It’s Thursday night, 11:30 PM and it is my turn, or better said, my privilege, to write the
D’var Torah for the JOIN Journal this week. This Shabbos is called Shabbos Shuva, The
Shabbos of return/repentance, as it immediately proceeds Yom Kippur. Lots of material
to write about, lots of areas to be analyzed, great fodder for an epic Dvar Torah.
And I got nothing.
It’s difficult to snap into the moment of Yom Kippur. It’s not a switch you turn on. In’s a
slow build up that begins almost 40 days ago on the first day of the month of Elul. And it
grows. And you think about your year. You do the work. You introspect, regret, fix,
repair, grow, resolve, pray, connect and deepen your relationship with yourself, your
family, your community and Hashem,
But Yom Kippur is this Sunday night. What can I tell you, dear friends, to drive the
message home? How can you consolidate 40 days into 40 hours? What should I write?
And then I realized my mistake in thinking this way. It’s not all or nothing. Just do
something.
Write down your challenges over the year and how you want to improve. Grab the Yom
Kippur Prayer Book, The Machzor, and look it over in advance. Make some calls to
people you have wronged and ask for forgiveness. Go on your computer and give a
donation to charity. A single physical action helps inspire our spiritual side.
In fact, the Sefer Hachinuch, a magnum opus written around a thousand years ago that
lists the positive, practical benefit for every mitzvah, highlights this point. The reason we
have so many Mitzvos with physical actions or blessings is because actions take things
MiKoach El HaPoel or “From Potential To Reality.” We have many things we are
capable of, and we can use actions to help bring those capabilities to life.
I would be honored if you did one thing to prepare for Yom Kippur based off reading this
Dvar Torah. May we all have a Gmar Chasimah Tovah – May we all be sealed in the book of life for a year of health, success and spiritual growth.

Shabbat Shalom!