Highest of Holidays By Rabbi PInchas Winston

The King’s Arrival
1. Two central themes of Rosh Hashanah are 1.) God as King, and 2.) judgment of the Jewish people. Hence, we make the switch from “HaEl HaKadosh” to “HaMe-lech HaKadosh” the entire “10 days of Te-shuvah.” The question is why, if God is King all year round.
1. It is like a king who lives in a far away palace. The people remain aware of him, and perhaps even fear his name. But it is only once the king pays a visit to their town that his subjects are awed by him and of his office. His immediate presence as well as the pomp and pageantry make the reality of the king far more tangible, and therefore emotionally moving.
1. Likewise, we are told, beginning with the month of Elul, God begins His “descent” into the world, meaning that He increases the world’s ability to detect His existence and to sense His awesomeness. It is this that transforms “HaEL HaKadosh” into “HAMELECH HaKadosh” in the minds and hearts of the nation, and triggers the process of din—judgment.
Self-Judgment
1. We look into a mirror to reflect ourselves back to our ourselves. Without a mirror, though we are already aware of our-selves, we cannot see ourselves since our eyes look “out,” not “in.” It is the mirror that enables us to see ourselves as others might, so we can make the necessary ad-justments and look the way we think we should.
2. Likewise, only by being in the presence of others are we able to see ourselves more objectively, either in appearance or atti-tude. Some people bring out the best in us while others may bring out the oppo-site. It is only by being in the presence of a king that we assume the role of subject, and can evaluate ourselves as such.
3. The extent to which this will be true also depends upon how much a person is willing to “go out” to the King. If a person is distracted when the king passes, they will remain unaffected by his presence. If the king notices a lack, he may take mea-sures to adequately “focus” his subject, since the Malchus—kingdom—depends upon it.
4. THIS is the variable of the Aseres Yemai Teshuvah that each individual is supposed to control. The King of Kings will be here. The question is, will we be as well?
Being Here
1. We know what it means to be focused. If a person is watching something that is ex-tremely engaging, every part of them will be focused on it. Professional athletes train physically and mentally. Oftentimes failure is more a function of the latter than the former. There are many external obstacles to success, but some of the most difficult to overcome are the inter-nal ones, like worry or fear.
2. The “trick” is to align our thoughts and emotions. If either is out of a sync, a per-son will be forced to deal with two dif-ferent realities at the same time, and that is limiting. It prevents a person from using the full extent of their ability to achieve their goal or to experience what they are trying to experience. This lessens a per-son’s quality of life.
3. Mindfulness encourages a person to take note of this, and to rectify the situation. A person does not have to rely on outside stimuli to do it for them. Each person possesses the ability to align their minds and hearts if 1.) they realize the impor-tance of doing so, and, 2.) they have the will to do it.
4. Elul Zman was designed to bring us to this level of realization, and inspire us to do this. In a sense, it is supposed to be a dry run at Rosh Hashanah. The “wise person is able to see what is being born,” and therefore able set in motion now what seems will be needed later.
5. Hence, the Arizal says that someone who cries at the onset of Rosh Hashanah has confirmation that Heaven has already fa-vorably judged them. A person who just “shows up” for Rosh Hashanah will be unable to have such a reaction so early in the day.
6. Only a person who has been successfully building their Rosh Hashanah mentality and awareness during Elul can already feel from the beginning of the holiday its importance and opportunity. They are to-tally “there” to greet the King, intellect-ually and emotionally, like a royal wel-coming committee. As a result, they can feel the part of “royal subject.”

Session 1: The King Has Arrived
Tuesday, September 1, 2020, 8:30 Israel time

A major emphasis on Rosh Hashanah is on God as King. But He is our King all year round. What changes on Rosh Hashanah, a day when God is really our Judge, that makes Malchus such a central issue.

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Session 2: The Subject is Arriving
Tuesday, September 8, 2020, 8:30 Israel time

The King will be there on Rosh Hashanah regardless of what we do or acknowledge. The question each year is, will we be there too? Physically, it’s unavoidable. But intellectually and especially emotionally, that’s a variable only we can control each year.

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Session 3: Finding Chayn
Tuesday, September 15, 2020, 8:30 Israel time

In one short verse we learn what it takes to survive God’s strict justice. And yet, people read the verse as if it is the least important verse of all. Isn’t it worth while learning what God values most in this world?

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Session 4: Final Preparations
Tuesday, September 22, 2020, 8:30 Israel time

How to apply this knowledge as we follow the Machzor, especially this year when many may find themselves dovening at home alone, or as part of a service unlike they have experienced so far to date.

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The webinar is $36.00 for all four ZOOM sessions, which includes the notes from each session, and the video link for each class. The PDF version of “Changes That Last Forever” is also included. Register by using this