Ki Tavo 2010

There are, in the Jewish religion, a few special Shabbatot during the year. You all know about Shabbat Shuvah, the Shabbat of Turning, between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and Shabbat haGadol, the Great Shabbat, right before Passover. There are others as well, like Shabbat Shira, the Shabbat of Song, when we read of the parting of the Sea of Reeds, and Shabbat Chodesh, whenever Shabbat falls on a new moon.

But the reason I talk about Shabbat Shuvah and Shabbat haGadol is because those are traditionally the only two Shabbatot when a sermon was given. Sermons were given then because the rabbi had to impart a vital message. On Shabbat Shuvah the message was ‘Don’t forget to fast on Yom Kippur,” and on Shabbat haGadol the message was “Don’t forget to stop eating chometz on Passover.”

If I were in charge of Judaism, I would have added a third Shabbat on which the rabbi gave a sermon, just as important as the other two. On this Shabbat, two Shabbatot before Rosh Hashanah, the rabbi would give a sermon. Not about repenting of your sins, of doing teshuvah. The rabbis would have assumed that is much on everyone’s mind already. The entire month of Elul we have been doing cheshbon nefesh, an accounting of the spirit. Traditional Jews heard the shofar blown every morning during Elul, and if that didn’t remind them to do teshuvah, there is always Slichot, a special service of penitential prayers after the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah. We will be having our Slichot service next Saturday at 9:00 PM.

So what would my special Shabbat be for? It is vital that we not only do cheshbon nefesh, but that we also take action before the High Holidays. Our Torah portion this week instructs us to take the first fruits of our produce to the Temple in Jerusalem, to thank Gd for bringing us to the Promised Land. That is no longer possible. But we are also told to bring a tithe, ten percent of your produce, that belongs to Gd, and to give it to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless and the widow. 

In other words, those who have no land, who have no income, who have no support system. Those are the people who are guests, as it were, at Gd’s table. You have been asked to provide for them. Would you let them go hungry? As Rav Assi said in the Talmud, Charity equals in importance all the other precepts combined.

It has always been a tradition to give tzedakah before the High Holy days. To give is to show that you are sincere in your desire to live a better life. We usually give too much weight to the material side of our lives and not enough to the spiritual. Tzedakah is about reversing that equation. We should care a little less about our financial well being and a little more about our spiritual well being. As Rabbi Israel Salanter said, instead of caring about our stomachs, and other people’s souls,  we should care about our souls, and other people’s stomachs. We should follow the commandments of the Eternal our Gd. 

To be generous of spirit is not a matter of kindness. Remember that צדק means justice, not charity. To be generous of spirit is to recognize that all things come from Gd. We are the beneficiaries of Gd’s gifts. Do we realize this? Do we admit it? Those who brought their first fruits to the Temple did. 

To recognize our indebtedness to Gd is the very first step to teshuvah. For your sake, for the sake of your relationship with Gd, I urge everyone to give generously to those less fortunate before the High Holidays begin. The person who gives tzedakah before the High Holidays is like someone who has made a reservation at a popular restaurant. The person who does not give tzedakah is like a person who decides at the last minute that he wants to go to the restaurant. 

Make your reservations! Recognize that what you have has only been lent to you. It is not the work of our hands that causes Gd to accept our teshuvah, but that we realize from whence our wealth has come, and where it must go. This is a vital part of preparation for the high holidays. Please prepare not only your heart and soul for Rosh Hashanah, but your wallet as well.