Neilah Unlocked: The Prayer of a Soldier
When the Gates of Heaven Close with You Inside
- September 25, 2020
- |
- 7 Tishrei 5781
Rabbi YY Jacobson
1994 views
Neilah Unlocked: The Prayer of a Soldier
When the Gates of Heaven Close with You Inside
Rabbi YY Jacobson- September 25, 2020
The Cantonist
Abraham Lewin, the author of a book in Yiddish entitled, Kantonisten (Cantonists) relates a moving incident on Yom Kippur in an unnamed Russian city.
The Cantonists were child-recruits in the Russian military. The Russian Tsar, Peter the Great (1672-1725), devised the system in which young men were drafted to serve in the military for prolonged terms. But it was Tsar Nicholas Pavolovich (1796-1855), who ruled Russia from 1825 till 1855, who ordered Jewish children to be drafted, and used the system to force Jewish children to accept Baptism. The children were literally stolen from their homes in the shtetles and forced to serve for six years as trainees and then another 25 years as soldiers. They faced severe pressure by all means, including torture, to become Christian.
It remains one of the most horrific sagas of Russian Jewish history. All Jewish communities of Russia were faced with the Tsars' quotas of providing young soldiers: ten recruits from every one thousand men. And it was mostly children and teens from age 7 and up. The Tsar issued the orders, the leaders of each town's Kahal (Jewish communal organization) which for the most part perceived non-compliance as not an option, provided the recruits, and the chappers (kidnappers) did the dirty work for a fee. It was usually the poor kids who were the recruits, and many Kahal officials profited from payments from the wealthy for their sons' exemptions.
And so, it happened on one Yom Kippur, that a particular Cantonist entered a shul. This very fact indicated that he most probably had never succumbed to the enormous pressure to accept Baptism. Had he undergone Baptism, he would have been officially listed as a Christian and prohibited from ever entering a synagogue during the reign of Nicholas.
In recognition of his self-sacrifice, the congregation appointed the Cantonist to lead the Neilah (concluding) prayers -- the most hallowed moment of the year. The gesture clearly demonstrated one of great admiration for the man who tenaciously held on to his faith at all costs.
The soldier of Tsar Nicholas made his way to the front of the shul. Having forgotten almost all the religious training he had received as a child, including the ability to read Hebrew, he could not recite, nor lead the Neilah prayers. However, before the congregation, he expressed a powerful prayer from the heart, which shook the entire congregation.
He proclaimed: "Father in Heaven, what shall I pray for? I cannot pray for children for I never got married and have no hope to raise a family. I am too old to start now. I can't pray for life, for what value is such a life? It would be better for me if I died. I cannot pray to be able to make a living since Nicholas provides for my daily food; I do not need any money. The only thing I can pray for is, "Yisgadal VeYoiskadash Shmei Rabah," "May your name be blessed forever" (from the Kaddish).
When hearing these words, the entire congregation wept. They wept over the pain this Jewish soldier endured. They wept for the tens of thousands of other Cantonists who were forced to endure the same hardships, as well as their families.
They also wept when they saw and heard what a Jew is! At his core he asks for nothing. Only for Yisgadal Veyiskadash Shmei Rabah.
Neilah Unlocked
If Judaism were the sport of baseball, then Yom Kippur’s Neilah prayer would be the ninth inning of a World Series game. What is Neilah? It means closure. The Rabbis taught that this is the time right before the closing of the gates of heaven at the end of Yom Kippur, so it is our last opportunity to ask for what we need, to repent, to seal ourselves in the book of life.
Yet this insight is incomplete. Why is the prayer called Neilah, closure, when it is the final prayer before the closing of the gates of heaven?
The Lubavitcher Rebbe in 1963 shared a new insight into Neilah:[1] During Neilah the gates of heaven are closed already, with you inside. During Neilah you are alone with G-d.
Yom Kippur, the sages say, is the wedding day between G-d and His bride. Thus, we dress in white, like a bride at her wedding. The traditional Jewish marriage ceremony culminates with the bride and groom entering a secluded room ("cheder yichud" in Hebrew) to spend time alone with each other. Yom Kippur too culminates with the Neilah, or closure prayer, so called because as the sun of Yom Kippur sets, the gates of heaven close—with us inside.
No matter who you are, where you are, where you come from, what you know or don’t know, what you do or don’t do—at this time of Yom Kippur, you are one with G-d. G-d invites you alone for an intimate moment with Him.
