The Harsh Decree- Yom Kippur

There is a piyut (liturgical poem) recited on both Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur that we do not recite as it is in the Mussaf, which we do not do. Mussaf is an additional service after Shacharit (morning prayers) on Shabbat and holy days. The reason that we pray three times a day is because these are the times that the sacrifices were offered in the Temple. Mussaf coincides with the additional sacrifices made on Shabbat and on holy days.

This piyut is called Un-ta-neh To-kef, which means “Let us voice the power (of this day’s sanctity)”. It consists of several dramatic vignettes. The first depicts a heavenly court with God sitting on His seat of judgment. The Book of Deeds is opened, a shofar (ram’s horn) sounds out, and angels tremble. The second describes what is at stake; who will live, who will die, prosper, suffer, fall, and rise. The third brings us to a happy conclusion. It says “But repentance, prayer, and charity cancel the harsh decree”.

This poem was long believed to be written by Rabbi Amnon of Mainz in the 11th century. He died a martyr rather than giving in to forced conversion to Christianity. But this poem was discovered in the Cairo Geniza and was almost certainly composed in Israel during the  6th or 7th centuries, possibly Yannai, a great composer of liturgical poems.

 Many are shocked and troubled by the theology of this piyut; that we might be spared with repentance, prayer, and acts of charity. We all know or have read about very pious people who have died horrible deaths, suffered great illness, lost loved ones. The Ramban, who lived in the 12th century, took issue with it. So have many other prominent rabbis over the centuries. Repentance, Prayer, and Charity are not magical talismans that prevent catastrophes. This is the aversion that the rabbis had to Tashlich. We cannot throw sins away in the form of bread.

Modern Machzorim attempt to solve this by “translating” the issue away. Some say “Cancel the harshness of the decree” or “Have the power to transform the harshness of the decree” rather than just plain cancel.

The problem is that “Ma-a-vi-rin” does indeed mean cancel. It comes from the root word AVAR, that means to pass. This word is used consistently throughout the Talmud with the meaning of “remove”. It rules that hard labor should be removed from a scholar, Jewelry should be removed from a woman accused of adultery, and we are permitted to remove crumbs from the table on Shabbat. It never means “mitigate” or “soften”.

This same word is used in the prayer Avinu Malkaynu. We say “Our Father, Our King, wipe away and remove our transgressions and sins from Your sight.” This is a form of the same root word, AVAR, ve-ha-a-vayr. It means remove not reduce.

So what should we do with this poem? I think that we should go with the modern translations that understand that it was written in an earlier time where things were viewed differently. We cannot avert evil in our lives, but we can mitigate the harshness of it. We will all suffer illness, disasters, war, loss of loved ones and jobs. And many of us have, ergo the healing service that we held last week. But we can reduce the harshness of it thru a life of prayer, repentance, and charity.

This is exactly what Yeshua taught! In his sermon on the mountain he told us to seek forgiveness and to forgive others; this is repentance. He told us not to worry about what we will eat, drink, or wear. We should instead ask for them with confidence. This is prayer. He told us to not store up wealth where moth, rust, thieves can destroy but to store our treasures in heaven. This is charity.
He concluded, “But seek first his Kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” A life lived like this sets our attention of Hashem, not our troubles. When troubles come, we are less afflicted because we have built up an “immunity”.

Novelist Nassim Nicholas Taleb once wrote that the world consists of three types of things; fragile, robust, and anti-fragile. Things that are fragile, break with shock or force. Robust things withstand damage. But anti-Fragile emerge even stronger when attacked. Muscles are anti-fragile. If you stress them they breakdown but then grow and become stronger.

Through repentance, prayer, and charity we can become anti-fragile. We can become stronger from life’s challenges. Through repentance we can grow from our mistakes, and learn grace for others. Through prayer we learn self-reflection, self-awareness, and reliance upon Hashem. Through charity we learn to let go.

We are all going to experience troubles, but we can be anti-fragile. We have all known people who have let setbacks destroy them. They have let anger at an injustice done to them fester for decades. They let these troubles damage their relationships with those around them. All of us here today are facing many different challenges too. It is up to us how well we weather them. Our lives are too precious to squander. We will miss out on the joys that Hashem has for us. We will miss out on being a source of joy and blessing to others.

At our healing service last week, Zora mentioned a woman at her mother’s nursing home that radiated joy despite her physical immobility. This is a woman who has learned to be anti-fragile. Not surprisingly she discovered that the woman led a bible study at the home. Most likely she learned to be anti-fragile through a long life of repentance, prayer, and charity.

The word Ivrim (Hebrew) comes from that same root word, AVAR, which means “To pass over”. May we truly be Ivrim, able to let the harshness of life “pass over” us.

May we not be devastated by loss, illness, and setbacks.

May we live a life of Repentance, Prayer, and Charity.

May we seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness.

For then we will truly be anti-fragile and able to avert the harshness of the evil decree!

Gut Yontif and G’mar Chatima Tov- May you be inscribed in the Book of Life.