Nitzavim 5776 - English

By Rabbi Dario Feiguin

B´nei Israel Congregation, Costa Rica

The Day of Judgment

This sermon is dedicated to the blessed memory of Shimon Peres, z”l, a giant of the Jewish people, a visionary and dreamer rooted firmly in reality.  A tireless fighter for peace, all of Am Yisrael honors him at his passing.  May his memory be for a blessing always.

One of the names of Rosh Hashaná is “Yom Hadín,” the Day of Judgment.  The basic idea is that G-d judges every human being based on his or her actions in this world.

The liturgical poem “Unetane Tokef”, whose name means “give us strength,” is particularly eloquent on this subject.  The poet visualizes each person coming forward to face divine judgment as sheep passing before their shepherd to be reviewed from every possible perspective.

But exactly what is it that G-d judges?  The Torah makes no mention of this, nor is the rabbinical literature particularly clear on this point.

One of the rabbis of the Babylonian Talmud, Raba, tried to imagine what G-d might want to judge when we come before the heavenly tribunal.  The text is in the Tractate of Shabat, folio 31, page 1:

Amar Raba:

Besha’a shemachnisin adam ladin, omrim lo:

Nasata venatata be’emunah?

Kavata itim latorah?

Asakta pifria urvia?

Tzipita lishuah?

Pilpalta bechochmah?

Hevanta davar mitoch davar?

Raba said, When man is led in for Judgment, he is asked, Did you deal faithfully and with integrity, in business; did you fix times for learning; did you produce children; did you hope for salvation; did you discuss subjects of wisdom; did you form logical conclusions from the things you have learned?

Last Sunday, I heard a commentary by Dr. Ron Wolfson on this Talmudic passage.  I found it inspirational, and it made me think of several ideas I would like to share with you this Shabbat, as we are about to reach the Day of Judgment.

According to the sage Raba, the first question that the heavenly tribunal will ask has nothing to do with G-d, or with our beliefs and doctrines, but focuses on an issue of daily life:  Nasata venatata be’emunah? = Did you deal faithfully and with integrity, in business?

Did you behave correctly?  Did you lie?  Did you cheat?  Did you withhold information?  Did you take advantage of others? 

The first question we will be asked has to do with our ethical conduct.  What type of person were we?

The second question according to the Talmud is:  Kavata itim latorah?  Did you set aside time for study?

In other words, did you think you knew everything?  How could it be that you did not study even once a week?  Why did you make excuses for not studying, saying that you did not have the time?  We set our schedules.  We decide how much time to devote to work, to our families, to recreation, and to TV.  Among all these things, is there space for studying Torah?

The next question is: Asakta pifria urvia? =  Did you have children?

Pria urvia is the first mitzvah of the entire Torah, which says: “Be fertile and multiply.”  The rabbis understand this to mean to have children.  But this is not merely biological reductionism.  Having children is not just about giving birth.  It reflects raising them, comforting them, educating them, teaching them values, and setting them on the path of integrity and kindness. 

The Talmud is not asking if we birthed them as a one-time occurrence, but is more interested if we educated them with lasting lessons, if we devoted time and attention to them, and if we see them as a reflection of ourselves.

Raba continues: Tzipita lishuah? =  Did you hope for salvation?  The rabbis never consider this as standing around waiting for things to happen based on faith and hope.  Judaism does not believe that this is the way things happen.  Hoping for salvation means, on the one hand, living with a positive and proactive attitude toward the future, believing that things are possible, that the effort is worth it, that fear and failure should not paralyze us.  In addition, it means doing, acting and working to make that ideal future a reality.  In Judaism, the future does not just arrive; we bring it on.  It is more than just a clock that marches forward; it is the life that we might lead, if we are inspired to make it happen.

Pilpalta bechochmah? = Did you discuss subjects of wisdom?

How is it that our intelligence leads us to the conclusions we reach?  Could it be that beyond intelligence, we need to use another faculty that helps us determine what is relevant, useful, prudent?  Could it be that in addition to asking why, an issue of intelligence, we need to ask for what purpose, which speaks to wisdom?  What is the benefit of this or that approach?  Where will it lead me?  What will I achieve?  How many problems and headaches would we save ourselves if we reasoned with chochmah?

Hevanta davar mitoch davar? =  Did you form logical conclusions from the things you have learned?

In addition to wisdom, do we learn from experience?  What is it that causes us to make the same mistakes over and over?  How do I learn from experience so that when I am presented with a situation that caused me harm, I do not fall into the trap of choosing the same wrong path?  Experience is not the accumulation of years, but rather what we learned through all that time.  The rabbis would say, “Add experience to the years you have lived!”

Friends, the day after tomorrow is Yom Hadin, the Day of Judgment, and we have to ask ourselves all these questions:

Did we act with integrity in our business dealings, and in each and every situation?

Dis we set aside time to study?

Did we devote ourselves to our children?

Did we face life with optimism and faith?

Did we make decisions wisely?

Did we learn from experience?

On the Day of Judgment, we will not be asked about the kind of G-d in which we believe.  We will be asked what kind of people we chose to be.

May we reach this day prepared.  May we have satisfactory answers to the essential existential questions.  And may we be inscribed in the book of life, blessing and peace.  Shana tovah!

Rabbi Dario Feiguin

B’nei Israel, Costa Rica