Rabbi's Corner
ELUL
Elul is the twelfth month of the Jewish civil year and the sixth month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calendar. It is a summer month of 29 days. Elul usually occurs in August–September on the Gregorian calendar.
Elul is seen as a time to search one's heart and draw close to G-d in preparation for the coming Day of Judgement, Rosh Hashanah, and Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur.
Accordingly, Elul is a time of introspection, repentance, reconciliation, and heightened spirituality as Jews prepare to be judged and sentenced by G-d.
Introspection
In preparation for Judgment Day, we think critically about how we have behaved during the year and how we can improve our behaviour in the upcoming year.
Elul is a time for personal growth. During Elul, we should ask ourselves if we made the most of our life and reached our potential this past year and how we can improve ourselves in the upcoming year.
Repentance
Once we have identified our sins through introspection, we need to repent for them.
During Elul, special prayers called Selichot are recited. Selichot are prayers of repentance in which we ask G-d for forgiveness.
Selichot prayers describe the 13 merciful attributes of G-d. It was during the month of Elul that the Jews sinned by building the Golden Calf, Moses pleaded for G-d to forgive them and G-d explained the 13 Attributes of Mercy.
‘Merciful G-d, merciful G-d, powerful G-d, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in kindness and truth. Preserver of kindness for thousands of generations, forgiver of iniquity, wilful sin and error, and Who cleanses’ (Exodus 34:6-7).
Selichot are recited daily, beginning the Saturday night before Rosh Hashana and continuing through Yom Kippur. If Rosh Hashana falls on Monday or Tuesday, then Selichot begins 10 days prior, on Saturday night. If Rosh Hashana falls later in the week, then Selichot begins the Saturday night just prior to Rosh Hashana.
Reconciliation
Repentance alone is not enough. Given that our sins separated us from G-d during the year, our repentance during the month of Elul is meant to reconcile us with G-d.
Teshuva refers to the soul’s return to its source as we reconcile with G-d through repenting for our sins.
During Elul, we should move closer to G-d.
Psalm 27 is added to morning and evening prayer services during the month of Elul. In this Psalm, King David asks to "dwell in the house of G-d all the days of my life."
Heightened Spirituality
In Elul, the shofar is blown during morning prayers (except during Shabbat).
v We should accept and honour G-d as our King
v We should be dedicated to G-d as Abraham was in the Akeidah (where a ram was offered instead of Isaac)
v We should follow the Torah, G-d's commandments, which we accepted at
v We should listen to the words of the Prophets
v We should remember the destruction of the
v We should be fearful of G-d and repent for our sins
Elul is also the time to have one's tefillin and mezuzot checked by an accredited scribe to ensure that they are in good condition and fit for use.
Many Jews also visit the graves of loved ones throughout the month in order to remember and honour those people in our past who inspire us to live more fully in the future.
Elul in Jewish history
1 Elul - Moses ascends Sinai for 3rd 40 days (1313 BCE)
2 Elul - Shulchan Aruch published (1555)
3 Elul - Death of Rabbi A. I. Kook (1935)
8 Elul - Washington Responds to
10 Elul - Noah Dispatches Raven (2105 BCE)
12 Elul - Nachmanides Born (1294)
13 Elul - Death of Ben Ish Chai (1909)
17 Elul - Noah Dispatches Dove (2105 BCE)
18 Elul - Death of Maharal (1609)
18 Elul - Baal Shem Tov Born (1698)
18 Elul - Baal HaTanya Born (1745)
23 Elul - Dove brings Olive Leaf to Noah (2105 BCE)
24 Elul - Death of Chafetz Chaim (1933)
25 Elul - The 1st day of Creation (3761 BCE)
25 Elul -
25 Elul - Death of Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai (2nd century CE)
27 Elul - Death of Belzer Rebbe (1855)
29 Elul - Tzemach Tzedek Born (1789)
Torah
The written Torah - "Torah" refers to the Five Books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
Written Torah is often referred to as the Tanakh, which is an acrostic of Torah, Nevi'im and Ketuvim.
Below is a list of the books of the Written Torah, in the order in which they appear in Jewish translations, with the Hebrew name of the book, a translation of the Hebrew name (where it is not the same as the English name), and English names of the books (where it is not the same as the Hebrew name). The Hebrew names of the first five books are derived from the first few words of the book.
TORAH (The Law):
Bereishith (In the beginning...) (Genesis)
Shemoth (The names...) (Exodus)
Vayiqra (And He called...) (Leviticus)
Bamidbar (In the wilderness...) (Numbers)
Devarim (The words...) (Deuteronomy)
Nevi'im
The collective term for the books of the prophets in the Hebrew Bible. The Nevi'im contain the prophets' interpretation of history as a means of expressing G-d's will for the people. Together they act as G-d's spokesperson, explaining to the people what actions and attitudes G-d wanted. For example, they spoke against immorality and reminded Jews of their duty to follow G-d's commandments and not stray from the path of right actions.
Ketuvim
The collective term for the books of the Hebrew Bible, excluding those of the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) and the Nevi'im (the books of the prophets). The Ketuvim include Proverbs, Job, Psalms, and the five megillot (books such as Esther and Ruth).
Torah Scrolls
The scriptures that we use in services are written on parchment scrolls. They are always hand-written, in attractive Hebrew calligraphy with "crowns" (crows-foot-like marks coming up from the upper points) on many of the letters. This style of writing is known as STA"M (an abbreviation for "Sifrei Torah, Tefillin and Mezuzot," which is where you will see that style of writing.
You are not supposed to touch the parchment on these scrolls; some say because they are too holy; others say because your fingers' sweat has acids that will damage the parchment over time. Instead, you follow the text with a pointer, called a Yad. "Yad" means "hand" in Hebrew, and the pointer usually is in the shape of a hand with a pointing index finger. The scrolls are kept covered with fabric, and often ornamented with silver crowns on the handles of the scrolls and a silver breastplate on the front.
The scrolls are kept in a cabinet in the synagogue called an "ark," as in Ark of the Covenant. The is an acrostic of "aron kodesh," meaning "holy cabinet."
The Torah scrolls that we read from in synagogue are unpointed text, with no vowels or musical notes, so the ability to read a passage from a scroll is a valuable skill, and usually requires substantial advance preparation (reviewing the passage in a text with points).
Chumash
The word "chumash" comes from the Hebrew word meaning five, and refers to the five books of the Torah. A chumash contains the entire first five books of the Torah, divided up into the weekly parsha's, with the haftarah portion inserted after each week's parsha.