Rosh Hashana 2013: Malkhut

In a post for Shavuot in 2012, I wrote that on each holiday God calls out to us: “Ayeka? Where are you?”  And each chag, the question takes on a slightly different intonation and we are called upon to answer the question differently based on the time of the year and the holiday’s theme.  This was the first question in the Torah, when God asked Adam after he ate of the Tree of Good and Evil: Ayeka? Where are you?

Two years ago on Shavuot I wrote:

On Rosh Hashana we may reflect on the question: “Where are you in your relationship with family, friends, prioritization of work-family…and where are you going?” ….

But I believe I was mistaken.  This is not appropriate for Rosh Hashana, the first day of the New Year.  Rosh Hashanah is a day of judgment.  But it is God who judges on this day.  It is not up to us to speculate about His judgment, to judge ourselves, or to reflect upon where we are and who we are.  No, that is what Elul (the month proceeding Rosh Hashana) was for and what the days between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur will be for. 

Rosh Hashana, however, is a day of God’s malkhut, His kingship.  On Rosh Hashana, we crown God as “melekh al kol ha’aretz - King over the entire world” – not just Israel, not just the Jews, but the entire world.  The gemara explains that Rosh Hashana is the sixth day of creation, the day when humankind was created.  There is a Talmudic statement that reads “ein melekh b’li am – there is no king without a people.”  When Adam was created, God became King – He gained a people.  On Rosh Hashana, we are commemorating the creation of man by crowning God as King.  Our prayers do not focus on atonement (the theme of Yom Kippur) or self-improvement (a focus of Elul and the days after Rosh Hashana) or teshuva (repentance).  Rather, the prayers revolve around malkhut, kingship.  

God is no longer "ha'kel ha'kodesh - the holy God" but "hamelech ha'kodesh - the holy King."  "We bend our knees, bow, and acknowledge our thanks before the King Who reigns over kings, the Holy One, Blessed be He."  "True is our King, there is nothing beside Him."  

As the Torah states: Hashem shall be King for all eternity.

And in the Writings it states: For the sovereignty is Hashem's and He rules over nations.  And ...Who then is the King of Glory?  Hashem, Master of Legions, He is the King of Glory, Selah!

And in the Prophets it states: So said Hashem, the King of Israel and its Redeemer, Hashem of Legions: 'I am the first and I am the last and aside from Me there is no other god.'  And, Then Hashem will be King over all the world, on that day Hashem will be One and His Name will be One.

"Therefore, we put our hope in You, Hashem our God, that we may soon see Your mighty splendor...to perfect the universe through the Almighty's sovereignty." 

During the height of the mussaf service (Rosh Hashana morning), we have three times where the shofar is blown.  We breathe life into the shofar, just as God breathed the breath of life into us, mankind, on this day so many years ago.  The shofar announces the King’s presence, our King’s presence.  On the day when He is judging us and inscribing us in the Book of Life for the upcoming year we are busy crowning Him as King, recognizing that all that emanates from Him is ultimately good and just.  We, mankind, were the pinnacle of creation!  We, mankind, were the central focus in God’s “mind” as He created the universe!  What a privilege and also what a responsibility!  The world was not created perfect.  We are partners in creation.  We express our emunah - oft translated as faith, but sharing the Hebrew root of "to create."  God spoke and the world was brought into existence; we were blessed with the ability to speak, which is to create.  On Rosh Hashana we attend shul and create - as best we can through our speech - a crown for God without Whom we would not exist.  And when our speech fails, we blow the shofar to capture the prayers that words cannot and bring them up to the King.  

"Blessed are You, God, King over all the world."