Sha'ar Hashamayim
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שער השמים Sha’ar HaShamayim A Machzor for the Days of Awe מנחה ליום הכיפורים Yom Kippur A ernoon Service שער השמים A Machzor for the Days of Awe 301 יַ ו בַּדְ ֵ ר֥ יְ י ָ ֖ ֶשֹׁמ־לֶא ה֥ ֹמאֵלּ :רֽ ֵבַּ דּ ר֞ דֲﬠ־לָכּ־לֶא ַ ת֧ נְ בּ ֵ י־יֽ רְשִׂ אָ ֵ ל֛ ָ֥תְּרַמָֽאְו םֶ֖הֵלֲא םיִ֣שׁדְק וּ֑יְהִֽתּ ִ י֣ כּ דָק שׁוֹ֔ נֲא ִ ֖ י ְ י ָ י ֥ ֱ א הֽ L ֵ כי ֶ םֽ : The Eternal spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to the whole Israelite community and say to them: You shall be holy, for I, the Eternal your God, am holy. (Leviticus 19:1–2) Our afternoon service includes these words from the very heart of Torah. We— all of us, the entire Jewish community—are commanded to strive to be like God. Admittedly, it is an impossible task. We are mortal, flesh and blood. We are flawed, filled with imperfections. How can we be remotely like God? Rabbi Moshe Cordovero, one of the great mystics of the sixteenth century, taught that the way we can be like God is to imitate God’s attributes. As God is kind, we must strive to be kind. As God is patient, we must strive to be patient. As God is forgiving, we must strive to be forgiving. The more we are able to imitate God’s attributes, Rabbi Cordovero taught, the holier we become. For to be holy is to behave in a particular, special way—the way God would behave. The holier we become, the more wholeness we experience. We feel better about ourselves, about our behavior, about our relationships. We feel better about our world and our place in it. We have a sense of our purpose on this earth. In holiness, we become whole. Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback 302 מנחה ליום הכיפורים ernoon ServiceYom Kippur A Whenever Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, the Baal Shem Tov (1698–1760) saw misfortune threatening the Jews, he would go to a certain part of the forest to meditate. There he would light a fire, say a special prayer, and miraculously the misfortune was averted. Later, when his disciple, the celebrated Dov Baer, the Great Maggid of Mezritch (1704–1772), felt the need to intercede with Heaven, he would go to the same place in the forest and say: "Master of the Universe, listen! I do not know how to light the fire, but I am still able to say the prayer." Again the miracle would be accomplished. Still later, Rabbi Moshe Leib of Sasov (1745–1807), in order to save his people, would go into the forest and say: "I do not know how to light the fire, I do not know the prayer, but I know the place and this must be sufficient." It was sufficient and the miracle was accomplished. Then it fell to Rabbi Israel of Rizhyn (1796–1850) to overcome misfortune. Sitting in his armchair, head in his hands, he spoke to God: "I am unable to light the fire and I do not know the prayer. I cannot even find the place in the forest. All I can do is tell the story, and this must be sufficient." And it was sufficient. Now we tell the story. 304 מנחה ליום הכיפורים ernoon ServiceYom Kippur A AVODAH SERVICE The Avodah Service The Book of Exodus tells of God’s commandment to appoint Aaron and his for Yom Kippur descendants to serve as Kohanim, priests responsible for the ancient Israelite afternoon is a rabbinic sacrificial worship. Once the Temple was established, the priests would carry adaptation of the ritual described in the out the service of atonement, each year on Yom Kippur. Torah (Leviticus 16 Seven days before Yom Kippur, the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) was taken from his and 23 and Numbers 29) and Mishnah home to an apartment in the Temple, where he remained secluded for the week (Yoma 1:1-8). Since and practiced the service. He had to be physically and spiritually cleansed and the Temple no had to devote his mind wholly to the task before him because on Yom Kippur he longers stands, it is was to wear the sacred garments and enter the Holy of Holies on the Temple our worship that has come to replace the Mount in Jerusalem. ancient ritual of The day of the morning offering, he would be taken to the mikveh, the ritual the priests. bath, since no one was ever permitted to officiate in the Temple in an impure state. During the course of Yom Kippur, the Kohen Gadol would immerse five times. He consecrated his own atonement offering by making this confession: "Adonai, I have committed wrongs against You, I and my household. Adonai, forgive the wrongs and failings of which I and my household have been guilty