Every year, on the last Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah, we read a Torah portion called Nitzavim. It’s a portion about hope, a Torah portion about our ability to change the world, and a Torah portion about teshuvah.

Moses tells the people that they will eventually sin. And after they sin, they will do teshuvah. They will return to God. And ultimately, he tells them, the choice will be up to them. “See, I place before you this day the blessing and the curse,” says Moses. “Choose life, so that you may live.”

And in the middle of the Torah portion, Moses says something that seems out of context. “This commandment that I command you this day is not too hard for you,” he says.

The sages wondered which commandment Moses was referring to. Perhaps, they suggested, Moses was referring to teshuvah. And perhaps, they suggest, this is the point of the entire Torah portion. No matter what we have done, no matter how far we have strayed, teshuvah is always possible.

Shabbat Nitzavim is a time to remind ourselves that teshuvah is possible. And according to Sefat Emet, it is also a time to look back, to give thanks for the things that we learned during the year. In his words:

My grandfather taught that Nitzavim is read on the last Shabbat of the year to remind us that the Israelites went from station to station in the desert until they stood before God to receive a renewed covenant. And so too, we go from study session to study session until we arrive at the last Shabbat of the year. On the last Shabbat of the year, we need to stop and remember the one teaching that changed us during the year – the one teaching that had the biggest impact on us – so that we can remember it in the year to come. We need to find that one teaching, and we need to take it into ourselves and make it a lasting part of us. This is the Shabbat of which the sages said, “If all Israel keeps one Shabbat, redemption will come.”

God gave us Torah so that we would be comforted in times of exile and darkness, and Torah is what gives is the strength to return. Torah is what gives us the strength to turn to God in teshuvah. This is why the Torah is called the Tree of Life – because it helps us return to life and to God.

Each year, as Rosh Hashanah approaches, I go through this exercise. I give thanks for the Torah, for the strength and the wisdom it has given me, and I remember that it is truly my life and the length of my days.

But ultimately, perhaps, Sefat Emet’s teaching is about giving thanks.. All of us had things that sustained us during the past year – friends, loved ones, teachers, perhaps even the Torah itself.

As the year ends, we need to give thanks for the people and the teachings that sustained us. And perhaps, this thankfulness is what allows us to do teshuvah. We realize that despite the mistakes we made, we were worthy of being helped, we were worthy of being loved. Our behavior could not have been too, too bad.

And perhaps, the ability to see the good inside us, the ability to be thankful, is what allows us to grow.

As Rosh Hashanah approaches, may you remember the ones who helped you. And may you remember the good inside you.

Shabbat Shalom
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