​YOM KIPPUR 5780: REFRAINING FROM DESPAIR

 
G’mar Tov.
 
The Torah reading on Yom Kippur recounts the service of Aharon, the High Priest, on the day of Yom Kippur.  The ritual involved casting out a goat into the wilderness – the original scapegoat – along with an elaborate procedure for lighting incense and the sacrifice of a second goat.  The service of the High Priest on Yom Kippur was fraught with great portent and peril.  The Torah states that a Kohen Gadol who failed to execute the service with exact precision, did so at the risk of death. 
 
Behind this storylies an even more difficult one.  The Torah portion is from the parsha “Acharei Mot” – which means, “after the death”.  G-d’s instructions to Aharon, and his carrying out of the Yom Kippur ritual, occurred directly after the tragic death of two of Aharon’s sons, Nadav and Avihu, who died after committing a tragic error while performing religious service.

It is impossible to read of the service of Aharon Hakohen without being stuck by compassion for what he was undertaking.  Still in grief for his two sons, still required to lead the worship of the Jewish people, Aharon undertakes to attain Hashem’s atonement to the people at his own danger.  It is perhaps no wonder that he became known and beloved as the Pursuer of Peace and Beloved Guide of the people.  Even more so than Moshe Rabbeinu his brother, Aharon epitomized chesed and rachamim – kindness and grace – for the Jewish people.


The  Priestly ritual on Yom Kippur was done in order “l’khaper”, to atone, for the Jewish people and their transgressions.  While the great responsibility lay with the High Priest to enact the atonement ritual, the responsibility for atonement lay with the entire people of Israel.  The people were instructed to cease all labours and “afflict their souls”, which according to the Sages signified fasting, among other deprivations.


For Aharon the Kohen Gadol, and indeed for the High Priest for generations to come, inscription in the Book of Life was not taken for granted.  The Yom Kippur ritual was fraught with danger, symbolizing the grave danger that hung over the Jewish people at this time of year.
 
Today, despite the gravity of the liturgy, we do not directly face the imminent presence of death on Yom Kippur.*  (*Note: This D’var Torah was written prior to the shooting of two people outside of a synagogue in Halle, Germany, during Yom Kippur services on October 9, 2019.)  Today, the 10th of Tishrei 5780, finds our community here in Calgary generally living in physical safety.  Our community is a prosperous one, where housing and food are available to us.  Despite our historical awareness of the threats of antisemitism, we do not encounter mortal danger in our daily lives as Jews.  Our issues are beyond those of mere survival.  We engage in activities for personal and communal prosperity; for spiritual engagement and fulfilment; for the strengthening of our health and safety; and for the pursuit of happiness.
 
Given these blessings, it may seem mere neurosis to occupy ourselves with troubles beyond the scope of our everyday lives, which can be challenging enough as is.  Nonetheless, this community takes on bigger challenges willingly.  We have people who are active in a range of social, political, health and economic causes, as well as strengthening the Jewish people and Israel.  We as Jews do not take our own or our society’s well-being for granted; we consider it a sacred charge to go beyond our own lives to help those of others.
 
In recent years, I personally have taken a great interest in matters related to climate change.  I appreciate that this is a cause that not everyone in this community aligns with.  My interest in environment and climate matters stems from my given scientific perspective, with a belief that scientific knowledge and pursuits can transcend political parties and polarization, and a faith in our capacity as humans to effect change.

I am aware that, especially in the time of a Canadian federal election, the prioritization of one cause over another can suggest partisan leanings.  Whether a person prioritizes economic growth, community safety, preservation of heritage, women’s rights, personal liberty, indigenous rights, or climate can in turn influence the political parties they align with.  I wish to emphasize that it is not my intention to favour one party or another.  There is no one cause that is sacrosanct above all others, and indeed we make our choices informed by a balance of interests.  I share my particular interest in climate, to illustrate lessons that apply across the broad variety of interests in which our congregation is engaged in.  These lessons apply as fully to matters regarding health, public safety, economy, human rights & Zionism.
 
Recently, in an argument with a friend about the validity of a particular article related to climate change, she shared with me a religious insight that helps inform my perspective.  She pointed out how in G-d’s covenant with Noah, Hashem promised not to destroy the world.  In this covenant, and later in the covenant with Avraham, G-d granted us to be fruitful and multiply, to populate the Earth, to live in and watch over it. 

A sceptic might scoff and reject the notion of a divine covenant as archaic.  Yet there is important insight to be gained.  Despite the fearful rhetoric around climate or other causes, there is no point in regarding our existence on this planet as doomed.  Humanity is meant to exist and proliferate. 
 
Fear is no reason to refrain from doing the work of growing our world.
 
On the afternoon of Yom Kippur, we read the Book of Jonah, the reluctant prophet.  Jonah warns the people of Nineveh that they will be destroyed by G-d – yet they repent, change their ways, and the divine wrath was averted.  When Jonah grew angry about this – how dare Hashem change their mind and save this once-wicked people? – Hashem reminds Jonah of the divine desire to preserve human and even animal life.  And more importantly, we learn about our capacity to effect dramatic change and turn around our society’s very fortune.

Another important religious learning from Yom Kippur that can be applied to our pursuit of important causes, is to refrain from despair. No matter how grave we perceive a situation, we believe Hashem’s presence is somewhere at hand, ready to sustain us, in compassion.  Rather than throw our hands up in defeat and despair, we as Jews choose somehow to discern meaning in the trials we face.  My memory is seared with the image and sound of the Jewish survivors of Bergen-Belsen, upon liberation by British troops, breaking spontaneously into the refrain of Hatikvah – the hope. 
 
There is a difference between anxiety, grief, and struggle on the one hand, and despair on the other.  There are times in our lives where we may find ourselves feeling broken.  In reference to the words of the Shema, The disciple asks the rebbe, “Why does Torah tell us to ‘place these words upon your hearts? Why does it not tell us to place these holy words in our hearts?”  The rebbe answers: “It is because as we are, our hearts are closed, and we cannot place the holy words in our hearts. So we place them on top of our hearts. And there they stay until, one day, the heart breaks, and the words fall in.”
 
Yom Kippur is a day that epitomizes that brokenness.  Sometimes our reality is shattered, and a new one emerges.  Yom Kippur reminds us that such shattering does not mean the end of hope – rather, the beginning of a new one.
And in this new light, we come back to the epitome of Yom Kippur.  As announced by Isaiah in the Haftarah for Yom Kippur morning, G-d does not seek merit in the suffering of our fasting.  Rather the prophet conveys the following message from G-d:  “No, this is the fast I desire: … It is to share your bread with the hungry, And to take the wretched poor into your home; When you see the naked, to clothe him, And not to ignore your own kin… If you banish oppression from your midst, and evil speech,  And you offer your compassion … Then you can seek the favor of the LORD. I will set you astride the heights of the earth, And let you enjoy the heritage of your father Jacob— For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
 
Whatever it is that inspires and guides you in this world, may Yom Kippur be a time to access the very vulnerability that strengthens us.  May you find in Hashem the strength to sustain you above worldly challenges.  And may you be inspired by the ideals of Tefilah, Teshuva and Tzedakah to discover strength, hope and a happy, healthy New Year in the book of life in 5780.