This week marks the beginning of the month of Elul, thirty days of preparation for the Days of Awe. Rabbi Yoshi has been sharing texts about the five elements of teshuvah (repentance). Often our transgressions result in loss for others: an unkind word causes shame to another; fraud results in economic loss; and assault (heaven forbid!) can cause bodily harm to another. (Of course, we know as well that sin hurts us by making us smaller, lesser than we can and should be.) Whenever possible, we must make restitution for our transgressions. If we have caused harm, we must reflect on how we might repair or mitigate the damage. Often an apology is required, a sincere expression of our regret for a specific action. Sometimes we must offer to make monetary restitution or amends in some other way. Perhaps we slandered someone or belittled them in public. A public apology [...]

This week marks the beginning of the month of Elul, thirty days of preparation for the Days of Awe. Rabbi Yoshi will share texts about the five elements of teshuvah (repentance). The great sage Maimonides (1138-1204) teaches that we will know that we have changed, that we have truly made teshuvah, when we find ourselves in a similar situation to that in which we originally transgressed but this time, we refrain from sinning (עזיבת החטא, azivat ha-cheyt). Yesterday I asked you to think about the feelings of remorse you have about the ways in which you behaved badly this past year. Have you found yourself in a similar situation since then? Perhaps in the company of the same family member or colleague whom you mistreated? Consider (as an exercise in self-improvement) intentionally putting yourself in that similar situation and then actively and consciously refraining from transgressing the high standards to which you wish to [...]

This week marks the beginning of the month of Elul, thirty days of preparation for the Days of Awe. Rabbi Yoshi will share texts about the five elements of teshuvah (repentance). Yesterday our focus was on the recognition of one’s sin—the ways we have fallen short in our relationships with others, with ourselves, and with God. The next step is remorse (חרטה, charata). It’s not enough to acknowledge our transgressions, we have to feel guilt about what we’ve done. Often we think of guilt in negative ways and we try to limit it because it’s painful and certainly can be counter-productive. But we would be wise to remember that guilt has a positive, helpful role to play as well. Guilt can inspire us to change our behavior, to make amends, and to become better people. Guilt can lead us to make restitution for our trespasses (we’ll talk more about this on [...]

This week marks the beginning of the month of Elul, thirty days of preparation for the Days of Awe. Rabbi Yoshi will share texts about the five elements of teshuvah (repentance). The first step of repentance is recognizing one’s sins (הכרת החטא, hakarat ha-chet). It requires us to look at ourselves and our behavior honestly in order to identify ways in which we have missed the mark. How have we failed to live up to our ideals? How have we fallen short of our own expectations, the expectations of others, or the expectations of our Jewish tradition and, as best as we can imagine, God? While it is always helpful in terms of moral development to ask oneself these questions, now especially is the moment in the Jewish calendar when we do so. So make some time for yourself in the weeks to come for self-reflection. Be specific. Write down [...]