Every day we have three prayers — Maariv (the evening prayer), Shacharis (the morning prayer) and Mincha (the afternoon prayer). On Shabbat and every other Jewish holiday, we have a fourth — Mussaf (the additional prayer). But only on Yom Kippur is there a fifth service — Neilah. This is because Neilah corresponds to the fifth and highest dimension of the soul — the Holy of Holies of the soul — which we access on this one day at this time.
The soul has five dimensions: Nefesh, Ruach, Neshamah, Chayah, Yechidah (Spirit, Breath, Soul, Life, Oneness). They represent your functional biological life, your emotional life, your cognitive self, your transcendental aspirations, and your core undefined essence, a mirror of Divine infinity and harmony.
They correspond to the five prayers in Judaism: Maariv, Shacharit, Mincha, Mussaf, Neilah. All days of the year we’re usually able to access the three dimensions of our soul; on Shabbat we access the fourth, Chayah. On Yom Kippur can we access the fifth layer of identity, Yechidah — the oneness with infinite oneness. It is the most intimate, vulnerable, gentle part of the soul of the human being, unshielded by the defenses of the other levels. We reach it at the precise moment when Neilah is said, and when, at its conclusion, we declare Shema Israel: “Hear O Israel, God is our Lord, God is One.”
This was the gift the Cantonist gave to the community during that Neilah prayer in a Russian town in the 19th century.
[1] Likkutei Sichos vol. 4, page 1154
- Comment
Class Summary:
Neilah Unlocked: The Prayer of a Soldier
Dedicated by Susan Goldberg, in memory of Aryeh Lev ben Zev Volf and Yocheved bat Matityahu Goldczer. May their Neshamahs have an Aliyah.
The Cantonist
Abraham Lewin, the author of a book in Yiddish entitled, Kantonisten (Cantonists) relates a moving incident on Yom Kippur in an unnamed Russian city.
The Cantonists were child-recruits in the Russian military. The Russian Tsar, Peter the Great (1672-1725), devised the system in which young men were drafted to serve in the military for prolonged terms. But it was Tsar Nicholas Pavolovich (1796-1855), who ruled Russia from 1825 till 1855, who ordered Jewish children to be drafted, and used the system to force Jewish children to accept Baptism. The children were literally stolen from their homes in the shtetles and forced to serve for six years as trainees and then another 25 years as soldiers. They faced severe pressure by all means, including torture, to become Christian.
It remains one of the most horrific sagas of Russian Jewish history. All Jewish communities of Russia were faced with the Tsars' quotas of providing young soldiers: ten recruits from every one thousand men. And it was mostly children and teens from age 7 and up. The Tsar issued the orders, the leaders of each town's Kahal (Jewish communal organization) which for the most part perceived non-compliance as not an option, provided the recruits, and the chappers (kidnappers) did the dirty work for a fee. It was usually the poor kids who were the recruits, and many Kahal officials profited from payments from the wealthy for their sons' exemptions.
And so, it happened on one Yom Kippur, that a particular Cantonist entered a shul. This very fact indicated that he most probably had never succumbed to the enormous pressure to accept Baptism. Had he undergone Baptism, he would have been officially listed as a Christian and prohibited from ever entering a synagogue during the reign of Nicholas.
In recognition of his self-sacrifice, the congregation appointed the Cantonist to lead the Neilah (concluding) prayers -- the most hallowed moment of the year. The gesture clearly demonstrated one of great admiration for the man who tenaciously held on to his faith at all costs.
The soldier of Tsar Nicholas made his way to the front of the shul. Having forgotten almost all the religious training he had received as a child, including the ability to read Hebrew, he could not recite, nor lead the Neilah prayers. However, before the congregation, he expressed a powerful prayer from the heart, which shook the entire congregation.
He proclaimed: "Father in Heaven, what shall I pray for? I cannot pray for children for I never got married and have no hope to raise a family. I am too old to start now. I can't pray for life, for what value is such a life? It would be better for me if I died. I cannot pray to be able to make a living since Nicholas provides for my daily food; I do not need any money. The only thing I can pray for is, "Yisgadal VeYoiskadash Shmei Rabah," "May your name be blessed forever" (from the Kaddish).
When hearing these words, the entire congregation wept. They wept over the pain this Jewish soldier endured. They wept for the tens of thousands of other Cantonists who were forced to endure the same hardships, as well as their families.
They also wept when they saw and heard what a Jew is! At his core he asks for nothing. Only for Yisgadal Veyiskadash Shmei Rabah.
