The name Shabbat Shuva is taken from the opening words of this week's haftora, "Shuva Yisrael - Return, O Israel." The second name, Shabbat Teshuva, is derived from the fact that this Shabbat falls out in the middle of the Aseret Yemei Teshuva, the Ten Days of Repentance. This name is also associated with the haftora, as its central theme is returning to G-d.
The two names of this Shabbat reveal a timely lesson. The phrase "Shuva - Return" is grammatically a command. G-d commands us to return to Him in repentance.
Teshuva, by contrast, is a noun denoting the action itself, the actual return to G-d.
The word "Shuva" relates more to the One who issues the command than the person being addressed. It implies a situation in which the command has already been issued, but not yet carried out. The command itself imparts a certain measure of strength, but does not ensure that it will necessarily be fulfilled in the future.
"Teshuva," on the other hand, implies that the action has already been taken, i.e., that the teshuva has already been done. But if that were the case, why would we continue to refer to this Shabbat as Shabbat Teshuva?
The answer is that the act of teshuva consists of both the command to return to G-d and its subsequent implementation.
Shuva teaches us that even after a Jew has done teshuva, he still needs to work on himself. No matter how much teshuva a person has done, it is always possible to rise higher; hence the directive, "Return, O Israel unto the L-rd your G-d." Thus it is understood that there is always room for improvement, for an even deeper and more infinite level of teshuva, as G-d Himself is Infinite and without limitations.
This, then, is the lesson of Shabbat Shuva: A Jew must never content himself with whatever spiritual accomplishments he has already attained. He must never think that, because he has worked on himself a whole week, he is now entitled to "rest" because it is Shabbat. No, today is Shabbat Shuva! Even after one has done teshuva, more work is required. For the service of teshuva is continual and without end.
Adapted from Hitva'aduyot 5744, Volume 1
By Rabbi Lazer Gurkow
Before his passing, Moses composed a beautiful song of lilting poetry. "May the heavens listen as I speak / And may the earth hearken to my words / May my teaching flow like rain / And may my words drip like dew."
The Midrash offers the following homily: "Israel requested that their inspiration flow like rain, to which G-d replied, 'No, not like rain. Better that it should drip like dew.'" What is the difference? Both are moist and both can be seen on the ground.
The difference is in the origin. Rain is formed when moisture from below evaporates and rises into the atmosphere. Dew is formed here on earth, when warmer vapors come in contact with cooler surfaces.
OSCILLATING SOULS
Souls oscillate between the lower spiritual planes, which are further from G-d, and the higher spiritual planes, which are closer to G-d. Like the waters upon the surface of earth, we are often content with life here below where we are spiritually distant from G-d. Tossed about upon waves of whim, we often focus on the body rather than the soul. But eventually we too feel the need to ascend.
It is then that our minds turn to G-d and we remember our spiritual void. We pine for a more meaningful existence. Our enthusiasm for our material lifestyle evaporates and we rise to a higher, more spiritual plane. From this vantage point we look back with dismay and form clouds of remorse in the higher atmosphere.
But these clouds must not be permitted to linger. Beads of inspiration must form within our heart and precipitate a torrential outpouring of love for G-d and inspire us to observe the Torah and mitzvot.
SPONTANEOUS DESIRES, CONSCIOUS RESPONSE
Like raindrops that form from evaporated waters below, so did Moses ask G-d to accept our penitence, raise us to a higher plane and precipitate within us an outpouring of love for G-d.
G-d replied that inspiration would instead drip like dew.
Dew forms on the surface below and does not require its vapors to rise. G-d was saying that He would work to inspire our souls "down below," independently of the choices we make.
We suddenly experience a need to attend a service at a synagogue or to join a Torah class, to light Shabbat candles or to donate to charity. These desires appear spontaneously; they are not stimulated by anything we see or hear.
G-d stimulates the desire but leaves the implementation to us. We can either confine ourselves to a single inspiration, or we can utilize this inspiration to stimulate further inspiration for additional mitzvot.
In other words, we can either make rain or wait for the next dew.
Let's choose to make rain.