The Weekly Shtikle - Rosh HaShanah

I heard the following in a shiur this week from R' Tzvi Mordechai Feldheim. On the first day of Rosh HaShanah, we read about the birth of Yitzchak Avinu and the events that follow. There is a lot of laughter surrounding this momentous event. Although the same word is used every time, there is a different meaning to each. Avraham first expresses his joy in the form of laughter when he learns of the impending news. Sarah laughs internally and is chided for her reaction. And after his birth, Sarah declares (21:6) that all who hear the good tidings will rejoice for her. But then, Yishmael is immediately observed by Sarah to be playing. The same word – metzacheik – is used. This is a cynical, mocking laughter of Yishmael realizing that he is not on Yitzchak's level and thus putting him down. For this, Sarah declares that he can no longer remain in the house.

In the ensuing episode, Hagar is forced to leave with her son and they very soon run out of water and are in danger of death. There is quite an intriguing nuance in the pesukim that follow (21:15-17). Hagar places Yishmael under a bush. Certain that he will soon die, she sits a distance and raises her voice and cries bitterly. As the well-known story goes, HaShem hears the voice of the boy – ba'asher hu sham – and reassures Hagar. But at no point does it ever mention that the boy cried, only that Hagar did. R' Feldheim suggests that Yishmael was not crying or even praying. He was lying in the bushes in persistent cynicism, lamenting his situation and everything that has befallen him, being abandoned by everyone around him. But HaShem hears that behind that bitter contempt is a cry of pain and of yearning that HaShem should help him and he wants to be better. This is not a cry that is heard by anyone. It is one that only HaShem can discern.

This certainly speaks to the theme of every Rosh HaShanah. While we may fall short in our attempts to capture the essence of the day to declare HaShem as our King, we wish that HaShem hear our deeper unheard cries that perhaps we cannot fully vocalize. Even more so, in a year such as this when we do not blow the shofar on the first day. The crying sound of the shofar is not heard. Instead, it is our desire that HaShem hears the cry from within our hearts that we cannot express or articulate, our desire to improve and become better people.

Have a good Shabbos, a good Yom Tov and a shanah tovah umsukah.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

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