SPEECH FOR R"H
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HAVE YOU EVER FOUND YOURSELF UNDER SO MANY PRESSURES THAT IT FEELS AS IF,
HOWEVER HOW HARD YOU WORK YOU JUST CAN'T KEEP UP, JUST WHEN YOU THINK YOU FINISHED YOUR DAY'S WORK, THERE IS ANOTHER CALL, ANOTHER TASK,
JUST WHEN YOU GOT HOME ABOUT TO RELAX, THERE IS ANOTHER EMAIL DEMANDING IMMEDIATE ATTENTION!
SOMETIMES YOU CAN BE SO BUSY MAKING A LIVING, THAT YOU HARDLY HAVE TIME TO LIVE!
THAT, ACCORDING TO MAINONEDIS, IS WHAT THE SHOFAR IN ROSH HASHANAH ALL ABOUT.
IT IS A WAKE UP CALL SAYING:
STOP FOR A MOMENT AND OPEN YOUR EYES TO WHAT YOU ARE DOING!
AND ASK YOURSELF: IS THAT REALLY THE WAY TO SPEND THE LIFE?
TRAVELING SO FAST THAT YOU NEVER HAVE TIME TO ENJOY THE VIEW!
LIFE, THAT IS THE KEY WORD OF THE HOLIEST DAYS OF THE JEWISH YEAR!
LISTEN TO THIS ONE SENTENCE WE REPEATEDLY SAY FROM ROSH HASHANAH UNTIL YOM KIPPUR:
" ZOCHENU LAHAYIM "
" REMEMBER US FOR LIFE O KING WHO DELIGHTS IN LIFE, INSCRIBE US IN THE BOOK OF LIFE, FOR YOUR SAKE, O G"D OF LIFE "
LIFE IN JUDAISM, IS G"D GREATEST GIFT. THE ONE HE GIVES TO EACH OF US IN EQUAL TERMS!
BECAUSE, HOWEVER RICH WE ARE, HOWEVER POWER OR SUCCESSFUL,
THERE IS STILL ONLY 24 HOURS A DAY, 7 DAYS IN A WEEK, IN A SPAN OF A YEAR, THAT'S ALL TOO SHORT!
THE SHOFAR, ACCORDING TO MAIMONEDIS, IS G"D's WAY TO SAY TO EACH OF US:
" DO YOU WANT ANOTHER YEAR OF LIFE ?
WELL,
HOW DID YOU USE THE YEAR I GAVE YOU LAST? DID YOU JUST SPENT IT,
OR,
DID YOU JUST USE IT WELL? THAT's THE QUESTION!
I THINK THAT IS WHAT MAIMONIDES WAS HINTING, THAT WHAT PEOPLE HAVE ALWAYS DONE AND WILL ALWAYS BE DOING TODAY:
WE MISTAKE THE MEANS FOR THE END, WE FOCUS ON THE HOW BUT NOT THE WHY!
LET ME SHARE WITH YOU A SHORT STORY OF THIS RABBI WHO TOOK A YEAR OUT TO CONTEMPLATE THE STATE OF THE UNIVERSE!
AFTER HE REACHED HIS CONCLUSION HE LOOKED UP AT HEAVEN AND SAID:
" RIBONEI SHEL OLAM " " MASTER OF THE UNIVERSE "
" LIFE IS GOOD! " BUT TELL ME MASTER OF THE UNIVERSE:
IF THINGS ARE SO GOOD, HOW COME THEY ARE SO BAD???
THE BEST ANSWER I CAN GIVE: IS THAT WE KEEP MISTAKEN THE MEANS FOR THE END!
WE CONCENTRATE SO HARD ON THE JOURNEY THAT WE FORGET WHERE WE ARE TRYING TO GET TO!
THE SHOFAR ON ROSH HASHANAH IS G"D's CALL REMINDING US , WHY WE ARE HERE: TO DO GOOD TO OTHERS, TO BE A SOURCE OF BLESSING TO THE WORLD! TO THANK G"D ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE AND NOT SPEND OUR LIFE's WORRYING WHAT WE DON'T HAVE!
TO GIVE, TO FORGIVE, TO LOVE,
THIS ROSH HASHANAH, MAY OUR EYES BE OPEN TO THE BEAUTY OF G"D's WORLD ! MAY OUR HEARTS BE THANKFUL THAT WE ARE HERE TO ENJOY IT !
MAY WE RUSH LESS AND LOVE MORE!
GMAR VECHATIMA TOVA!
MAY IT BE A YEAR OF BLESSING FOR US, FOR YOU, FOR THE WORLD!
Rabbi Jean Pierre Fettmann