of in Your sight, as is written in the Torah set forth by your servant Moses: 'On this day, God will give you a new start by purifying you. From all your guilt in the sight of Adonai you shall be clean.'" (Leviticus 16:30) The Kohen Gadol would then enter the Holy of Holies. He was the only individual permitted to enter that room and only on this day of the year when he went to ask God's pardon for the entire community of Israel. He understood his responsibility, that if—according to legend—he had failed or if he harbored selfish thoughts, he would fall dead, and the atonement of Israel would not be attained. The Kohen Gadol searched his heart and urged his fellow Kohanim to do likewise. The Kohen Gadol entered the Holy of Holies and presented the sacred incense, whose sweet smell symbolized Israel's intention to please God by the keeping of mitzvot. He then declared, "Adonai, Your People, the House of Israel, have done wrong against you. Adonai, forgive the wrongs and the failings of which your People, the House of Israel, have been guilty of in Your sight, as it is written in the Torah set forth by your servant Moses: 'On this day, God will give you a new start by purifying you. From all your guilt in the sight of Adonai you shall be clean.'" When the Kohanim and the people, who were standing in the Temple court, heard God's glorious and revered Name, Adonai, expressly pronounced by the Kohen Gadol in holiness and purity, they bowed down, prostrated themselves, and responded: Baruch shem k’vod malchuto l’olam va-ed (Praised be the name of the One whose glorious sovereignty is forever and ever)! שער השמים A Machzor for the Days of Awe 305 ְוַהֹכֲּהִנְים וָהָﬠָם הְעוֹמִדָים בֲּﬠָזָרְה, כֶּשָׁהְיוּ שׁוֹמִﬠֶים אַת הֵשּׁם ַהִנְּכָבְּד וַהָנּוֹרְא, מֹפָרשׁ יוֵֹצִא מִפֹּי כֵהָן גִּדוֹל בְּקֻדָשּׁה וְּבָטֳהָרָה, היוּ ְכּוֹרִﬠִים וּמְשַׁתֲּחִוִים וּמוֹדְים וְנוֹפִלַים ﬠְל פֵּנֶיהְם, וְאוֹמִרים: ָבֵּרוּ שְׁם כַּבוֹד מְלְכוּתוֹ לָעוֹלָם וֶﬠד. When the Kohen Gadol emerged in perfect peace from the Holy of Holies, he prayed: "May it be Your will, Adonai our God and the God of our ancestors, that this New Year which has now arrived be for us and for all Your people, the house of Israel, a year of blessing and forgiveness, a year of prosperity, a year of assembling in Your sanctuary where we may be inspired to follow justice and kindness, a year of happiness and peace for all Your children everywhere." He was elated, his face shone like the sun, as the people escorted their faithful messenger home, joyous in the knowledge that scarlet had turned to white, and all their sins had washed away. The clouds distilled their dew, the watered fields yielded their produce, and the harvesters sang psalms of praise as they carried home their sheaves. The land rang forth with song proclaiming God’s goodness to all. The faithful messenger had indeed fulfilled his mission. How fortunate the people whose lot this is! How fortunate the people whose God is Adonai! Happy the eye that saw all this, happy the ear that heard all this! 306 מנחה ליום הכיפורים ernoon ServiceYom Kippur A YOU SHALL BE HOLY At the very center God said to Moses, “Tell the people!” of the Torah is a section known as the God said to Moses, “Tell the world— Holiness Code—the The right way to act, the kind way to give, fundamental ethical instructions for Jewish The right way to think about how to live.” living. At the heart of those guidelines CHORUS: “And you shall be holy, for I am holy is the obligation And you shall be holy, I am your God” to strive always to emulate God through It's not for a reward, it's not the price of heaven our actions and to I created you to be like Me, to make a better world acknowledge the inherent dignity of CHORUS every human being. Through our righteous actions we, too, can be holy like God. K'doshim, T'hiyu, Ki Kadosh, Ani Adonai Eloheychem EL CHORUS “And you shall love your neighbor as yourself Love your neighbor as yourself.” Life has a meaning, God is in this place; The commandment to be holy Can be found in your neighbor's face. CHORUS (2x) Y S B H … Music and lyrics by Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback; Hebrew text from Leviticus 19:2, 19:18 שער השמים A Machzor for the Days of Awe 307 SEDER KRI’AT HATORAH — TORAH READING ֶֽסֶדְר קִרַיאַת הָתּוֹרה ַוְיִהִי בְּנ ֹֽסַﬠָהָארַֹן וֽיֶֹּאמר Vay’hi binso’a ha’aron va’yomer מֶֹשָׁה, קוּמְה יָיְ, וָי ֻֽפצוּ Moshe: Kumah Adonai v’yafutzu ֹאְי ֶֽבְי, וָיֻנְֽסוּ מַשְׂנ ֶֽאי oyvecha, v’yanusu m’san’echa ִמָפֶּֽנִי.