On Rosh Hashana Everyone is needed to Complete the Coronation
By Rabbi Shimon Raichik
First I would like to wish everyone a Ksiva v'Chasima Tovah l'Shana Tovah u'Mesuka. Hashem should fulfill every ones requests both spiritually and physically amongst Klal Yisroel. Most of all we should all merit the complete and ultimate redemption this year.
In Hayom Yom it’s written in the name of the Baal Shem Tov that Hashem blesses Rosh Hashana and the month of Tishrei. From that bracha we take the strength to bless the other eleven months. What is the nusach of Hashem’s bracha? It is the opening verse of parshas Nitzavim; “Atem nitzavim hayom kulchem- you are standing today (on Rosh Hashana) all of you”. We are all standing together as one unit before the King. It is because we stand together that we are meritorious in judgment.
Why does the Torah enumerate 10 types of people, heads of tribes, judges, water carriers etc.? Isn’t the important thing that we are together as one? Also why does the pasuk say kulchem, all of you, isn’t that obvious?
The explanation brought in Likutei Torah and Sichos is that we are one unit from the vantage point of the neshama. Therefore it is necessary to emphasize that we are all one unit with regard to coronating Hashem as the King of all of us, kulchem. The reason that the 10 different groups are mentioned, the heads, hands, feet, men women and children until water carriers and wood choppers is to show that we are like one big body.
Just as a body has different parts yet they all work together in complete harmony so too the Jewish people. Every part of the body has a discreet function necessary to complete the body. All the body’s systems and limbs need one other and come together as one. It is specifically because the body is one that each part can serve and be helpful to the rest of the body. So too with Klal Yisroel; we are all one essence. Therefore whatever unique quality each person has, it can be of use to another Jew. We can help each other like feet can help a head get to where it needs to go.
Therefore unity is both general and personal. I am both a servant of Hashem in general as well as an individual with a unique mission. By each one of us doing our best automatically serves the Klal. This is an explanation as to why the Rebbe gave his entire attention to each person he met. The Rebbe always brings out the special characteristic meant for that individual. Very often he then puts that characteristic to work for the sake of the individual and the Klal.
By each of us recognizing and then best utilizing what we do best for the Klal, we stand as one, meritorious in judgment before Rosh Hashana.
On Rosh Hashana each one of us realizes that we are accepting Hashem as King together as one. At the same time we should also recognize that each one of us is accepting Hashem as our personal King. By doing so do we reveal Hashem's sovereignty in all aspects. This extends beyond our performance of Torah and mitzvos into every detail of our personal lives and daily activities.
While at the Ohel this week I noticed, as the hours went by, all different types of people were coming and going. Each person that came brought a pan and davened for a Ksiva v'Chasima Tovah for the new year. They all came from different walks of life with different needs, requests, attitudes and points of view. Yet there was one thing that united them. They all came to connect to the Rebbe, and in this way we are all united; this is how we are one.
There was a Jew named Chaim Dov that lived in Crown Heights and davened by the Jewish Center on Eastern Parkway across from 770, a conservative synagogue at the time. (Once in his youth Zalmen Roth wandered in there. Chaim Dov said to him you don't belong here you belong in 770, and he took him over to 770 where Zalmen became introduced to Chabad) On Rosh Hashana 5731-1970 in the afternoon Chaim Dov approached the Rebbe as he was walking on from his home to 770 near Brooklyn Ave. He asked him if they could talk. Although the Rebbe barely spoke at all on Rosh Hashana, the Rebbe agreed. Chaim Dov went over the Rabbi's drasha that he had heard in shul with the Rebbe. We can learn a lesson in ahavas Yisroel from this story. Although the Rebbe barely spoke on Rosh Hashana and one could only imagine the preciousness of every moment of Rosh Hashana to the Rebbe, nonetheless the Rebbe took the time and spoke to Chaim Dov on Rosh Hashana and made a Jew feel special and important.
So as we enter the time of Rosh Hashana and accept Hashem as the true and sovereign King we do so with two things in mind. We remember that Hashem is King over all of Klal Yisroel and all of creation. We accept Hashem as our King equally no matter who we are. We also accept Hashem's sovereignty personally, He is my King and I am His servant. We then relate it to all that we do in our lives and for others. By not just recognizing Hashem in general but by living with Hashem as our King in every detail of our daily lives in what we do for others, do we reveal Hashem's Kingship the most, and have the greatest effect on the entire world.
Wishing everyone a Ksiva v'Chasima Tovah l'Shana Tovah u'Mesuka and to be with the Rebbe in the Beis HaMikdash hearing Shofar Shel Moshiach