The High Holiday season has always been a paradox for me.
On the one hand, these are awesome days, full of tradition and history. Days, we are told, that determine the destiny of our lives.
On the other hand, how many of us experience the High Holiday season as awesome, holy, or even memorable. How many of us are truly transformed on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur? Not just inspired for a moment, but actually transformed forever?
The answer, I believe, lies in these precious days we find ourselves in at this moment – the final days of the month of elul. Just as a bride who shows up on her wedding day dressed in weekday clothing will have a hard time getting into the ‘spirit’ of the wedding. She might even lose some of the energy and fire that her wedding day can infuse into the marriage. Similarly, if we want our ‘marriage’ with G‑d to be everlasting and meaningful, if we want the High Holiday experience to add vigor, energy, and life to our year, we have to ‘get dressed’ during these final days of elul.
The New Year is 12 days away. According to the Kabbalists each of these days contains the energy for a month of the previous year. Each day allows us to look back and see what ‘clothing’ we can change and better for the new year. In this way we can truly revitalize and invigorate our High Holiday Experience.
May Almighty G‑d inscribe and seal us in the Book of Life for a Happy and Healthy New Year.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Raleigh Resnick