Neilah Unlocked
If Judaism were the sport of baseball, then Yom Kippur’s Neilah prayer would be the ninth inning of a World Series game. What is Neilah? It means closure. The Rabbis taught that this is the time right before the closing of the gates of heaven at the end of Yom Kippur, so it is our last opportunity to ask for what we need, to repent, to seal ourselves in the book of life.
Yet this insight is incomplete. Why is the prayer called Neilah, closure, when it is the final prayer before the closing of the gates of heaven?
The Lubavitcher Rebbe in 1963 shared a new insight into Neilah:[1] During Neilah the gates of heaven are closed already, with you inside. During Neilah you are alone with G-d.
Yom Kippur, the sages say, is the wedding day between G-d and His bride. Thus, we dress in white, like a bride at her wedding. The traditional Jewish marriage ceremony culminates with the bride and groom entering a secluded room ("cheder yichud" in Hebrew) to spend time alone with each other. Yom Kippur too culminates with the Neilah, or closure prayer, so called because as the sun of Yom Kippur sets, the gates of heaven close—with us inside.
No matter who you are, where you are, where you come from, what you know or don’t know, what you do or don’t do—at this time of Yom Kippur, you are one with G-d. G-d invites you alone for an intimate moment with Him.
Every day we have three prayers — Maariv (the evening prayer), Shacharis (the morning prayer) and Mincha (the afternoon prayer). On Shabbat and every other Jewish holiday, we have a fourth — Mussaf (the additional prayer). But only on Yom Kippur is there a fifth service — Neilah. This is because Neilah corresponds to the fifth and highest dimension of the soul — the Holy of Holies of the soul — which we access on this one day at this time.
The soul has five dimensions: Nefesh, Ruach, Neshamah, Chayah, Yechidah (Spirit, Breath, Soul, Life, Oneness). They represent your functional biological life, your emotional life, your cognitive self, your transcendental aspirations, and your core undefined essence, a mirror of Divine infinity and harmony.
They correspond to the five prayers in Judaism: Maariv, Shacharit, Mincha, Mussaf, Neilah. All days of the year we’re usually able to access the three dimensions of our soul; on Shabbat we access the fourth, Chayah. On Yom Kippur can we access the fifth layer of identity, Yechidah — the oneness with infinite oneness. It is the most intimate, vulnerable, gentle part of the soul of the human being, unshielded by the defenses of the other levels. We reach it at the precise moment when Neilah is said, and when, at its conclusion, we declare Shema Israel: “Hear O Israel, God is our Lord, God is One.”
This was the gift the Cantonist gave to the community during that Neilah prayer in a Russian town in the 19th century.
[1] Likkutei Sichos vol. 4, page 1154
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Yom Kippur Essay
Rabbi YY Jacobson- September 25, 2020
- |
- 7 Tishrei 5781
- |
- 1994 views
Neilah Unlocked: The Prayer of a Soldier
When the Gates of Heaven Close with You Inside
Rabbi YY Jacobson- September 25, 2020
The Cantonist
Abraham Lewin, the author of a book in Yiddish entitled, Kantonisten (Cantonists) relates a moving incident on Yom Kippur in an unnamed Russian city.
The Cantonists were child-recruits in the Russian military. The Russian Tsar, Peter the Great (1672-1725), devised the system in which young men were drafted to serve in the military for prolonged terms. But it was Tsar Nicholas Pavolovich (1796-1855), who ruled Russia from 1825 till 1855, who ordered Jewish children to be drafted, and used the system to force Jewish children to accept Baptism. The children were literally stolen from their homes in the shtetles and forced to serve for six years as trainees and then another 25 years as soldiers. They faced severe pressure by all means, including torture, to become Christian.
It remains one of the most horrific sagas of Russian Jewish history. All Jewish communities of Russia were faced with the Tsars' quotas of providing young soldiers: ten recruits from every one thousand men. And it was mostly children and teens from age 7 and up. The Tsar issued the orders, the leaders of each town's Kahal (Jewish communal organization) which for the most part perceived non-compliance as not an option, provided the recruits, and the chappers (kidnappers) did the dirty work for a fee. It was usually the poor kids who were the recruits, and many Kahal officials profited from payments from the wealthy for their sons' exemptions.
And so, it happened on one Yom Kippur, that a particular Cantonist entered a shul. This very fact indicated that he most probably had never succumbed to the enormous pressure to accept Baptism. Had he undergone Baptism, he would have been officially listed as a Christian and prohibited from ever entering a synagogue during the reign of Nicholas.
