Parshas Nitzavim-Vayeilech: How to Do Teshuvah and Why to Do Teshuvah

My spread for my pre-Rosh Hashanah Brunch... aren't you sorry you missed it?!

Rosh Hashanah is less than a week away and everyone seems to be swinging into action to celebrate.  Even here in Adelaide, which has a relatively small Jewish population, there has been a flood of pre-Rosh Hashanah activity.  The Jewish Community Services put on a pre-Rosh Hashanah lunch. I hosted a pre-Rosh Hashanah brunch. We’ll be hosting a melava malka to be followed by selichos.  And of course Rosh Hashanah itself is beginning on Wednesday night.  The clock is ticking!

It is not possible to approach this period of time without discussing the nature of teshuvah, or repentance.  As the mashal (parable) goes, the King (G-d) is in the field, just waiting for us to approach Him.  Now is the time we must work on repenting, not leave it until the last minute when we are being judged by Him on Rosh Hashanah or before the judgment is signed and sealed on Yom Kippur.

It is no coincidence that in this week’s parsha Moses speaks about the mitzvah of repentance.  Other religions also feature ways to repent of sins.  In some religions you do not need to do anything except confirm your beliefs.  In others, you have to do horrible and painful things to yourself.  Judaism is neither of these extremes.

In Judaism, in order to repent we must first leave the sin behind and commit to never do it again.  We cannot repent if we continue to do the sin.  Then, we must sincerely regret what we did.  G-d will know if our regret is genuine.  Then we must confess our sins before G-d.  If you try this, you may be surprised to find this last step is actually the hardest.  To actually say the words out loud can be the step that really makes your commitment feel true.  Because it can be so difficult, this is why we have communal confessions on Yom Kippur.  If we are saying the same words as everyone around us, they may be a bit easier to say.  Judaism does require us to make a commitment and to do something difficult in confessing it, but it does not require anything physically painful or difficult.

Once we have stopped doing the sin and have truly repented, our past sins are erased or, in some cases, are even turned into mitzvot!  Actually doing teshuvah is a mitzvah, in stopping doing sins we are instead doing mitzvot, and our past sins can even be turned into mitzvot.  That is pretty amazing!  Imagine having all those mitzvot weighing in on your side when you go before G-d for judgment this Rosh Hashanah.  Now is the time to go to G-d, while He is accessible and waiting for us to come repent.

So what are you waiting for? The time for teshuvah is now!

Shabbat Shalom & Shana Tova.

Read more on Parshas Nitzavim-Vayelech: How the World Sees the Jews

Read more on Parshas Nitzavim: We Are All Responsible for Each Other

Read more on Parshas Vayelech: When G-d Hides His Face

Dealing with Missionaries: Looking Inside Ourselves for Solutions

Recently, I saw a Jew arguing with a missionary.  The Jewish woman was upset because she had seen the non-Jewish woman trying to convert some Jews.  The argument quickly fell away from anything to do with religion or beliefs.  Instead, it became a game of who could be more condescending and insulting to whom.  It seemed like each was trying their best to make themselves look good while simultaneously putting the other one down.  In the end, nothing was achieved.

You see, when two people believe something very strongly, there is no point in having a debate or an argument because neither will be persuaded the other one is right.  This is true of any subject, but religion and politics are two of the top subjects for which this holds true.

If you are discussing or debating something with someone who has an open mind or who is on the fence about an issue, then it is worth continuing because you might change their mind.  If there are witnesses who might be convinced, it is worth continuing because you might change their minds.  If there is a Jew involved who has moved away from Judaism, it is worth continuing because EVERY Jewish soul is precious and you can never give up on persuading them. However, if you are arguing with someone who does not fall into one of those categories, then it is not a wise use of your time to continue. Instead, it is simply a waste of time and energy that you could be using to do something else.

And of course, if the conversation devolves into an argument without substance, where you are only finding more creative ways to put the other person down, then you won’t achieve anything, no matter who you are trying to convince or why.  If you want to debate with a missionary because, for instance, other Jews are watching, you must remain calm and keep a level head. There are rational responses to everything they say and there is no need to get angry at them.

