Parshas Bereishis: After a Stirring Elul, a Rousing Rosh Hashanah, an Emotional Yom Kippur, and a Rapturous Sukkos, the Question Remains: What Now?

0:00 We have experienced so much during these days. It is now Thursday, October 16th, 2025, the 24th of Tishra, 5786. We are coming to you live on the weekly Parsha podcast brought to you by the Motivation Congregation Podcast Network. And it is time to take a deep breath. We have spent numerous days engaged in Teshuva, in Saliha, in Tedaka, in Torah, in Simcha, in Kapara.

0:47 All the way back. This incredible experience, spiritual experience, the ebbing and flowing, the vicissitudes, the spiritual vacation that was El and Tishrei, it began back on August 25th. Do you remember it? Reshaidish Elul when Moshe ascended Arsenai for the third time? Do you remember you when you just over a month ago engaged in the Anila Dodi Vidodili closeness of El? Do you remember listening to the shofar at the end of your chakra ceremony?

1:33 Do you remember saying Ladavid morning and evening? Saying Salichos very early in the morning? Do you remember visiting the graves of loved ones? And even of ones that you never knew, in an effort to try to remind yourself of the impending day of doom? Do you remember writing and speaking out the words of Ankativa? A Siva? The Hassima Taiva, a good gebensched year, a good writing in a ceiling of judgment to you and your friend on your pieces of paper and uttering them into the ears of your friends all during the month of El, an effort to try to bless them, that they too should be remembered for a year of life and happiness.

2:21 It wasn't that long ago. We spent Rosh Hashanah, the day of arousal, listening to the shofar. Waking ourselves up. We spent era of Rosh Hashanah preparation for this incredible day. We went to the mikveh, we purified ourselves in the spiritual bathhouse, all to ready ourselves for the Malchios, the Zhronos, and the Shofros. We heard from the hallowed out, hallowed out, and hallowed ram's horn that would tell us that it's time to take life seriously.

3:09 We had festive meals, we had simonim, apples and honey. We listened to the haftora of khana and the importance that God really bestows upon heartfelt prayer. We listened to the laning of the binding of Yitzchuk, of Roham and Yitzhuk during the Akidah and we learned about what it means to be obedient slaves to the word of God. We performed Tashlik and we threw away our sins. We did Hataras Nadarin before Rosh Hashanah in an effort to cut down all of the poor decisions or ending of the good decisions that we have made over the past year.

3:57 We even fasted after Rosh Hashanah during the spiritual expedition of Elol and Rosh Hashanah and AsarasyMe Shuva and Yom Kippur and Sukhis and the entire month of Tishra. We fasted on Matsei Rosh Hashanah when it was the commemorating of the assassination of Gedalia. We spent the AsarasyMe Hatashuva examining our ways, engaging in Teshuva, improving our Durachim in the anticipation of Yoim Kippur. We said more Slichos.

4:39 We gave more Tidaka. We did more acts of kindness. We spent more time on self-reflection. We had extra zahe, extra vigilance in our Avaidas Hashem. We were involved in Dir Shu Hashem Bihi Matza O Kiriob O isai karov calling out to God. Even if we just did it one extra time, but we did it. We had a Shabboshuva. We listened to speeches. We returned.

5:21 We said Amelacha Kadosh over and over. The holy king. We said Amelacha Mishpat over and over. We reminded ourselves of the precise king of judgment. We said Avinkenu, our father, our king, morning and evening. We said it over and over, trying to storm the heavens to earn a gracious judgment. Some of us even abstained from passpalter, baked goods produced by a non-Jew. We spent Air of Yom Kippur in Vido in eating.

6:09 Seeking forgiveness from friends. More eating at the Sudasamafsecas. More eating of the Kriplach. Really is unbelievable how much of Judaism is connected to eating. But eventually the Kol Nidra ceremony, it began. Prominent fellows in the congregation circling around the bima, holding the holy sifre Torah with the rabbi. A real somber and serious mood descends over the congregation. We involved our entire Jewish lives and our entire communities.

6:54 In real angel-like service of Hashem on Yom Kippur. When the Bashamiddash stood in Yerushalayim, the entire elaborate sacrificial sacrifice and service that went on the Bas Hamiddash by the Kohen. We read about it in the Musf prayer, the Avoda. We read about the healing of the flesh and the skin of Rebbe Akiva in the afternoon of Yom Kibah and remind ourselves about some of the most extraordinary Torah giants that ever walked God's beautiful green earth. We heard about Yona, the great prophet, when we read Mafter Yonah, on the afternoon of Yom Kippur, when we are rather falling apart from the fast physically.

