Rosh Hashanah Text for Jewish Meditation

“Abraham was one,” means that Abraham popularized the concept of G-d’s unity into the world. This concept was actually introduced on the first day of the seventh month, the day of Adam’s creation. Upon his creation, on Rosh Hashanah, Adam, declared to the entire universe, “G-d is King. He has garbed Himself with grandeur,” (Psalm 93:1) “Come, let us prostrate ourselves and bow down; let us bend our knees before G-d our Maker.” (Psalm 95:6) Every Rosh Hashanah, the unity of G-d is reintroduced into the world - the role of Abraham.

(Abridged and adapted from a Chassidic discourse of the

Lubavitcher Rebbe, Sefer HaMa’amarim, 5730, p. 1-5)

“The first day of the seventh month shall be a calling of holiness [a sacred holiday] to you when you may not do any mundane work. It shall be a day of sounding the [ram’s] horn.” (Numbers 29:1)

The Midrash states::

“The first [echad] day of the month” refers to [the Patriarch] Abraham, as it says: “Abraham was one [echad].” (Ezekiel 33:24)

“A calling of holiness” refers to Jacob, as it says, “Listen to me Jacob and Israel the one whom I called.” (Isaiah 48:12)

“A day of sounding the horn” refers to Isaac, as it says “And he saw and behold there was a ram.” (Genesis, 22:13)

We must understand the order of the Patriarchs in the Midrash. The chronological order of the Patriarchs is: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Why does the Torah preface the words “a calling of holiness” that is a reference to Jacob, before the words “a day of sounding” that is a reference to Isaac?

We must also understand why the Midrash identifies the “seventh month” with the patriarchs. Don’t we mention the patriarchs several times every day? What is the specific connection between Rosh Hashanah and the Patriarchs?

“Abraham was one,” means that Abraham popularized the concept of G-d’s unity into the world. As the Torah states that Abraham “called out there in the name of G-d, G-d [of the] universe.” (Genesis 21:33) It does not say G-d of the universe, but just “G-d universe, “ to underscore that the universe itself is not distinct from G-d, but is itself a manifestation of G-d.

This concept was actually introduced on the first day of the seventh month, the day of Adam’s creation. Upon his creation, on Rosh Hashanah, Adam, declared to the entire universe, “G-d is King. He has garbed Himself with grandeur,” (Psalm 93:1) “Come, let us prostrate ourselves and bow down; let us bend our knees before G-d our Maker.” (Psalm 95:6) Every Rosh Hashanah, the unity of G- d is reintroduced into the world - the role of Abraham.

Summary: Question is raised as to why Rosh Hashanah is identified with the Patriarchs, in the order of: Abraham, Jacob and Isaac. Abraham represents the introduction of G-d’s unity to the world.

The word Jacob, rearranged, forms the word Yibaka, as in the verse “then your light shall break through [yibaka] as the dawn.” (Isaiah 58:8) According to the Zohar, this verse was originally said by Jacob.

The concept of “breaking through” is the process of breaking through the tzimzum [the G-d made barrier which prevents the G-dly light from overwhelming the universe].

This means that on Rosh Hashanah we are capable of reaching a level of Divine energy, so powerful and transcendent that it pierces through the tzimzum.

Because this light is beyond the tzimzum, it can therefore penetrate and permeate the entire universe. This is a more advanced state than Abraham. Abraham, in spite of his ability to introduce the Divine light into the world, could not permeate the world with this light. By contrast, the light that Jacob introduced was fully internalized and distributed evenly to all levels.

The rationale for Jacob’s ability to permeate the world is based on the verse: “give truth [Shabbos] to Jacob.” The meaning of Shabbos is that it is consistent and can extend to every level equally. No barrier stands in the way of Shabbos.

This is the deeper meaning of “a calling of holiness.” The Zohar associates the word “holiness” [kodesh, as opposed to the word kadosh, which contains the elongated letter vav, that connotes holiness that is of a diminished nature, having been filtered by the process of tzimzum, that can therefore be extended and made accessible to the lower levels of existence], with a measure of G-dly light that is independent and transcendent.

On Rosh Hashanah, Jacob’s characteristic of invoking the most transcendent light of Hashem, enabling it to pierce through every barrier, is dominant. We are thus capable of “calling” and inviting even this level of holiness called “kodesh.”

With the passage of each year this process becomes even more pronounced, in light of the Alter Rebbe’s explanation that every year, on Rosh Hashanah, a new light is introduced into the world; an unprecedented light, that was not in evidence even during the period of the first Temple in its prime!

Summary: Jacob represents the attribute of truth and the transcendent light of G-d that penetrates and permeates.

“A day of sounding” refers to Isaac. In the Torah there is a contradiction: In one verse it refers to the day as “a day of sounding the horn,” in another verse it says, “a remembrance of sounding the horn.” The answer is that when Rosh Hashanah coincides with the Shabbos we only remember the Shofar. And even though the restriction of sounding the Shofar on the Shabbos is of a rabbinical nature, the Torah suggests that when Rosh Hashanah does occur on a Shabbos, the shofar is only a “remembrance” or a “glimmer” of its original role. Why is this so?

The word for sounding [teruah: broken sound] is representative of gevuros, severity, judgment. Shabbos is mystically the time when all judgment and severity is neutralized. This is the characteristic of Isaac, whose name derives from the word laughter and delight and yet, Isaac personified gevurah. The power of delight can sweeten severity and judgment. When severity is sweetened with kindness, the power of kindness is even stronger than it is by itself. Then the flow of kindness is in a manner of gevurah, with force. Indeed, the alternative spelling of Isaac in Hebrew, Yischak, is reference to the intensified flow of kindness to be inaugurated in the future Messianic Age, as is stated, “then we will fill our mouths with laughter [schok].”

Isaac’s contribution thus goes beyond those of Abraham and Jacob, because it is Isaac who represents the forceful flow of kindness.

Summary: Isaac represents the intensified flow of kindness that derives from the “sweetening of the judgments through kindness.”

From the book Light from the Future: Rosh Hashanah by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.