Repentance      Prayer          Charity

צדקה          ​​תפילה               תשובה   

Teshuvah            Tefillah       Tzedakah

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Those three words "Repentance, Prayer, and Charity" are etched in my memory. I can remember, as a child, reading those words during the seminal prayer of Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur: the Unetaneh Tokef. Those three words are the three words used in the Gates of Repentance translation for the line,

 

.וּתְשׁוּבָה וּתְפִלָּה וּצְדָקָה מַעֲבִירִין אֶת רֹעַ הַגְּזֵרָה

 

The full line reads: "But repentance, prayer, and charity avert the evil decree."

 

Indeed, they do. But what does that mean?

 

As I came to study and appreciate Hebrew more, I came to realize that those three English words are a fine translation - but in many ways they are insufficient and need some 'unpacking.'

 

The evil decree is the harsh fate that awaits us - for things beyond our control or as a result of poor decisions. But repentance, prayer, and charity AVERT ... they move, shift, TRANSFORM (aha - that's a better translation) what is beyond our control.

 

Repentance (teshuvah) is about turning from our wrong-doing and repairing what we are able - then changing our ways;

 

Prayer (tefillah) is about using our hearts, souls, minds to imagine, dream, and stand in humility and gratitude;

 

Charity (tzedakah) is ... well, charity is not the best word here because charity is borne out of love. Tzedakah is done because it is the right/just thing to do. Thus, tzedakah is perhaps better translated as: bringing balance, fairness, justice to the world.

 

And so teshuvah, tefillah, and tzedakah are the goal to transform the ill-effects of deeds done, consequences established, and the unavoidable being implemented.

 

To use a very simple metaphor: If I damage my neighbor's car because I was a little too aggressive with my new chain saw and my tree inadvertently fell on his car ... he'll probably have a lot less anger directed at me when I give him my car to use for the week while his is repaired. I can avert his "evil decree" by proactively seeking forgiveness, repairing what I can, and bringing the car keys ... with some rugelach, too, because that never hurts.

 

Judaism demands and pushes us beyond doing just "the right thing" as it demands that we think beyond ourselves and create, support, and maintain community. Repentance, prayer, and charity are about reaching in, reaching to God, and reaching out. You cannot be a fully actualized Jew on a deserted island. But you sure can be one in Litchfield County or literally - wherever two Jews meet.

 

There will be hard, and at times: horrific, events that occur. God knows. 5784 had some of the worst atrocities our people have known in a long while. But it is the overwhelming acts of teshuvah, tefilah, and tzedakah that have given us the coping mechanisms, the resilience, the strength, and the hope to carry forward into the New Year as we have reached in, to, and beyond.

 

I wish you all a sweet and a healthy new year with much blessing for yourselves, your loved ones, and our sacred community based from our little shteibl along the scenic Housatonic.

 

Shanah tovah umetukah,

 

Rabbi Mark Cohn

rabbicohn@tsholom.org

 

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You will find 'hidden' links around this email. If a word is in bold, the word is also hyperlink to a related topic, suggestion, or source to learn more (see above, particularly, with links to Hadar, Tablet, and New Milford Food Pantry). As always, be in touch if you have questions!!