By Rabbi Avraham Sultan, our 2014 High Holiday Scholar in Residence.
The Halachot are shared by Midrash Sefardi Yeshiva Jerusalem.
29 of Ab, 5774
Tomorrow morning we will begin our preparation for Yom Kippur.
The Sephardic custom is to recite the Selihot prayer from the second day of the month of Elul (tomorrow) until Yom Kippur.
Selihot is a special set of Tefilot that we say for forty days which lead us to reflect on our past actions and ask forgiveness from HaShem for our mistakes and wrongdoings. Selihot is traditionally said before dawn, prior to the morning prayer (Shaharit), although technically Selihot could be said also during nighttime (after midnight) or even during the day.
The Ashkenazi Minhag is to start Selihot services the last Sunday before Rosh haShana. However, when Rosh haShana falls on a Monday or Tuesday (it can never fall on a Sunday) Ashkenazi Jews will begin Selihot two Sundays before Rosh haShana.
Also, during the entire month of Elul Ashkenazim and many Sephardim (Moroccans, Persians, etc. but not Syrians) have the custom to blow the Shofar.
The goal of the Selihot is to inspire us to begin the process of Teshuba. Teshuba consists of introspection and repentance. But ultimately it means coming back or closer to God (depending on one's point of departure). This high spiritual goal, which we aspire to reach in Yom Kippur, cannot be achieved overnight or just by making the decision to change. It demands a serious and patient course of actions in which we revisit our deeds and particularly our values, reexamine our existential goals and the material distractions that have driven us away from those goals. This intense spiritual and intellectual process begins tomorrow and culminates during Yom Kippur.
To better understand the role of Selihot think of Yom Kippur as a spiritual marathon: a whole day consecrated exclusively to appealing to HaShem, begging His forgiveness and committing ourselves to major changes in our lives. No one will run a marathon without a previous intense training. Similarly, to be in good shape for Yom Kippur, we need a serious training in the field of introspection and in the area of priorities reevaluation. Only then, we will have the mental clarity to make in Yom Kippur the best resolutions for the coming year.
The Halachot are shared by Midrash Sefardi Yeshiva Jerusalem.
29 of Ab, 5774
Tomorrow morning we will begin our preparation for Yom Kippur.
The Sephardic custom is to recite the Selihot prayer from the second day of the month of Elul (tomorrow) until Yom Kippur.
Selihot is a special set of Tefilot that we say for forty days which lead us to reflect on our past actions and ask forgiveness from HaShem for our mistakes and wrongdoings. Selihot is traditionally said before dawn, prior to the morning prayer (Shaharit), although technically Selihot could be said also during nighttime (after midnight) or even during the day.
The Ashkenazi Minhag is to start Selihot services the last Sunday before Rosh haShana. However, when Rosh haShana falls on a Monday or Tuesday (it can never fall on a Sunday) Ashkenazi Jews will begin Selihot two Sundays before Rosh haShana.
Also, during the entire month of Elul Ashkenazim and many Sephardim (Moroccans, Persians, etc. but not Syrians) have the custom to blow the Shofar.
The goal of the Selihot is to inspire us to begin the process of Teshuba. Teshuba consists of introspection and repentance. But ultimately it means coming back or closer to God (depending on one's point of departure). This high spiritual goal, which we aspire to reach in Yom Kippur, cannot be achieved overnight or just by making the decision to change. It demands a serious and patient course of actions in which we revisit our deeds and particularly our values, reexamine our existential goals and the material distractions that have driven us away from those goals. This intense spiritual and intellectual process begins tomorrow and culminates during Yom Kippur.
To better understand the role of Selihot think of Yom Kippur as a spiritual marathon: a whole day consecrated exclusively to appealing to HaShem, begging His forgiveness and committing ourselves to major changes in our lives. No one will run a marathon without a previous intense training. Similarly, to be in good shape for Yom Kippur, we need a serious training in the field of introspection and in the area of priorities reevaluation. Only then, we will have the mental clarity to make in Yom Kippur the best resolutions for the coming year.
RSS Feed
