BackLeading the Charge
By: Rabbi Dr. Abraham Unger
Rosh HaShanah commemorates the creation of Adam HaRishon, the first human being. Just as Adam was formed, so too we are able to recreate ourselves every year. Our possibilities as individuals are endless. But with that great potential inherent in each of us comes a deep responsibility. Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik reminds us that it is our task as human beings to engage with the world and improve it. In the words of Rabbi Walter S. Wurzburger, one of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s earliest students, we are charged with the obligation to “enhance human welfare.” If we all take teshuva (spiritual return) seriously, then society naturally improves, because each of us has individually worked hard to become a better person.
If all this is already obvious from the nature of this Yom HaDin (Day of Judgment) and the theme of teshuva, what then is the purpose of the Shofar blasts? Why do we need them? Rambam famously explains that the Shofar’s screeching sound is intended to wake us up and inspire us to rejuvenate our souls. Rabbi Moshe M. Eisemann of Yeshivat Ner Yisrael amplifies this theme. In commenting on the Torah’s use of “chatzotzrot“, which were trumpets also associated with Rosh HaShanah, Rabbi Eisemann explains that these trumpets’ calls signify “a memory to come before HaShem, and it is in the zechut (merit) of this memory that we will be saved” on this Yom HaDin. We recall the depth of our relationship with the Ribbono Shel Olam, the Master of the Universe, and are called to spiritual action.
Permit me one additional insight into this idea of awakening memory on Rosh HaShanah. The memories that form us also come from those who came before us. I recall my grandmother trembling during this season, summoning all of the strength in her just-under 5-foot frame to gird herself for the year ahead. She was a Brooklyn native who never stopped building for the Jewish future. Her family founded one of America’s first yeshivot that offered the highest levels of both Judaic and general studies. My memories of Shabbatot and Chagim with her and other family members from previous generations not only drive me forward, but also make me responsible for tomorrow. As much as we are blessed by Zechut Avot, the merit of our ancestors, we have a duty to carry it forward and lead the charge. Rosh HaShanah is a gift, but one we must also earn.