7:51 But the reminders of the prophet who fled from his obligations before reminding himself and taking to heart the Lord's calls and his decrees and his wants of us before he then walked right up to the largest city. He went to Nidinve and reminded everyone that they need to repent, and they reminded them, he reminded them of their spiritual obligations, and everybody listened to him. We took to heart Yona's shuva and Yonah's commitment to his spiritual obligations, his responsibilities. We heard all of these messages.

8:34 We spent this Ell and Tishra spiritual expedition in Unisana Tokef, reciting the Hashem Hashem thirteen attributes of mercy. We had closeness, never before seen closeness between man and his creator. We spent time in angelicness, angelness, whichever one is a word of either. We had Motzyom Kippur with meals. We broke the fast. We made kirish lavana. We celebrated.

9:15 We broke our fast on a glass of wine. For those that did. We immediately spent and took the next step in our spiritual elolent tisrae past month or two when we pulled out the beams of our sukkah and built it. We built it with excitement. We built it with children. We built it with canvas. We built it with wood. We hung our children's decorations. Or maybe we just bought a pop-up sucker. From the center of town.

9:56 We ran out to pick our perfect set of Dalad Minim. We had our S rogues checked by tower giants. Or we looked them over with our own set of eyes. We had a perfectly sandwiched and glued Tiumas. We had raw, evervescent willows. And however you say hadasim in English. We tied down our sukkas in the preparation of an impending storm in Nor'easter. We cooked a lot for the Yantif.

10:37 We began to buy wine for the Yantif. We bought toys for the Yantif. We celebrated a great deal on the Yantif of sukkas. We rejoiced with our Lulav and Esrog and we exclaimed the brilliant Halel over and over. We had Cholamoid and we spent way too much money and did not receive nearly enough in our overpriced, underdelivering Cholamoid activities. We listened to Kohelas. We had Ashana Rabbah.

11:18 We spent minutes or hours or even entire nights learning. Before spiking, slamming the willow branches on the floor five times and col mevasar mevaser veomer. We had a romantic day, a romantic evening of Shemini Atseris with the Bore Olam, just us and Hashem at the end of this entire spiritual expedition. Just one day without any mice mitzvos, just us and the king. But then the party rolled on. We had another day in this El Tishre spiritual high.

12:01 We had Simkas Torah, where we locked arms and jubilantly danced, encircled the Torahs. We went around and round with Tiras HM Temima and Ashray Om Shekaholo. We threw up our children and Moisha MS Vitai Rasai MS. We heard Torah giants singing Mippikel, Mippi Kel, Mivayrach, Yisrael. We heard other great community leaders, those crowned with the Torah, finishing the Torah with Chasan Torah and beginning the Torah anew with Chasan Bracious.

12:45 They really put a finishing touch on the spiritual high, the ebbs and flows of the most incredible holiday season. This entire spiritual experience has been otherworldly. It's been a month that now leaves you wondering. What do we do now? It's been a more than a month. Almost two months now. Fifty days that leaves you. What now?

13:27 We've had so many spiritual high points. To Arisa holidays. Really, it is interesting to see how the Jewish calendar is like a sprinkled donut. And that it the holidays are not sprinkled evenly on top of the donut with one new holiday every three months. Just a bunch of sprinkles evenly placed on top. But rather it's those type of donuts that you have where all the sprinkles are squished over onto one side, where there's an intense spiritual high during Tishrei, before there are numerous months of spiritual darkness until we reach another calling back of the Jewish people for one of the Mo'adim during the month of Nisan.

14:24 Our Jewish months are like those real superchargers for your phone, those powered battery chargers, the 125, 300 watt chargers, that you have one to two months of really lighting your spiritual batteries and charging up your phone before an entire month. Months? Several months, numerous months, without a charger, without a MOAD. So as we now unplug our device, what are we supposed to do now?

15:05 What are we supposed to do without any Moadim, without any holidays in the near future? No Shabbashuvas. No spiking or banging of the Hoshanos. No listening to the rabbi. Sing his Lechai Olumim. We won't be in shol as much as we have been. Now we're kinda on the side of the road as we've missed the bust. We're not sure what to do. So what do we do? As we are not sure what to do, I ask you, what do we do?

15:50 I like to assert that the Jewish answer and the proper Musrhashkafa to the impending multiple months of spiritual wasteland. I say that with a grain of salt, the spiritual days that are not speckled with Mo'adim. The answer is simple as to how we are to turn our presence towards them. We are to know with a very straightforward and frankness that all of these Moadim were not the main point and main act of the play.

16:37 All of these events, all of our activities, all of our El and Tishrei galas, extravaganzas, all of the Hoshana Rabbas and our Seresyame Teshuvas are nothing more but a hahana of preparation for our daily routines, for our daily activities that are coming up. Our Avoda during the regular months. Our Avoida's Hashem during the 9 to 5 Monday through Thursday grind is what all of these months have been preparing for.