When it comes to missionaries, I think it is a waste of time and energy to be upset and angry with them.  If they are on private property that belongs to you, you can ask them to leave and they should leave (or you can call the police) but beyond that, there is no reason to expend energy being upset with them for their proselytizing.

There’s no point in getting upset with the individuals doing it, for two reasons:
1) They are doing it out of love. Even if they are wrong, they are doing it because they truly care about others and want them to find happiness and beauty in the same things they do. At least, we must try to believe this because it is our obligation to work on ourselves to see the good in others even when they do the wrong thing.
2) They are merely instruments of the Satan, the Yetzer Hara, Hashem, whatever you want to call it. Remember the mashal of the dog and the stick. The master holds the stick that beats the dog. The dog barks at and bites at the stick. The dog does not realize it is the master who is doing the beating. These individuals are merely the stick. Instead of barking at THEM, we should ask why Hashem has put them in our path. Why do we deserve this? What can we do about it?

Only then can we address the true issue, which is our own teshuva. We have to ask what we can do. We will never be able to stop all non-Jews from trying to convert Jews; it has been that way since the time of the first Jew, Avraham. When he would not be persuaded away from the path of Hashem, he was thrown into a fire. And millions of Jews have been thrown into fires since then for refusing to change their faith and their beliefs. Nothing will stop the goyim from their anti-Semitism until Moshiach comes.

So instead of concentrating on them, the stick, let us ask the Master why He sends this stick. The answer is very clear straight out in the Torah. Look at the blessings Yaakov & Eisav receive from Yitzchak. When Yaakov (the Jews) are strong in their Torah, then Eisav will be their servant. But we see this is not currently the case, nor has it been since, well, pretty much ever.  From the sin of the golden calf to the idolatry throughout the Tanach, we Jews have been rebellious. If we want to break free from the yoke of Eisav, the only way to do so is to be strong in Torah.

So instead of arguing with or putting down others, we Jews have to A) work on ourselves to do as many mitzvot and learn as much Torah as we can and B) we have to work on helping other Jews to do the same. Yes, the does mean rescuing Jews who have been ensnared by those non-Jews who try to pull them away from the path of Judaism. But it also means rescuing Jews who have been pulled away from Judaism by the temptations of the modern world, by bad experiences with other Jews, by any and all possible factors.

But it does not mean attacking the stick. Let us be a light unto the nations! Shana tova!

Rosh Hashanah Dessert Recipes

Rosh Hashanah is coming up in a week and a half! Are you prepared? Have you cooked everything in advance? Or are you just now starting to scramble? (Here are some tips on cooking ahead!)

Homemade rice milk (to use in parve recipes), apple raisin muffins, apple cookies, and apple cakes for Rosh Hashanah! All of this took me only one morning to cook and can easily serve many people for dessert.

A friend recently asked for some easy Rosh Hashanah dessert ideas. Of course there is the classic and inevitable honey cake.  Now, I personally don’t like honey cake.  Every one I taste seems dry and flavorless.  Usually I only like cakes overflowing with decadent chocolate or full of fruit.  But since this year I have to make my own honey cake, I turned to one of my favorite cooking blogs, Smitten Kitchen.  I made her recipe, which she got from Marcy Goldman, and it turned out to be delicious!  Next time I would cut the white sugar in half, but otherwise keep the recipe the same (we don’t like things TOO sweet).  However, taste tests reveal that even with all the other flavors inside, the cake STILL tastes like honey, with just enough spice to make it exciting. Yum! Check it out and try baking it yourself:  http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2008/09/majestic-and-moist-honey-cake/

Of course what goes with honey on Rosh Hashanah? Apples! Apples and honey! So you could always serve baked apples, but if that seems like the “easy” way out or you want something fancier, here are some good but easy ideas:

Apple cake is easy – here’s a recipe with good ratings.http://www.food.com/recipe/grated-apple-cinnamon-cake-183836 I like the ones with grated apple because I can just toss them through the food processor and not deal with chopping or slicing. I always double a recipe like this and use my grater blade for half the apples and my chipper blade for half (gives bigger chunks to bite into) but it’s not necessary if you don’t have a chipper blade. I haven’t tried this recipe yet, but I expect I will. I followed a different apple cake recipe last time and I can’t find it again.

