Elul Reflections...1 Elul, 5774

Elul Reflections 5774 (August/September 2014)

Success in any endeavor takes preparation.  We cannot expect to jump in to the pool for the first time and swim like Michael Phelps.  We cannot pick up the violin and instantly play like Yitzhak Perlman.  We cannot come into the synagogue during the High Holy Days and expect that we will be moved without proper preparation.  Today, we begin the Hebrew month of Elul.  Elul is the month that immediately precedes Rosh Hashanah, which begins on the first day of Tishrei.  So important are the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur that the rabbis designated Elul as a month of preparation for them.  Tradition encourages us to use the 29 days of Elul for serious reflection and self-examination, for study and contemplation - in anticipation of coming before God to begin the new year.  

This year’s Elul Reflections come from the efforts of Rabbi Charlie Citron-Walker, Congregation Beth Israel, Colleyville, TX; Rabbi Bradley Levenberg, Temple Sinai, Atlanta, GA; Rabbi Eric Linder, Congregation Children of Israel, Athens, GA; Rabbi Alan E. Litwak, Temple Sinai, North Miami Beach, FL; Rabbi Daniel Treiser, Temple B’nai Israel, Clearwater, FL; and Rabbi David N. Young, Congregation B’nai Tzedek, Fountain Valley, CA. If you have missed any of these daily emails or want to go back and remember something from earlier in Elul, feel free to read them all here at www.tinyurl.com/elul74.

Elul 1/August 27

Granting forgiveness is an internal process. Forgiveness is the decision or choice to give up the right for vengeance, retribution, and negative thoughts toward an offender in order to be free from anger and resentment. This process promotes healing and restoration of inner peace and it can allow reconciliation to take place in the relationship.

Forgiveness is not forgetting, condoning, or perpetuating injustice. Since it is sometimes unsafe or impossible, forgiveness does not always involve reconciliation. Forgiveness is not always quick; it is a process that can take time to unfold. Taking the time to seek and grant forgiveness can play a powerful role in healing and restoring ourselves and our relationships.

(Prepare/Enrich Workbook, adapted)