Yom HaDin the Day of Judgment. The day when every word and deed is scrutinized and judged by the King of Kings.

We would expect the tefillos of Rosh HaShanah to be replete with sincere expressions of teshuvah and entreaties for forgiveness. But surprisingly there’s no mention of teshuvah in the machzor no heartfelt pleas for Hashem’s mercy. Instead our tefillos are devoted to repeatedly proclaiming Hashem as our King. Why?

The answer became clear to me following a severe wind and rain storm inMinneapolisa few weeks ago. Although the storm lasted only 30 minutes there was incredible damage. Streets were flooded power lines were down and homes were split open by falling trees. When I ventured outside I saw that massive trees had been completely uprooted by the winds.

Had someone set out to cut the trees down branch by branch he would have had to expend immense amounts of time and energy to do so. Yet with the wind striking at the roots the trees — massive as they were — fell on their own.

As we know everything in the physical world has a parallel in the spiritual world.

There are two ways of trying to rid ourselves of the aveiros that have branched into so many areas of our life. We can tackle them one by one and attempt to eliminate them individually. Or we can strike at the core of why we sin and remove the aveiros by their roots.

What causes a person to act contrary to the wishes of his Creator? The root of sin is the focus on oneself on one’s own desires. The pasuk says “I am standing between Hashem and between you” (Devarim 5:5). This pasuk is explained homiletically to mean that the anochi the focus on “I ” is the barrier between Hashem and the individual. When a person defies his Creator it is because he has made his desires rather than Hashem’s paramount.

When we feel like responding to frustration with anger when we feel like speaking lashon hara or lying when we feel too lazy to fulfill a mitzvah properly — and we act accordingly it’s because we have made ourselves the center of the world. We have chosen to serve ourselves rather than Hashem.

It follows then that the root of teshuvah is to replace the focus on oneself with a focus on HaKadosh Baruch Hu. It is to make Hashem King rather than allowing our desires to reign supreme. It is to ask ourselves regularly “What does Hashem want me to do right now?”

On Rosh HaShanah when we proclaim Hashem as our King we are removing our sins by their roots and planting new roots of avodas Hashem.

Sheep Climbers and Soldiers

In describing the judgment on Rosh HaShanah the Mishnah says that all people pass before Hashem like “b’nei Maron.” The Gemara (Rosh Hashanah 18a) offers three definitions for this unusual expression:

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1. Like sheep who pass in single file to be counted by their owner.
2. Like people ascending the narrow path to Beis Maron a cliff so narrow that it necessitated walking single file.
3. Like soldiers in Dovid HaMelech’s army who passed single file to be counted.

HaRav Chaim Dov Keller explains that these three definitions represent three different approaches to Rosh HaShanah. Some people approach Rosh HaShanah like sheep frolicking in the meadow going about their regular lives oblivious to the true import of the day. Others approach this day like climbers on a cliff aware of the gravity of their situation and cognizant of the significance of each move. Still others approach Rosh HaShanah like soldiers in a king’s army not merely concerned about themselves and their personal reward or punishment but rather about living up to their role as soldiers of Hashem and sanctifying His Name in the world.

Perhaps our avodah during Rosh HaShanah and the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah is to progress from behaving like sheep to viewing ourselves as cliff climbers and finally to considering ourselves soldiers in the King’s army.

The Rambam tells us that while we perform the mitzvah of shofar to fulfill Hashem’s command the shofar has an additional function. It calls out to us: “Wake up! Wake up from your slumber!” The shofar’s call is meant to get us out of “sheep mode” and into “cliff climbing mode.”

Rosh HaShanah is a day to ponder the meaning of judgment and accountability to contemplate the significance of our mitzvos and aveiros. It’s a day to think of ourselves as climbing a narrow cliff where every move brings us closer to life or death. A day to recognize that every action is laden with meaning and has far-reaching consequences.

However Rosh HaShanah is more than that. We need to also view ourselves as soldiers in the King’s army. On this day we redefine ourselves as individuals who strive to fulfill Hashem’s plan. We declare that Hashem is our King and that we are His servants.

I am Your Servant

The Torah refers to Moshe Rabbeinu after his passing as “Moshe the servant of Hashem.” The highest accolade accorded the greatest human being who ever lived is “eved Hashem.” Moshe Rabbeinu served Hashem with total dedication the way an eved serves his master; he defined himself as belonging to Hashem the way a slave belongs to his master. A slave doesn’t have his own identity; his raison d’être is to serve. Similarly Moshe Rabbeinu submitted himself completely to Hashem and sublimated his intellect desires and extraordinary strengths to his Master fusing his identity with Hashem.

When we accept Hashem as our King on Rosh HaShanah our avodah is to commit to utilize our life and our talents in His service. The Chofetz Chaim’s motto was “ma’asai laMelech — my actions are for the King”; Rav Yaakov Yosef Herman’s recurring refrain was “all for the Boss.” We too must constantly remind ourselves that we are a soldier in Hashem’s army that our identity is defined by being connected to Him. As we go about our daily responsibilities — preparing meals driving carpool doing homework with the children — let’s train ourselves to think: I am Your soldier I am doing this to serve You.

Rabbi Paysach Krohn tells the story of a group of chassidim who approached the Imrei Emes with the following question: “Your father the Sfas Emes told his chassidim that if they had the proper kavanos when reciting the pasuk in Hallel ‘Ana Hashem — Please Hashem …’ then their tefillos would be answered. We’ve said these words with great concentration yet our tefillos haven’t been answered. Why not?”

The Imrei Emes replied: “Which pasuk were you concentrating on? ‘Ana Hashem hoshia na — Please Hashem save us’? The pasuk my father had in mind was ‘Ana Hashem ki ani avdecha — Please Hashem for I am Your servant.’ If you are sincere in your pleas that Hashem help you live your life in His service then your prayers will indeed be answered.”

Rosh HaShanah is the time to beg Hashem to assist us in uprooting our old identity and replacing it with a new one. This is the day to implore Hashem for His assistance in redefining ourselves as His servants and soldiers thereby eliminating the root cause of sin. May the King of Kings answer all our tefillos and may we merit a year of life and health in His service.