of buildings and caused the death of thousands of people.
The tremor left in my memory the very clear concept of the relativity of life and that in the face of its force I can do nothing but exclaim SHEMA ISRAEL and immediately afterwards, when I breathe normally again, think about how I can correct how wrong it is so much and try to finish the pending things, before the next seizure.
These movements invite me to take a realistic look when I ask myself what spiritual food I nourish my soul with. Where am I in life? Do my actions really correlate with the values I stand for?
When we arrive at the reading of the last chapters of the Torah, we witness Moshe's farewell to the Jewish people and they are a vital complement to being able to continue acting despite everything. His words deserve renewed reading.
It is no coincidence that Vayelech is read every year on the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, a Shabbat known as Shabbat Shuvah, following the prophet Oshea: “Return, O Israel, to .A. your God; because by your sin you have fallen. Take with you words of supplication, and return to .A., and say to him: Take away all iniquity, and accept good, and we will offer you the offering of our lips," which is read in the Haftarah portion.
The days from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur are known as the Ten Days of Repentance – Aseret Yemei Teshuvah – because we focus on repentance during this time.
In Jewish tradition, repentance is called teshuvah, a Hebrew word that translates as “return.” One of the Hebrew words for sin is "chet", which in Hebrew originally means to miss the mark - to miss - and as a derivative "to go astray".
We must return from going astray, from sin, indecency, immorality, contravention, failure, from bad conduct, contravention, crime, offense, tort, and evil action.
The wonderful idea of repentance in Jewish thought is a return to the path of justice.
Teshuva can be done at any time, but the high holiday season, and especially Yom Kippur, is considered an especially auspicious time for it. The process of repentance, as established by Maimonides, includes three stages: confession, repentance, and vow not to repeat the wrongdoing. ANDThe true penitent, says Maimonides, is the one who finds himself with the opportunity to commit the same sin again, but refuses to do so.
We firmly believe that prayer, charity and fasting help to gain forgiveness. In some way they are an important part of the process.
According to Jewish tradition, only sins against God can be atoned for through confession, repentance, and a promise not to repeat the action. Sins committed against other people can only be made up for once the harm has been corrected: restitution for a financial crime has been paid, for example, and forgiveness has been received from the victim.
When we direct our vast efforts to do good, between man and his neighbor, and between man and God, with God's help, we will not only be less startled by telluric phenomena, but we will have a wonderful and blessed new year. , without feeling of guilt, ready to receive the love of others and return it with much more love, also in practical actions.