Being Jewish is beautiful, but what about when it doesn't feel that way? When the "cons" that come with being Jewish seem to outweigh the pros? When the target on our backs, the burden we carry, and the instability and fear around us seem like too much to bear? It is easy to choose Jewish life when we feel its beauty and warmth, but what about when we don't? How do we march into a new year proudly and positively and once again choose Jewish life?
The answer lies in this week's Torah portion, Natzavim-Vayelech. G-d places before us a choice: "I have placed before you life and goodness, death and evil… and you shall choose life." Sometimes that choice is entirely rational. A life of Torah and mitzvot gives us meaning and purpose. It gives us a moral compass, a sense of belonging, a connection to generations before us and responsibility for generations yet to come. It brings holiness into ordinary moments and teaches us that our lives matter and that every action has purpose. There is tremendous fulfillment and, ultimately, deep happiness in choosing a Torah life.
But there are moments when that calculation becomes much harder. When the world is filled with instability, crisis, fear, and turmoil, living proudly as a Jew can seem to come at a cost. There are times when logic itself might ask: Why carry this burden? Why stand out? Why make life more complicated? And it is precisely then that we discover that our choice to live Jewishly was never based on logic alone. Something deeper lives inside us, a bond with G-d, our people, and our homeland, that is essential and fundamental to who we are. We don't merely practice Judaism; being Jewish is woven into the very essence of our soul. It's who we are.
That power has carried the Jewish people throughout history. Our ancestors did not always have the luxury of choosing Judaism because it was comfortable, convenient, or even rational. Through exile and persecution, through fear and uncertainty, they chose life. They chose Torah. They chose to raise Jewish children, light Shabbat candles, put on tefillin, celebrate the holidays, and proudly declare who they were. That choice came from a place deeper than calculation, from the essence of the Jewish soul. And remarkably, every time the world tried to convince us that Jewish life was impossible, that soul, our Neshamah, carried us forward.
As we approach Rosh Hashanah, we are once again called upon to "choose life." This year, perhaps more than ever, let's make that choice from the deepest place within us. Let's not retreat from our Jewishness because the world feels uncertain; let's lean into it. Add a mitzvah. Study more Torah. Fill your home with Jewish pride and your children with Jewish confidence. We have inherited a soul that has carried our people through thousands of years of trial and triumph. This Rosh Hashanah, let's reach into that soul, stand taller than ever, and choose life; choose to live proudly and unapologetically as Jews. Let's rise in unison, in support of each other, and proudly present ourselves before G-d as the nation we were created to be. Hashem will then bless us with a healthy, happy, and sweet new year. For us and all of humanity. Amen!