17:28 Our Elul, Rash Hashanah and Yamkippar Mahsar, a preparation for your weekly planner of the forthcoming months. Our Simchas Torah Hakafos, preparation for your carpool, Hakafhos that you will endeavor to complete this coming winter. Our Teshuva and our Tvila and our tsidaka, a mere preparation. To see how we will handle our honest business endeavors. Our brachos that we made and our inspiration that we internalized during Elul and Tishrei was there to coach you as to how you would handle your regular Wednesday evening pizza dinner with the family.

18:20 Because Judaism is unlike any other religion. See, other religions, they go about their lives as daily affairs before they attend church on Sunday. They attend the house of worship to consider these times in church different, unique, the true purpose of life, a separation of church and state. Where the church is the house of worship and the rest of the schedule, the state, mundane, plain. Judaism is the opposite. After we got the Torah from Akadish Borakhu, Moshura Binu brought it down to us. He gave it to us.

19:00 We witnessed the entire thing. We have been shown to know. We saw it. We saw the entire thing. And at the very end of the ceremony, we got our instruction. We got our direction, which was now take this book back to your tents and live by it. Judaism's church, Judaism's synagogue is your ordinary life when you bring it back to your tent.

19:40 Take these spiritual highs and make your daily activities inspired with godliness. Leave shol inspired, so that you will now perform in the house of worship. What is that? Your office. The house of worship, which is where you maintain peace and calm in your home. Go back to your house of worship, which is not in the shool in your churches, but is back where you are now, relaxing with your colleagues, and you have the opportunity to speak Lash and Hara.

20:23 Toy Ras Hashem, Toy Rashaim says, bring it back to your tents, and now live by it, because you know what you have seen. And there is no separation of church and state. The Yiddish term for the synagogue is shul, a Jewish prayer house.

21:04 But originally, this word is German. Really hits on the point we're trying to make here. The word shul comes from the German word S-C-H-U-L-E. Schulge, meaning school. Your Schul is to be not the place that you engage in being a Jew at your Super Bowl, like that's your main moment. But no, you're supposed to learn from the shul, understand, and see, even copy to an extent, the rabbi. As you learn your lesson, when you leave the shol, that's your real place of performing the education that you have internalized while you were in the school, which is the shul.

21:52 The same word. You know what's funny? Modern orthodoxy is a funny concept. Modern Orthodoxy is what so many Jews claim to be, and sometimes it gets a bad rap. And often the modern orthodoxy movement is synonymous with an observance and an engaged, positive approach to contemporary and secular world Torah, with a philosophy of Torah umada with Torah and seculary knowledge. But sometimes modern orthodoxy has a connotation that obsessive and passionate-filled, emotion-filled service of Hashem can sometimes take a back seat when you have a real business opportunity.

22:37 Sometimes modern orthodoxy can leave a person confused as to does God come first or does his financial or modern contemporary pursuits come first? But it's been a while since the ghetto walls have fallen in Europe. It's been a while since the Jewish boy has been opened up to a modern world. For better or for worse, most Jewish children are modernized. They know how to use Google Maps. Most Jewish children are not ghetto boys, ghetto girls, but they know how to use ways and they know about July 4th and Veterans Day.

23:21 They know about Valentine's Day. They know even from one trip from LaGuardia to Tel Aviv so much, too much about the modern Orthodox culture. But are you so today? Is that you should not be ashamed of being a modern Orthodox Jew? Are you so today? Is that to be a real modern Jew means that you may have some exposure to the outside world because that is unmistakable.

24:01 It is nearly impossible to not have any exposure. But modern orthodoxy is to be passionate, honest Torah Jews, passionate, honest Torah Jews, because Judaism is all about taking from what you know and then living by it. Modern Orthodoxy in its A plus definition is to take from the Simchas Tirah in a passionate Yeshiva Bakr style, and then to go and spend time where you're driving, you're out in the world, you have to do things that you don't necessarily just have marked up as intense spiritual obligations, but they are outside of the synagogue.

24:50 They are more of the state affairs, but in that you live energetic, Torah, halakhic, a lifestyle that you took and learned from while you were in the shool. That's what we learned from this entire Elulin Tishra expedition. We learned how to have more modern orthodoxy, and we learned that life is all about God. We learned that our goals are spiritual. We learned that to have our spiritual goals fulfilled, you have to fulfill physical obligations.

