The Coronation
The essence of Rosh Hashanah is kabbalas ol Malchus Shamayim, the crowning of Hashem as King. Though we accept His reign daily in Shema, Rosh Hashanah is unique. The Gemara says, “Recite before Me verses of Kingship so that you will crown Me as King over you.” Rabbi Isaac Scherr zt”l highlights the word “lifnei,” before Me, teaching that only through the purification of Elul can we stand directly before Hashem, unburdened by the grime of the year. Rav Hunter zt”l adds that “kdei” – in order ” – implies exclusivity: On this day, Malchus is not a means, it is the end. We stand before the King with one pure focus – connection.
Rabbi Wachsman shares a vivid mashal from the coronation of Czar Nicholas II, where dignitaries passed the crown in awe and ecstasy. On Rosh Hashanah, we are those dignitaries. We crown Hashem with kavod and trembling joy. It is a day unlike any other.
And yet the avodah of Rosh Hashanah feels paradoxical. On the one hand, we tremble. “Who will live and who will die?” The Rambam writes that these are days of pachad, not simchah. We don’t say Hallel because the books of life and death are open. And yet, the Tur and Shulchan Aruch tell us to eat, drink, and rejoice. We wear white, not black, because we trust Hashem will perform a miracle. How do we reconcile this paradox?
The Ramchal, via the Sifsei Chaim, explains: Rosh Hashanah is not about past aveiros – that’s Yom Kippur. It’s about the year ahead. If we sincerely commit to being avdei Hashem, He inscribes us in the book of life. Rabbi Shimshon Pincus says this is the joyous aspect of Rosh HaShanah: We choose our own book. We rejoice in Hashem’s mercy and in the opportunity to write ourselves in. Yes, we need a miracle – but we’re given the tools to earn it.
Then come the simanim. We dip apples, avoid bitterness, stay awake. Even a “kalter Litvak” becomes a Chassidishe rebbe. Why? Because hi milsa d’simana. Reb Chaim Dov Stark, quoting the Nefesh Hachaim, reminds us: Our actions matter. The apple, the fish head, the sweet dressings – they’re not jokes. They’re declarations. We are bnei melachim. Ki eved melech melech – the servant of the king is like the king. When we act with dignity, we crown Hashem. When we believe in our greatness, we reveal His. Rosh Hashanah is not superstition. It’s truth. It’s coronation. We daven for Hashem’s reign, for the keilim to serve Him, and for the clarity to know that Hashem is everything.
RABBI SHRAGA FREEDMAN
RABBI DON JARASHOW
