“Warming Up”

I used to be very impressed when I went to the pool and watched young swimmers dive into the water, then immediately sprint to the other end. But as I trained with my masters teams, I came to realize how foolhardy that really was. I learned the importance of stretching and doing a thorough warm-up, and then building throughout my workout, saving the most strenuous exercise for near the end. I found that I could do some pretty decent swimming myself with the proper preparation and pacing.

And so it is with worship. To pray in a way that allows us to search our souls, listen for God's presence, and express what is in our hearts takes preparation and pacing. Our liturgy was designed with this in mind, but I find that we often succumb to the pressures of our busy world and attempt to dive right in and "get to the point" immediately. Just like the quick swim, it may feel okay, but it fails to provide the long-term benefits of well-paced prayer.

Never is this more true than on the High Holy Days. During this long season surrounding the New Year, we are challenged to examine our lives, our relationships with each other, and our relationship with God. Yes, we are created in the Divine image; but have we nurtured that spark of the divine within ourselves? Have we brought holiness into our everyday lives and into the world around us? This is difficult, personal work that takes time, patience and persistence. And our liturgy helps us throughout the process . . . if we are open to it.

Our time of preparation begins with the month of Elul, the month that precedes the New Year. Rosh Chodesh Elul (the beginning of the month of Elul) occurred on Friday, August 29th. This is a time for us to give thoughtful consideration to the year that is coming to an end. What did we do to make our lives and the lives of those around us better? And what did we do that prevented us from fulfilling our divine potential? How might we live differently during the year to come? Our Shabbat services during these weeks will be marked with special prayers and music, designed to challenge and support us as we begin this process of self-examination.

The week before Rosh Hashanah is the observance of S'lichot - the offering of our first prayers for forgiveness. This beautiful service occurs the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah. It is a time for quiet contemplation and the first melodies of the High Holy Days. It ends with the sounding of the shofar, which is a wake-up call to repent and return to the ways God has shown us. This year, the service will be preceded by a program offered by our clergy staff to help us prepare for the holidays. Rabbi Schindler will talk about the lessons of the Torah readings for the holidays; I will introduce some of the special melodies and prayers; and Rabbi Barras will explore the meaning of t'shuvah: the process by which we seek to return to God. These short study sessions are designed to help each of us understand better the varied and complex themes of the holidays, and aid us in the soul-searching journey they demand.

Rosh Hashanah serves a dual purpose. Just like our secular New Year, it is a time for celebration and thanksgiving. And also like our secular New Year, it is a time to look back at the year gone by and express our hopes for the year to come. But unlike our January celebration, it provides a path for reflection, repentance and change. Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the Ten Days of Repentance. During this time we are to ask forgiveness from those whom we have wronged - intentionally or inadvertently - during the past year. The many blasts of the shofar which end our Rosh Hashanah morning service call us to action and change.

Yom Kippur is the culmination of this time of reflection and repentance. After weeks of self-examination, the multiple repetitions of the Vidui - confessional prayers - combined with the day-long fast help us to come face to face with ourselves and with God as we commit ourselves to living a better life. During the afternoon, we express our hopes that, through repentance and forgiveness, we and the world we live in might find healing and new purpose in the path God has set before us. With the final sounding of the shofar, we go forth, cleansed and spiritually refreshed, to a new year of holiness.

Healed and refreshed, our celebrations continue as we give thanks to God for all our blessings during the holiday of Sukkot. Our joy culminates as we rejoice in God's greatest gift to us - the gift of Torah - on the Festival of Simchat Torah.

The holiday season is a long and uplifting journey that begins now with thoughtful preparation. May each of us set aside the time for quiet reflection and contemplation as we prepare to come into God's presence as a community in prayer.

B’shalom,
Andrew Bernard
Cantor