Venue: Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhurst Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhurst

Halacha:

Elul 

Machshava:

Rosh Hashana,  Teshuva,  Yom Kippur 

Description

hat does it actually mean to be a beinoni, the person whose fate hangs suspended between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur? Starting from the Gemara in Rosh Hashana 16b and the Rambam's formulation in Hilchos Teshuva, this shiur works through two core questions: why is standing still spiritually so dangerous, and how can anyone's merits and sins truly balance out when the law of averages says a perfect tie is nearly impossible? Answers from the Lechem Mishna, the Alter of Novardok, Pachad Yitzchak, and Nesivos Shalom reveal that the scales measure character rather than a tally of deeds, and that teshuva itself is what tips them.