Apple Dipped in Honey: For a Sweet New Year! - Jews in Green

TheTen Days ofTeshuvahNATIONALLiberator.IDawn onYom Kippur at theWesternWallspiritually developed, is limited by thevery fact of his humanity. Ourthoughts and our feelings, as well asour bodies and physical desires,reflect the limitations inherent increation. Teshuvah allows us to riseabove these limitations and establishcontact with the unbounded potentialof our G-dly essence. This, in turn, liftsthe totality of our experience to ahigher rung. Whatever our previouslevel of divine service, teshuvah canintroduce us to a new and higherplane of spiritual awareness andcapacity.For this reason, our Sages teach that“perfect tzaddikim (righteous men)cannot stand in the place of a baalteshuvah.” For teshuvah reveals theinfinite G-dly spark within our soulsand connects us to G-d at a levelabove even the most sublime levels ofdivine service.Recalculating Our MeritsDefining teshuvah as “return” ratherthan “repentance” also sheds light onthe meaning of a problematicTalmudic passage. Our Sages statethat through teshuvah, all our pasttransgressions, even thosecommitted intentionally, aretransformed into merits.We canappreciatet h a trepentanceerases alltraces of thepast, and thatG-d forgivesour sins andallows us tostart anew. Buthow canrepentancetransform thesin itself, anact performedin defiance ofG-d's will, into a positive deed? Sinseparates a Jew from G-d. How can itbecome part of a process ofconnection?These questions are valid if we viewteshuvah as repentance, anopportunity for a new beginning.When we conceive of teshuvah as areturn to our true selves, however,these difficulties are resolved.A Jew is never separate from G-d, evenwhen he sins, because thefundamental spiritual bond whichlinks us to G-d is so strong that evenwhen a conscious relationshipappears to have been severedthrough sin, the inner connection isunaffected and continues to propel ustoward teshuvah.Distance Arouses DesireBecause our connection with G-d isalways intact, sin, as an act ofseparation, may itself provide theimpetus for our fundamental G-dlynature to surface. The feeling of beingoutwardly cut off from G-d may arousea thirst for a more intense bond withHim.Though every sinful act is a directrebellion against G-d's desires, whenconsidered as a phase in aprogression leading to teshuvah, sincan be seen as a motivating force,directing a person to establish adeeper and more powerfulrelationship with G-d. In fact, theconnection with G-d establishedthrough teshuvah is more profoundand more intense than thatexperienced beforehand.All-Encompassing OnenessEvery element of our world exists forthe fundamental purpose of revealingG-dliness. Certain elements ofcreation reveal G-dliness overtly;other elements reveal G-d'sOmnipresence indirectly. Forexample, the observance of mitzvosstraightforwardly demonstrates thatthe material can be joined in a bond ofoneness with G-d. The cycle of sin andteshuvah unfolds the ultimate truth ofG-dliness, but in a different manner.When a person first sins and thenfeels motivated to reject this behavior,these two steps, taken together, serveas a powerful affirmation of G-dliness,demonstrating that nothing, not evensin, can stand in the way of man'sconnection to G-d. The sinner's act ofreturn shows the infinite power of hisG-dly soul, and reveals how it willovercome all obstacles in its naturaldrive for self-expression.The unique bond with G-d establishedthrough teshuvah has repercussionsfar beyond an individual's personalsphere. As the Rambam states,“Israel will be redeemed only throughteshuvah. The Torah has promisedthat ultimately Israel will returntowards the end of her exile, andimmediately she will be redeemed.”May this take place in the immediatefuture.Adapted from Likkutei Sichos,Vol. II, ShabbosShuvah;Vol. V, Parshas Lech Lecha15VOL. XII NO. 1ELUL 5767-TISHREI 5768 / FALL 200715