Shabbat Shuva ~ The Teshuvah for Indifference

Return, O Israel, up to Ad-nai your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your sin. - And the Admor Hazaken explained that what is says "return...up to" (when it should have said "return to") is that teshuvah is to be done up to [the time when] Ad-nai is "your G-d". And we need to understand to whom this applies (and from whom this is asked), such a high level of teahuvah. Behold, one is to be in a very high level even before one does such teshuvah, and we also have to understand why it is written "return Israel", since the name Israel is due to "you struggled with G-d and men and were able". that is, that he governs and controls the mystery of the name "Elokim" and the forces that spread from it. And how, in this case, can exist an issue of sin for which teshuvah is needed? And it is also known that teshuvah is not just done on transgressions, it is also to return one's soul to its source and root ["and the spirit returns to G-d that gave it" (Kohelet/Eccl. 12:7)], and this teshuvah also applies to the complete tzadikim: it is written "Return, O Israel, up to Ad-nai your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your sin" - and how would sin apply for a person at this level? We also need to understand the continuation of the verse: "Take words with you and return to Ad-nai", since once it has already been said "return Israel, etc" what is to be added with "(Take words with you and) return to Ad-nai"? And we also need to understand what says afterwards "say to Him: "Forgive all guilt etc" since all "saying" and the request to "forgive" have to do with the issue of teshuvah, and this teaches that after the teshuvah of "return Israel etc." and the teshuvah of "turn to Ad-nai" there has to be another teshuvah. And we also need to explain what is between the first teshuvah and the third teshuvah that both recall sin, and the second does not.

Elie Weisel, in an interview to Reform Judaism Magazine

So despite your disappointment and bouts of pessimism, you remain hopeful.

Yes. One must wager on the future. I believe it is possible, in spite of everything, to believe in friendship in a world without friendship, and even to believe in God in a world where there has been an eclipse of God's face. Above all, we must not give in to cynicism. To save the life of a single child, no effort is too much. To make a tired old man smile is to perform an essential task. To defeat injustice and misfortune, if only for one instant, for a single victim, is to invent a new reason to hope.

Just as despair can be given to me only by another human being, hope too can be given to me only by another human being. Mankind must remember too that, like hope, peace is not God's gift to his creatures. Peace is a very special gift--it is our gift to each other. For the sake of our children and theirs, I pray that we are worthy of that hope, of that redemption, and some measure of peace.

Do you still have faith in God as the ultimate redeemer?

I would be within my rights to give up faith in God, and I could invoke six million reasons to justify such a decision. But I am incapable of straying from the path charted by my forefathers, who felt duty-bound to live for God. Without the faith of my ancestors, my own faith in humanity would be diminished. So my wounded faith endures.

Against Indifference 2016

By Nathan Lopes Cardozo

https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/prayer-for-the-world/

“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.” — Elie Wiesel

There is probably no greater curse in our world today than the curse of indifference. While we are surrounded by abundant beauty and have much to be thankful for, millions of children and other innocent people live lives of ongoing war, hunger, displacement, and other disasters.

Demonic forces that we cannot control, or do not care about because they are far away from our lives of comfort, strike our fellow human beings all over the world.

While we Jews have our share of calamities, it is our duty as the chosen people to care not only for our fellow Jews but for all of humanity.

Here is a prayer, in Hebrew and English, which I suggest we say in all our synagogues on Shabbat, when saying the prayer for the State of Israel and our soldiers, or when praying at home.

This is not just a prayer to God; it is also meant as a reminder to us not to remain indifferent to all the pain in our world and to what requires our care and serious attention.

I invite all of you to ask your rabbis, and your gabbaim who assist in the running of the services, to add this short prayer to the synagogue Shabbat service, and send it out to your friends, Jews and gentiles alike.

I suspect that if God were to give the Torah today, He would add an eleventh commandment:

“Thou shalt not be indifferent”

The beginning of the Jewish new year, less than two weeks away, gives us a unique opportunity to start saying this prayer.

Shana tova to all good people!

Nathan Lopes Cardozo

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With special thanks to my dear friend Shimon Kremer for helping me formulate this prayer.

Download a PDF version of the prayer

תפילה לשלום העולם

“מָה-רַבּוּ מַעֲשֶׂיךָ ה’, כֻּלָּם, בְּחָכְמָה עָשִׂיתָ, מָלְאָה הָאָרֶץ קִנְיָנֶךָ”

אָבִינוּ שֶבַּשָמַיִם רִבּוֹן כָּל הָעוֹלָמִים

רַחֵם נָא עַל כָּל הַסוֹבלִים מִפִיגוּעֵי טֶרוֹר וּמִלחָמוֹת בָּאָרֶץ וּבחוּץ לָאָרֶץ.

הַגֵן עַל כָּל בּרִיוֹתֶיךָ מִפנֵי אַלִימוּת, תּרַפֶּה ידֵי בּנֵי בּלִיַעַל,

ותַנחֶה אוֹתָם לדֶרֶך הטוֹבָה ולִתשוּבָה שלֵמָה.

מנַע אסוֹנוֹת טֶבַע:

רעִידוֹת אֲדָמָה, מַיִם גוֹעשִים, וגַלִים רוֹעֲשִים,

אֵש מִשתוֹלֶלֶת או רוּחַ סוֹחֶפֶת.

רַחֵם עַל נטוּלֵי מָקֹום, חַסרֵי בַּיִת וּמזֵי רָעָב בּעוֹלָמֶךָ.

חֲמוֹל עַל מַעֲשֶיךָ, נַחֵם אֶת הָאֲבֵלִים ורַפֵא אֶת הַפצוּעִים.

פּתַח אֶת ליבֵּנוּ למַעַן כָּל יצוּרֵי אֱנוֹש בּכָל אַרבַּע כַּנפוֹת הָאָרֶץ.

ותִמחֶה רוֹעַ מכָּל יוֹשבֵי תֶבֶל אַרצךָ.

שנאמר:

” הִרְכַּבְתָּ אֱנוֹשׁ, לְרֹאשֵׁנוּ: בָּאנוּ-בָאֵשׁ וּבַמַּיִם; וַתּוֹצִיאֵנוּ, לָרְוָיָה”(תהילים סו:יב)

ונֹאמַר אָמֶן

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Prayer for World Peace

“How abundant are Your works, Hashem; with wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your possessions.” (Psalms 104:24)

Our Father in Heaven, Master of the Universe,

Have mercy on all who suffer from terrorism and wars, in Israel and the world over.

Protect all of Your creatures against violence; weaken the hands of villains, and lead them to the path of goodness and complete repentance.

Prevent natural disasters:

Earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, raging fires and tornadoes

Have compassion on all the displaced, homeless, and starving people in Your world.

Have mercy on your creations. Comfort the mourners, and heal the injured.

Open our hearts to all human beings in all four corners of the earth.

Eradicate evil from among all the inhabitants of Your world,

As is written:

“You allowed people to subjugate us; we went through fire and water and You brought us out to a place of abundance.” (Psalms 66:12)

And let us say, Amen.