You could also try making apple compote. I just peel & core all the apples & toss them with a splash of water into a pot on the stove and slow cook them, stirring occasionally. I use whatever apples I have lying around, but Granny Smiths are the best for baking (although because they are a bit more sour, you may need to add some sugar). (If you don’t feel up to messing with apples on the stove, you can just chuck a bowl in the microwave for 7 minutes or so – same effect, less time!)

Homemade apple strudel is easy to do with leftover or extra apple compote as filling and store-bought filo dough or puffed pastry dough.

Apple compote is really versatile, so you might want to make a LOT. Remember, apples cook down quite a lot! You can serve compote on its own or with some whipped cream. You can also use it as filling for apple strudel (use filo or puffed pastry dough – lay out one sheet, use a pastry brush to “paint” it with melted butter or margarine, fold in half lengthwise twice to form a long thin rectangle, put a spoonful of apple compote mixed with cinnamon & vanilla on the end, and fold it in triangles like a flag, paint the outside with butter, then bake on a tray in the oven).

Or use apple compote as a filling for apple pie! This is my grandmother’s recipe… YUM and easy!  http://caloriecount.about.com/memas-apple-pie-recipe-r1423869

I hope you enjoy these recipes.  There should be enough variety there to keep you enjoying a different dessert at every meal, but without having to overdo the cooking.

Shana tova and be’te avon!

Burial site of the Baal Shem Tov in Ukraine

The 18^th of Elul is the birthday of the Baal Shem Tov. The Baal Shem Tov is known as the founder of the Chassidic movement which started around 300 years ago. I have long been a fan of the Baal Shem Tovs teachings many which are widely accepted today amongst Jews though years ago were not the norm. Things like seeing divine providence in everything, though this was known in the past it was the Baal Shem Tov who made it tangible.

Seeing divine providence is a highlight of my travels. Many of my best travel stories which I enjoy telling over are about episodes of divine providence. A s Jews we don’t believe in coincidence, rather, it is G-d who is directing every single things that takes place in our universe.

It is interesting, because it was with divine providence that I ended p visiting the Ukraine a few years ago and subsequently the burial site of the Baal Shem Tov. It is a bit of a story which I’ll need to type up some other time, but for now I just wanted to share a photo of the burial site and remind everyone to celebrate the founder of Chassidt. And the best way to do it is of course through learning the teachings.

Burial site of the Baal Shem Tov in Ukraine

Parshas Ki Savo: We Jews Are All Connected

Growing up in North America there was always one regular feature of summertime life: block parties. A block party is when all the neighbors on a street gather together to share food, music, fun, and even fireworks. The kids run amok and the parents talked and got to know each other. It was a great community builder. But it no longer seems to exist.

Since moving to Adelaide, no neighbors have come knocking to greet us. If not for the Jewish community, how would people in the suburbs meet each other anymore! When I recently walked past a next-door neighbor parking her car and stopped to chat, I asked why this is. “I guess we’re all just scared,” came the reply. “Everybody keeps to themselves these days!”

This might be all well and good in the secular world, but it won’t work in the Jewish world. As Jews, we are all intimately connected. In this week’s parsha we are reminded of the blessings and the curses G-d will give us if we obey (or disobey) His commandments. We are blessed if we do G-d’s will and cursed if we do not.

Yet how many times do we see great rabbis and tzaddikim living in poverty? Many times, we see that those who are most righteous seem to lead a life with fewer blessings. And those of us who fail each day in our mission to do G-d’s will seem to be far more blessed than they are. It doesn’t seem to make any sense!

The fact is that we are all interconnected. When one does a mitzvah, it’s not just the individual doing it for himself – he’s doing it for the entire community, for all the Jews. There are many stories of entire communities being saved from divine punishments just because one person who lived there did such a mitzvah it saved the whole group. Those who are truly righteous people often “give up” their spiritual reward so that we, who are not so holy, can instead have the benefits.

We cannot live isolated like so many people in the Western world do today. We cannot hide in our homes watching TV with no idea who lives around us. We are Jews. And we are all connected.

Shabbat Shalom!

Read more on Parshas Ki Savo: Expressing Gratitude is Good for Your Health

Read more on Parshas Ki Savo: Giving Our Very Best for G-d