25:31 We learned that it takes a stadlos, but it takes tremendous amounts of emuna and betakon, and the more spiritual you are, the more happy you will be. And therefore, I argue that the approach after all of these incredible spiritual highs is to bundle all of it up and to digest it. To tuck some away for later, to put it in your pouch, and to fire yourself up for the new obligations that you have, for the new way that you see life, for the way that you love Torah and the way that you will cling to Torah going forward.

26:17 For the way that you will see through all of the obedience of Yaakov. We read about that. The Tefila of Khana, you read about that. The way that you will take that and then live life by it in the coming months. The way that you will spend the next six months of your winter structured, organized, about the Laman Das call Ameharez. That Hashem is one, Hashem is God. That you'll take from the Simchastaira elevation, that when you leave the shul of Simchastaira, the education and worship house of Simchastaira, and you'll take it as you leave outside of the shol into the world, well, you will still cling to Hashem in truth and in peace and with real emotion.

27:12 I even have a piece of unsolicited advice as to how to keep the spiritual high, how to take from the shul, take from the Elol, and take from the spiritual experience of Tishra and really internalize it and live by it in the coming months of Marches, of even Tevas and Shvat. The unsolicited advice is to cling to the Torah through the months. It's to listen to the Laning each week. To even review the weekly parsha twice with Targum Uncalis' translation. To engage in Snaim Mikrav Echa Targum so that you will live a long life?

27:57 And really? While it was prepared to be a longer talk, I think we've already said enough. Or at least an important point that I wanted to say. Don't want the podcast to be 50 minutes. But to learn Rashi with the five books of Moshe. But to learn Ripshlomo Yitzhaki's commentary that lets you know how to be a Jew. That draws upon the breath of Midrashik, Agadic, textual, syntaxic commentary to the Torah.

28:45 To learn Rash's commentary on the Torah Weekly will be the easiest way. If you pour over it, to stay spiritually energized for the whole year. To learn Pshutai Shell Mikra, which is how Rashi wrote. To make sense of all of the Psukim. They speak to you. People can attest. Rashi's wisdom, the midrashim that Rashi quotes, at your best moments and at your worst moments, it's there for you Shnair Zalman of Liyadi has a more kabbalistic, more Hasidish type of approach, which is that Khumish Rashi is really like living with the times is the phrase that they would say, that he would say.

29:37 That it would hit you. It would teach you. No matter what was going on in your life, whatever the experiences were of that week, the weekly Torah portion with Khumish Rashi tells you how to act by them. Tonight and tomorrow is the yard site of the Ribbeditzarebi and I believe Yitzhuk Bibarditchiv. So maybe this does hit a place in our hearts today. But if you want to build strong faith and you want to stay inspired before any other spiritual obligations and Torah obligations, learn the weekly parsha with Rashi's commentary.

30:25 I heard of Shmuel Kamenetsky once quoted as said, if you want to know which out of all of the thousand of Midrashim you need to know, you merely need to know the ones that Rashi cites to make sense of the basic shot of the Psokim. It is this that I'd like to argue is the way that we should approach the forthcoming winter months. That all of Elwul and Tishra was not the primary point of the Jewish calendar. But it was all hachana, all spiritual preparation for the primary months of our regular daily schedules, of our hours at the office, of our trips in the carpool line, of our making of breakfast, and of our consuming the news or reading the Mishbachah, whatever it is that you do during your daily week, it is there that the Torah should hit you, and there that there should be no separation of church and state, and there that you should live like an honest modern Orthodox Jew, which means to be a Torah-thirsty, God-thirsty Jewish person that wants nothing more than to do his obligations and live in 2025 and 2026 as a Torah, honest, God loving Jew.

31:56 You want to stay inspired? That's what I've been taught. From my Rashi Yeshivos, from my Mashkiaks, Mashkichim. Learn the weekly parsha. Read it over Hebrew, English, however you can. There's no excuse to not know what a word means. With so many different sources, whether it's textual or online based. Take your energy, take your enthusiasm that you have experienced during the highs and lows and spiritual ebbs of Elol and Tishre, and install them into your daily routines.

32:43 Install them into your life as a Jew. Live as a God-conscious, Torah-thirsty, true modern Orthodox Jew, which is not a bad thing. It's just the honest truth of that we live in a world that we're not in the ghetto anymore. And we need to know that the shool is our home, our space for education of how to live. Live by the Torah, by a tairas, outside of the shool. Our daily schedules are primary. You can learn Khamish Rashi to remind yourself of this every single week.

33:27 I hope this approach finds favor in your eyes. And above all else, I hope that you are a Matsliak in the coming months. I hope that you do maintain a God-conscious, spiritually elevated life. I can't wait to talk to you next week. As we check in on ourselves, and we continue to learn the weekly parsha with Rashi's commentary every single week to stay God focused and God conscious. Torah thirsty modern Orthodox Jews. Have a good job, us.