Repentance, Teshuva in Hebrew, is a core concept of Judaism and a bold one. It teaches that we have the power to change ourselves and the world. Rabbi Chaya Rowen Baker highlights her vision of Judaism embracing Teshuva.
Repentance, or Teshuva, is the focal point of these days, particularly as we approach Yom Kippur.
And this year, when so much of what we knew to be true about life has been challenged, I find that Teshuva has an especially poignant role in centering us and helping us to find strength to heal and to effect change.
I think that since Teshuva is so very central to our faith, as an annual ritual, we may take it for granted. We’re so used to it in Jewish tradition that we may not recognize how revolutionary it really is. It teaches that change is within our power. It demands of us to be bold, to imagine a better reality, and to believe in the unrealistic. A culture in which Teshuva is a basic tenet will always be innovative and revolutionary.
The Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Pesachim, includes Teshuva in a list of seven things created before the creation of the world, presenting it as a notion pivotal to the very existence of the world, an idea of cosmic significance.
It is at the core of our ongoing relationship with God. Jewish tradition takes it to the extreme, by offering endless opportunities for correction. Midrash Eicha Rabba quotes Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman as comparing Teshuva to the sea in that they are both boundless, and saying, “Just as the sea is endless, the gates of Teshuva never close.”
And we do find that during the High Holy Days, the deadline for Teshuva is pushed back time and time again, so that there is always another opportunity to repent: on Rosh Hashanah our judgment is decreed, but it is only sealed on Yom Kippur, and that in a crescendo following ten intense days of Teshuva, a long day of fasting and praying, and a dramatic closing, at the Neilah service, when the gates presumably close. Only then we discover that we actually have until Hoshana Rabbah, the seventh day of Sukkot, to sweeten our judgement; immediately after which the cycle of Rashei Hodashim, the beginnings of each month, begins — which are also believed to be times of atonement, and in fact every day is a day in which one can repent, as Midrash Eicha Rabba teaches, “Even if a person has sinned their whole life and repents on the day of their death, all their sins are forgiven.”
This idea is the foundation of hope; it’s the foundation of freedom. It invites us to take responsibility and be people who choose, and act, and initiate, and lead, and it teaches us that it’s never too late and that we need to try again and again and again, and more importantly – that every such attempt has value in itself, regardless of the outcome.
We enter this Yom Kippur, as we have every other holy day since October 7th last year, with broken hearts, broken dreams, fractured hope. We agonize over so many in suffering, we worry for the future of our homeland, and we are wearied of tragedy, combat, and frustration. But we are the people of Teshuva, the people of revolutions, the people who believe in the impossible.
May these days of repentance be an inspiration to look forward, proud of this core creed of our powerful people, and to write a better next chapter for our land and our people.
גמר חתימה טובה
Rabbi Chaya Rowen Baker, Dean, The Schechter Rabbinical Seminary.
Ordained in 2007 by the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary, Rabbi Rowen Baker has served, since her ordination, as the rabbi of Kehillat Ramot-Zion in French Hill, Jerusalem. Ramot Zion, a flagship Masorti congregation, is home to many Israelis in search of a meaningful connection to Jewish tradition in a rapidly changing world. For the past eight years, she has served as Coordinator of Practical Rabbinics at SRS.
Much of Rabbi Rowen Baker’s work is done outside the synagogue space, with those not accustomed to synagogue life, so as to make accessible a vibrant Jewish approach and practice which is part of all walks of life. In 2015 she was the first Masorti rabbi – and the first ever female rabbi – to be invited to teach Torah at the Israeli President’s residence.
Rabbi Rowen Baker holds an MA with Distinction in Talmud and Jewish Thought from The Schechter Institute, and a BA in Jewish History and Archeology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She is a fellow at the Honey Foundation for Israel and a member of the Rabbinical Assembly Executive Council.
Rabbi Rowen Baker lives in French Hill, Jerusalem with her husband Etai, their four children and their dog Hummus.