יד יוסף: Ki Taytse / High Holidays

The High Holiday season extends from Rosh Hodesh Elul until Shmini Atzeret on the 22^nd of Tishre. This includes Rosh Hashana (New Year), the Fast of Gedalia, Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), Succos (Huts), and Shmini Atzeres (Assembly on the Eighth) which is partially Sukkot and partially a holiday on its own. Rosh Hashana is fundamentally a happy holiday because it marks a fresh start with a new year with its associated hopes along with reflections on past pleasant memories. Likewise Succos is a joyous holiday when the journey to the land of Israel is reenacted with a celebration of its bountiful harvest.

Yom Kippur, however, dominates this season because of the overwhelming importance of its themes of apology and forgiveness. For weeks penitential poems are said in synagogue. They essentially comprise the entire service of Yom Kippur which effectively lasts all day. They are also the bulk of the Rosh Hashana liturgy which lasts for hours.

It is traditional to say Psalm 27 during this period. This choice tends to be puzzling because it does not greatly deal with repentance. The commentaries quote the first verse saying, “The Lord is my light”, is an allusion to Rosh Hashanah, “And my salvation” alludes to Yom Kippur. In addition it says, “He will shelter me in his Sukkah” and the word, “had it not (לולא) spells “Elul” backwards. The theme of the psalm is the confidence of King David that he will be rescued from his distress because of his all-encompassing desire to “dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to see the serenity of Hashem and to visit His inner sanctuary”, (ibid 4). This desire though is also a reason to justify a request for G-d’s forgiveness.

Typically in Jewish thought repentance requires five elements: accepting that the deed was immoral, discontinuing the errant behavior, remorse, making restitution, and apologizing. There are four degrees of forgiveness. The smallest sins are forgiven immediately upon request. The worst sins are forgiven only by the death of the sinner. Light intermediate sins are forgiven during the general season of forgiveness on Yom Kippur, and more serious violations will require suffering as well.

Psalm 51 is a major penitential poem. King David wrote it as an apology to G-d for his adultery with Bathsheba and his murder of Uriah the Hittite. With the exception of the Abarbanel, the major Jewish commentaries bring the rationale from the Talmud (Shabbos 56a) that Bathsheva was divorced and Uriah was guilty of treason. However because David took the matter into his own hands, when he should have placed it before the Sanhedrin, it was reckoned as if he actually committed these crimes, especially when his greatness is considered. The simple understanding of the Tanakh is that it was as bad as it sounds. One can see though the greatness of Hashem that He forgave David even for these horrible crimes and the greatness of David in that he really begged for forgiveness.

In Psalm 51 the first thing David does is admit his wrong doing. Next he requests mercy in the way a person would make an appeal to an offended loved one. He then asks to be cleansed of his offence and have the proper path instilled in all aspects of his being. He specifically requests a pure heart and the proper spirit. He states that he is crushed by feelings of guilt from this experience. He recognizes that retributions may come because of his evil. Never the less he will celebrate if he is forgiven.

HaKadosh Baruch Hu chastises King David for scorning His word. The idea is that hatred of religion is a very serious offence against G-d, and is likely to draw harsh reactions from heaven. Conversely love of G-d is such a strong merit that it will allow even the most heinous of actions to be totally forgiven.

לע"נ הדוד לייב הערש בן אהרן ז"ל נלב"ע יז תמוז תשמ"ב

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