How do I approach the Days of Awe if I dislike fear?
It’s that time of year again.
Elul.
Like a boisterous school boy willing August to stretch beyond its 31 days, I suspect I’m not alone in wishing to hold on to the last moments of summer and disregard Elul’s urgent message to shape up.
Elul spells fear of Divine Judgment and retribution, and that fear makes me nervous and uncomfortable.
I have been here before, wishing to skip the tense month of Elul with its call for self-scrutiny, demand to dig up wrongdoings I’d rather forget, and burden of guilt. Wouldn’t a gentle August to September transition be a happier way to celebrate the Jewish New Year?
One strategy I used in the past to combat this discomfort was to focus on the less daunting aspects of the Yamim Noraim: the joy evoked by the coronation of Hashem on Rosh Hashanah and the happiness of achieving atonement on Yom Kippur.
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