DAY 4
Sunday, August 23, 2020
Third Day of Elul 5780

The Hebrew word “t’shuvah,” which we usually translate as “repentance” actually comes from a Hebrew root that means “turn” or “return.” To “make t’shuvah” really means to return back to the path that you intend to walk in life. It does not mean that you have to become a different person (as if that were possible). Doing t’shuvah means finding a way to return to being yourself.

We all get derailed in life sometimes and find that we have become a different person from the person we would like to be. T’shuvah is our invitation to make a course correction in life, to turn, and to return to being the person we intend to be.

Practice for this day:
Think about the words that describe the fundamental qualities that describe who you really are. Let these be words that describe your deep nature – not the things you have achieved, the skills you have mastered, or the titles you have earned – but the words that describe who you have always been. For example, you may remember things that people have told you about yourself – times when people told you that you were “kind,” “energetic,” or “inquisitive.” Find the words that describe you at your best, and the things you like about yourself at your best, and write them.

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Day 3
Saturday, August 22, 2020
Second Day of Elul 5780
Shabbat Shoftim

Today is Shabbat, the most holy day in Jewish tradition. It is our day of rest and our day of joyfully feeling God’s presence all around us.

This particular Shabbat is called Shabbat Shoftim for the Torah portion we read today. The portion includes laws about warfare. One of the laws prohibits an attacking army from destroying their enemy’s fruit trees. The army is allowed to chop down other trees to build weapons to attack the city, but not the fruit trees. The Torah asks the rhetorical question, “Is a tree of the field a human being who can withdraw from you into the besieged city?” (Deuteronomy 20:19).

According to medieval Jewish commentators, this verse teaches us to have compassion for trees and the natural world. Under a principle called Bal Tashchit, (“You shall not destroy”), we are forbidden from the unnecessary destruction of natural resources. We are taught to treat the world with compassion and love. That commandment, of course, includes the requirement to treat other human beings lovingly, and also to treat ourselves lovingly. We are all a part of the natural world.

Practice for this day:
Take some time to think about the ways you treat the natural world around you. In what ways do you treat the world kindly by not wasting natural resources like water and energy? How do you love the earth by practicing recycling to make sure that resources are given another chance to be useful, instead of just being buried in a landfill? What other things could you do to treat nature with compassion?

Decide on one resolution for loving nature and treating it well. It could be something you have not done up until now that you would like to resolve to do from now on. Or, it could be something harmful you have done that you would like to resolve not to do again. Write down your resolution.


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DAY 2
Friday, August 21, 2020
First Day of Elul 5780
Rosh Chodesh Elul

In the story of the giving of the Ten Commandments, the Israelites all stand at the base of Mount Sinai and hear God’s voice from the mountaintop declare, “I am Adonai your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, the house of  bondage. You shall have no other gods beside Me” (Exodus 20:2-3). It is a foundational moment in the Jewish relationship with God.

We describe that relationship as a covenant – a two-way agreement. God pledges devotion to us and we pledge our devotion to God. The Ten Commandments and the Torah given at Mount Sinai are the foundation of that agreement. We strive to live up to our end of the deal by trying to live by God’s commandments and by being the best people we can be.

However, because we are human, we make mistakes. There are many different kinds of mistakes, but the most common Hebrew word for this kind of human failing is “cheit.” Fittingly, the word comes from a root that means “to miss the target.” When we make a mistake in our relationship with God, it is compared to an archer missing the bullseye. It is an error. It is something we can make up for by trying harder and learning to do better.

In English, we usually translate the word cheit as “sin,” and that is sometimes a problem. In English, “sin” sounds like something that requires a punishment, an offense that makes God angry. In Hebrew, not every cheit rises to that level. T’shuvah is the process for correcting our mistakes. It is not about feeling guilty for horrible things we have done that make God want to punish us. T’shuvah is about correcting our mistakes and renewing our covenant with God.

Practice for this day:
Think about some of the recent mistakes you may have made in life that make you feel badly – times when you hurt someone’s feelings or times when you were less than forthright. How would it feel if you could feel totally and completely forgiven for those mistakes? How would it feel if you were entirely forgiven for every mistake you had made in your life? That is what t’shuvah is about. It’s about releasing yourself from guilt and hard feelings you direct against yourself. It’s about correcting your tendencies to make the same mistakes over and over again. It’s about making a mid-flight course correction in your life that gets you going in the right direction.

