Yom Kippur

Erev Yom Kippur 5767



There’s a famous case illustrated in the Talmud of a superbly non-pious man who marries a woman on condition that he is righteous. The Rabbis insist that we must proceed as if the marriage was binding in Heaven, because no matter how wayward a person may be, it only takes one momentary thought of regret or repentance to change one’s status from wicked to righteous. Therefore, it’s entirely possible that despite all his actions to the contrary, at that point in time he may, in fact, have become truly righteous, with a Divine stamp of approval, thereby rendering the marriage valid. With only one tiny hint of Teshuvah (repentance)?



Maimonides, in his treatise on repentance (chapter 3), writes, “Just as one’s merits and sins are weighed at death, so too are they every year for every person on Rosh Hashana. He who is found completely righteous is sealed for life, he who is found completely wicked is sealed for death, and the ‘middle-ones’ (all of us) await judgement until Yom Kippur – if they repent they are sealed for life, and if not, for death.” What Maimonides doesn’t leave as an option is for the middle-one to remain simply a middle-one. At the same time, the Arizal (the purveyor of the Kabbalistic tradition) writes that the day of Yom Kippur alone has the exalted spiritual status capable of sealing even a middle-one for life. Maimonides seems to require teshuvah (repentance) for the middle-one to become righteous, while the Arizal seems to ascribe the power to the day itself.



The discrepancy is rectified by viewing two sides of the same coin. It’s ultimately the combination of Yom Kippur and the heartfelt, honest sentiment of teshuvah, which brings atonement. Maimonides doesn’t leave any option for remaining in the middle because the nature of Yom Kippur is such that there is no other option; one who can truly muster up an earnest repentance – one who can tap into the spiritual truth and power of the day, one who is at the core sensitive enough to realize what’s at stake – that person is called ‘righteous’. And he, who, despite the reverence and power of Yom Kippur, cannot find within himself any residue of regret, is undeniably the opposite. Our tradition teaches that in the Almighty’s kindness, Yom Kippur was created – a moment in time with atomic spiritual energy to wipe the slate clean, or rather re-create the already created. An opportunity to calibrate our being to His. A 26 hour period of spiritual pyrotechnics to pull us from our shells and draw us upward, to inspire us to great heights which can only be grasped from a heartfelt moment of lowness. We need to make the first move. We need to dig deep. There’s no greater time.



Wishing you all a complete and good ‘seal’,



Rabbi Lynn

Shana Tova

Erev Rosh Hashana, 5677


Just a quick note wishing you a healthy, happy, sweet new year. As we celebrate the birthday of the world, the beginning of God’s handiwork, there are two very important points to consider. Firstly, this is the day that man was created (male and female as one two-sided being) and not really the beginning of creation. And secondly, the Talmud and its major commentators explain that really the world was physically created in Nissan (the month of Passover), while having only been ‘thought of’, as it were, in Tishrei (this month). So why are our festivities so poorly timed? Certainly, the proponents of modern thought would cringe at the ego-centricity of our version of creation, right?


The action is always the result of the thought. We celebrate the day when the focus, the purpose of creation, was born – in thought. Thought always centers around the end goal first, and from there the blue-prints are drawn. Each of us, all of us, as creations of divine purpose and spiritual phenomena, we are all the central, critical focal point of creation – the very place where heaven meets earth, soul touches body, and life, as we know it, is born. This should by no means give rise to misplaced arrogance, but rather sublime humility in the face of our Creator and mission.

May we all be signed and sealed for a deeply enriching year of life.

Your friend,

Shmuel Lynn

United we Stand

Elul 22, 5766

Good Shabbos,

This week communities around the world will be reading the Torah portion called Netzavim, named for the first verse which reads, “You are all standing (netzavim) today before the Almighty, your God: your leaders, your tribal heads, your elders, your judges – every person of Israel.” Moses, on his last day, had gathered the nation to deliver his final message, to review the covenant between which God had offered and we accepted. In kabbalistic writings, the word today, hayom, in the Torah always refers to the day, Rosh HaShanah. In fact, this portion of the Torah always coincides with the Shabbos before Rosh HaShanah and, in a sense, is alluding to our impending approach to the coming day of judgment. It is before the Almighty that we, as a nation in utter unity, present ourselves to our Creator for ultimate accounting. There’s an apparent contradiction of sorts in our sentiment towards this holy day of reckoning. Rosh HaShanah is, after all, the day of judgement, then followed 10 days later by the day of atonement, and yet the tone of the day is jubilant – there’s no mention of confession, guilt, sin, there’s no heaviness to the service, the liturgy is full of the Almighty and Israel’s praise, the meals are festive and lavish – have we forgotten this is the day of reckoning? Which books are opened? That here we confront our own accountability and the unspeakable finitude of life itself?

All these are true, and they are underlying themes of the day which, however, are generally addressed in preparation for Rosh HaShanah and immediately following until Yom Kippur. Yet the day itself, one where the entire nation presents itself for judgment, bespeaks a far greater message. We stand as one with the Almighty in fulfilling His will and bringing the world to its completion. This is the mission we accepted, and, more importantly, for which we were accepted. Yes, we have fallen short, and yes, there is much to repair. But the covenant itself, the mission and intimate partnership with God, is tremendous cause for celebration. It is precisely at the time of reckoning, when we, in pristine oneness, present ourselves to Him - with no doubt whatsoever that the ultimate covenant would ever, ever be called into question – for the greatest privilege of all and thorough recognition of our service and raison-d’etre. And there’s one more plus – it’s a family business where love is the undisputed champion and never compromised. You could hear all of this even in the melodies especially reserved for the day.

It is said the biggest blow to all the metaphysical forces which stand contrary to our spiritual perfection - those which on the one hand create for us free-will and on the other hand attempts to subpoena our every move in the Heavenly tribunal – is the very fact that we walk into the courtroom on our own volition. In perfect unity and appreciation of what judgment really means. The forest is greater than the trees. The Jewish people rises well above its simple, fallible, and ultimately forgivable humanity.

Wishing you good Shabbos,

Rabbi Lynn