In recognition of his self-sacrifice, the congregation appointed the Cantonist to lead the Neilah (concluding) prayers -- the most hallowed moment of the year. The gesture clearly demonstrated one of great admiration for the man who tenaciously held on to his faith at all costs.
The soldier of Tsar Nicholas made his way to the front of the shul. Having forgotten almost all the religious training he had received as a child, including the ability to read Hebrew, he could not recite, nor lead the Neilah prayers. However, before the congregation, he expressed a powerful prayer from the heart, which shook the entire congregation.
He proclaimed: "Father in Heaven, what shall I pray for? I cannot pray for children for I never got married and have no hope to raise a family. I am too old to start now. I can't pray for life, for what value is such a life? It would be better for me if I died. I cannot pray to be able to make a living since Nicholas provides for my daily food; I do not need any money. The only thing I can pray for is, "Yisgadal VeYoiskadash Shmei Rabah," "May your name be blessed forever" (from the Kaddish).
When hearing these words, the entire congregation wept. They wept over the pain this Jewish soldier endured. They wept for the tens of thousands of other Cantonists who were forced to endure the same hardships, as well as their families.
They also wept when they saw and heard what a Jew is! At his core he asks for nothing. Only for Yisgadal Veyiskadash Shmei Rabah.
Neilah Unlocked
If Judaism were the sport of baseball, then Yom Kippur’s Neilah prayer would be the ninth inning of a World Series game. What is Neilah? It means closure. The Rabbis taught that this is the time right before the closing of the gates of heaven at the end of Yom Kippur, so it is our last opportunity to ask for what we need, to repent, to seal ourselves in the book of life.
Yet this insight is incomplete. Why is the prayer called Neilah, closure, when it is the final prayer before the closing of the gates of heaven?
The Lubavitcher Rebbe in 1963 shared a new insight into Neilah:[1] During Neilah the gates of heaven are closed already, with you inside. During Neilah you are alone with G-d.
Yom Kippur, the sages say, is the wedding day between G-d and His bride. Thus, we dress in white, like a bride at her wedding. The traditional Jewish marriage ceremony culminates with the bride and groom entering a secluded room ("cheder yichud" in Hebrew) to spend time alone with each other. Yom Kippur too culminates with the Neilah, or closure prayer, so called because as the sun of Yom Kippur sets, the gates of heaven close—with us inside.
No matter who you are, where you are, where you come from, what you know or don’t know, what you do or don’t do—at this time of Yom Kippur, you are one with G-d. G-d invites you alone for an intimate moment with Him.
Every day we have three prayers — Maariv (the evening prayer), Shacharis (the morning prayer) and Mincha (the afternoon prayer). On Shabbat and every other Jewish holiday, we have a fourth — Mussaf (the additional prayer). But only on Yom Kippur is there a fifth service — Neilah. This is because Neilah corresponds to the fifth and highest dimension of the soul — the Holy of Holies of the soul — which we access on this one day at this time.
The soul has five dimensions: Nefesh, Ruach, Neshamah, Chayah, Yechidah (Spirit, Breath, Soul, Life, Oneness). They represent your functional biological life, your emotional life, your cognitive self, your transcendental aspirations, and your core undefined essence, a mirror of Divine infinity and harmony.
They correspond to the five prayers in Judaism: Maariv, Shacharit, Mincha, Mussaf, Neilah. All days of the year we’re usually able to access the three dimensions of our soul; on Shabbat we access the fourth, Chayah. On Yom Kippur can we access the fifth layer of identity, Yechidah — the oneness with infinite oneness. It is the most intimate, vulnerable, gentle part of the soul of the human being, unshielded by the defenses of the other levels. We reach it at the precise moment when Neilah is said, and when, at its conclusion, we declare Shema Israel: “Hear O Israel, God is our Lord, God is One.”
This was the gift the Cantonist gave to the community during that Neilah prayer in a Russian town in the 19th century.
[1] Likkutei Sichos vol. 4, page 1154
- Comment
Dedicated by Susan Goldberg, in memory of Aryeh Lev ben Zev Volf and Yocheved bat Matityahu Goldczer. May their Neshamahs have an Aliyah.
Class Summary:
Neilah Unlocked: The Prayer of a Soldier
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C Gold -3 years ago
Wow!
Wow! so inspirational! This essay was a short one but to the point, very beautiful!
Thank you!
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Anonymous -3 years ago
Takes away my breath
in a deep sigh....
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