Who are you really? For better or for worse, we are not identified so much by what we do than as by who we are.
As Moshe introduces Klal Yisrael into the covenant with Hashem (Devarim 29:17-19), he addresses those among them who profess a commitment they don’t really feel, but go along with the group for fear of deviating from the consensus when in their hearts they are not truly committed or connected.
Moshe speaks of how, while they might be saying and doing the right things, a shallow and insincere commitment will eventually result in bitter and negative results: “Shoresh poreh rosh v’la’anah,” angering Hashem and stimulating a very strong response. As Ramban expressed it, “Mishoresh matok lo yeitzei mar,” bitterness will not emerge from a sweet root. The roots of our being and identity are the feelings and allegiances in our hearts. When those are not in a good place, negative results will follow.
Evidently, external compliance is insufficient as it does not define who we truly are and will ultimately unravel. Rachmana liba ba’i, Hashem seeks a deep and heartfelt commitment.
The positive side of this same coin is how we stand before Hashem on the Yamim Noraim. While our parashah speaks of the person who seems to be doing the right things but lacks an internal commitment, during these days we speak of our failures, the actions we did wrong not because of who we are but because we are just going with the flow in the wrong direction, ki l’chol ha’am b’shgagah.
During these days we dissociate from failures that are external to our true selves while affirming that our true desire is a sincere bond and commitment to Hashem and His will. The Maharal of Prague went so far as to explain that the term “kippurim” refers to a surface wipe, such that Yom HaKippurim as the day of our spiritual cleansing reflects a mere wiping away of the external and incidental grime that our mistakes have built on the surface of our sweet, refined selves that in no way reflects our true essence.
The basis of our standing before Hashem on these days is the assertion of our personal shoresh matok, the sweet and healthy core that is dedicated to Hashem’s will that lies inside each of us. This is the compelling idea articulated by the Rambam (Hilchot Geirushin 2:20), when he wrote that the core of every one of us is our inherent desire and interest to be part of the Jewish people and to do all the good things and avoid that which is wrong, which is only the confusion generated by our desires and other fundamentally external factors that get in the way.
The long road from one Rosh Hashanah to the next contains many twists and turns that often take us far away from that which we value most. These precious days of the Yamim Noraim present the opportunity for us to revisit and restore our true selves, to reconnect to that which is our essential desire: to be a part of the Jewish people and do all that is good and avoid that which is wrong. Because that is who we truly are. n
Rabbi Moshe Hauer is executive vice president of the Orthodox Union (OU), the nation’s largest Orthodox Jewish umbrella organization.