Write a few words about the course corrections you would like to make in life and the feeling of forgiveness you would like to feel.


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DAY 1
Thursday, August 20, 2020
Thirtieth Day of Av 5780
Rosh Chodesh Elul

The first day of every month in the Hebrew calendar is a minor holiday called Rosh Chodesh, literally, “the head of the month.” Because the Hebrew calendar is based on lunar cycles, and because one lunar cycle is approximately 29-1/2 days, each Hebrew month has either 29 or 30 days. (There are no half days!) When a month has 30 days, we celebrate a new month on the 30th day and also on the next day, the first day of the next month. That is why today, the 30th day of the month of Av, is celebrated as the first day of Rosh Chodesh for the month of Elul.

The month of Elul is regarded in Jewish tradition as the beginning of the process of t’shuvah, the repentance that we strive to achieve as we approach the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

Medieval rabbis observed that the letters that spell Elul (אלול) stand for the Hebrew phrase “Ani l’dodi v’dodi li,” “I am my beloved and my beloved is mine.” The phrase is a quote from the biblical book Song of Songs (chapter 6, verse 3) and is understood in Jewish tradition as a statement about the relationship between God and the Jewish people. The rabbis also noted that the last letter of the word Elul in Hebrew is lamed, which has the numerical value of forty. From this, they stated that during the forty days that begin with Rosh Chodesh Elul and end with Yom Kippur, people should “bring their hearts near to their beloved God in t’shuvah knowing that God, in return, will accept their t’shuvah with love” (Mishnah Berurah 581).

Practice for this day:
On this minor holiday of Rosh Chodesh Elul, take some time to think of all the ways that love touches your life. Think about the people you love and the people who love you. Feel your heart swell with happiness and love as you think about them. Intentionally feel yourself wish goodness and wellbeing to the people you love; imagine how they, too, wish goodness and wellbeing upon you. Hold that feeling a few minutes and allow it to sink into every part of your mind, feel it physically in every corner of your body. Allow yourself to be comforted by the feeling of loving and being loved.

Let this feeling – and let the past and present loving relationships in your life – be the source of energy that will power you through the next forty days until Yom Kippur. As you work to seek forgiveness, make changes in yourself, and commit to being a better person, let this love sustain you and become your motivation to transform yourself.

Write down below the most important people in your life whom you love and who love you:

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There are 40 days from now to Yom Kippur – 40 days for us to make t'shuvah. 

Over the next 40 days, I will be posting on this blog a series of short daily reflections and teachings to help you prepare for the High Holy Days. I'm calling the project, 40 Days of T’shuvah.

The daily reflections are also a daily journal for you to write down your own thoughts and reflections to help you in the process of t’shuvah – making changes in your life for the better, returning to God, and repentance. You can print the daily reflections out as a physical journal to write in every day.

I'm starting today for.Rosh Chodesh Elul, the beginning of the Hebrew month of Elul, a minor holiday that is a traditional day to begin the process of t’shuvah in earnest. There will be reflections for every day through Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. I recommend that you make a set time during the day to read and reflect on each entry and to write your brief response. It should take no more than five to fifteen minutes a day. Many people find that the morning is the best time for this. 

Remember that a day in the Jewish calendar begins and ends at sunset. If you choose to do this practice at night, do it on the date before the secular date at the top of each page.

You may find that the reflections and written responses are very personal. You don’t need to share what you have written with anyone. Think of this practice as you would think of a diary, a place to write personal reflection, a book to be kept in a private place, something for you alone.

The intention of the questions and suggested practices are to gently guide you toward deeper understanding of yourself and to motivate you toward making positive changes to help you find deeper happiness. It is not, by any means, meant as a substitute for therapy. If you find the questions and practices are bringing up painful or disquieting thoughts or emotions, please consider seeking the help of a qualified professional.

You will notice that there are only three lines for your written responses on each day. This is by design. You don’t need to write an essay. It is sufficient to jot down a few ideas that will help you to solidify your thoughts and intentions, and to give you a way to remember your responses when you review your progress every ten days.

What should you do if you forget a day or fall behind? Just continue with the present day. If you want to go back to read reflections for days you missed, you certainly may do so, but don’t allow that to become a hindrance to continuing. The most important thing is to make some progress right now – in the present moment. You will have your whole life ahead of you to do more.