Read on Twitter
#RoshHashanah isn't about forgiveness. It's about standing in judgement before God and facing up to what we've done.
To the extent that forgiveness is possible, it comes on Yom Kippur.
God's judgement is not a bad thing. It's not about punishment, it's about accountability.
We are living in dangerous times. There are moral issues we can't afford to evade or ignore.
There needs to be a moral reckoning. There is a lot of pressure, from all sides, not to do that work.
It's very, very difficult to keep integrity in the face of derision and judgement from other people. It's hard not to back down.
In that context, God's judgement means a lot to me. I welcome it. I need it, in order to keep my integrity.
I don't believe in divine reward and punishment. I think it's pretty clear that the world doesn't work that way.
What I do believe is: I can fool myself. I can fool other people. I can't fool God. God knows the full truth of what I have done.
I am not interested in absolution. I am interested in moral clarity. I want God to help me know what is right and do what is right.
Particularly now. So, as we go into Rosh Hashana: Let's all take the opportunity to examine our actions and find ways to turn away from sin.
Teshuva is not absolution. There are no blank slates, only new pages. We can't rewrite the past, but we can write a better future.
Judgement won't destroy us. God already knows what we've done. If God was going to strike us down for it, that already would have happened.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
