This may very well be the most radical idea about teshuvah I've ever written about. I'm not even certain that it's correct, but if it is, it's a game-changer. I'd love to hear cwhat you think.
I don't see any contradiction between Sforno, Rambam and Rabbi Moskowitz zt"l.
>"it is not hidden from you – such that you will need prophets, nor is it distant from you"
This does not refer to the process being easy. Instead, it refers to the fact that only you can do Teshuva for yourself -- no one can do it for you. I would even go as far to say this makes Teshuva harder, since you can't hire some rabbi/prophet/sigulah giver/molybdomancer to repent on your behalf.
> “What if he is right? What if Sforno maintains that the teshuvah process is exactly what he says it is: recognizing the sin and Whom you sinned against, feeling regret, and confessing verbally? What if making a commitment not to return to the sin is laudable, but not actually required for teshuvah? How would this view change our relationship with teshuvah?”
If you sin after doing Teshuva did you even do Teshuva in the first place? "Recognizing the sin" is realizing the action you did was bad. If you truly thought the action is bad, why would you do it again? A student writes 2 + 2 = 5 on the first test, and then the teacher corrects him saying 2 + 2 = 4, then on the second test the student again puts 2 + 2 = 5. Did the student actually learn 2 + 2 = 4? Likewise, one who willfully sins after "recognizing the sin" never actually "recognized the sin", and as such never did Teshuva according Sforno.
>"Rabbi Moskowitz zt”l, was right: that instead of trying to change, I should instead focus on knowledge of God’s will and allow change to happen naturally?"
This is sound advice. Let's say if someone has an issue with drinking and follows the Rambam naively. He says "I resolve never to drink alcohol again" and in order to do so he moves to a country with strict alcohol laws. Did this person repent? The answer is no. For who knows what what will happen, and there are many ways he could stumble upon alcohol. The only way to never drink alcohol again would be that he realize alcohol is bad for himself. This would be true Teshuva. Similarly, with positive and negative mitzvot if one truly realizes that abrogating a mitzvah is harmful, he would never sin.
TLDR:
1) "It is not hidden from you" indicates that Teshuva is personal, not that it is easy.
2) "Recognizing in your heart your sin..." is hard.
3) The Rambam saying "resolving in his heart not to do it again" is an elaboration on "recognizing in your heart your sin..." not an additional step.
4) This is consistent with Rabbi Moskowitz zt"l since the only way to "resolve in your heart not to do it again" is to truly know the sin is bad, and not to just try using willpower or forcing yourself in a situation where merely by happenstance you will not sin.
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts! I actually FORGOT I wrote this article, so it was nice to be reminded. Ordinarily I'd respond to each of these points, but because I'm "out of the sugya," and I need to be really THINKING about teshuvah in order to break new ground, I'm going to plan to revisit this next time the teshuvah train comes around, whether that be in Elul or next time I focus specifically on Sforno. Thanks again for reading, and for your subscription!
He doesn't go as extreme as you are suggesting here, but Saadia Gaon also isn't as strict as Rambam appears (although the Rav says Rambam agrees with Saadia Gaon as well, based on the Lechem Mishneh):
"And let me further clarify: that if a man resolves in the course of his repentance that he will not repeat the sin, his repentance is accepted. And if he be later persuaded by lust to repeat his transgression, his repentance is not retroactively effaced; but only the sins which preceded that repentance will be forgiven, and whatever (sins) follow it will be recorded against him. And this applies repeatedly, if he repents, and sins anew: only that which follows repentance is to be held against him, so long as each repentance is done honestly and sincerely and if, in each case, the penitent firmly resolves not to revert to sin" (Emunot VeDe'ot 5:5).
He also doesn't require you never do the sin again, and I think, based on the Sforno's you brought, this view fits into what he says, although it is slightly less radical than only recognition, regret, and confession.
I JUST spent this morning learning this perek in Saadia Gaon as well! :D Still thinking about the implications, especially since he does require עזיבת החטא and החלטה שלא לחזור. If you have דברי הרב, check out page שנג (I believe). I can send it to you if you don't have it.
Sforno on his introduction to Breishit has a couple illumaniting comments... in general he sees Teshuva as a hachana for a level Tahor, it's more preparatory than the telos of the process itself. He expands this in a different direction in his long comment on parah adumah Bamidbar 19:2.
From the beginning of his comments on Devarim 30 he basically seems to say teshuva is the process of separating the lies and the truth (earlier he describes it as this preparation of the mind for ascertaining truth) and by doing so your teshuva will reach it's paradigm (reaching the throne of glory) where you not only recognize the sin and feel regret and recognize who you sinned against and confess but ultimately you do all that for the sake of "doing the Will of your Creator alone"
It's different from Rambam in some sense- it's more relational to my mind.
Very intriguing and thought provoking. Perhaps he is implicitly alluding to the following: Meshech Chochmah asks (need to track down where) why refraining from the sin should be included in teshuvah as the same mitzvah that commanded us to do/refrain from whatnot initially is still in force, the fact that one sinned does not make it any less binding now. I think he concludes that changing your actions isnt actually included in teshuvah but rather only charatah & vidui etc. If memory serves he even reads it into Rambams formulation at the beg of hilchos teshuva. Note too that Rambams emphasis isnt so much on refraining from the actual sin prospectively but rather that the commitment in your heart needs to reflect your complete repudiation of it to the extent that you wont ever return to it in your current mindset, so maybe he and R Seforno aren't quite as far apart as they seem. All the best and Shabbat shalom
Found it. Devarim 31:17. ואמר ביום ההוא הלא על כי אין אלהי בקרבי מצאוני כו' – נתקשו רבים בזה דאמאי לא מועיל התשובה. ונתבונן דשם תשובה כפי מה שמורה שמה איך נחשבת למצוה שישוב מכסלו ולא יחטא עוד, הלא בלא המצוה מצווה ועומד לבלי לעבור על מצות השי"ת, וכי בשביל שעבר ושנה בה הותרה לו ס"ד, הנה האזהרה הראשונה המונעתו מחטוא טרם שחטא היא מונעתו מחטוא גם אחרי שחטא, ועיין ספרי סוף שלח בזה [וכן כתב רבינו בפירוש המשנה לנזיר פ"ו במשנה דנזיר שהיה שותה יין הרבה, יעו"ש דברים נמרצים]. אמנם מצות התשובה אשר על זה צריך מצות פרטית הוא שאם חטא ועוזב את חטאו מצוה להתודות ולהגיד לפני השי"ת כי יודע בעצמו שחטא ומבקש כפרה, וכן הוא לשון רבינו בהלכות תשובה כשיעשה תשובה וישוב מחטאו [פירוש לבלי לחטוא מחמת הצווי שהוא מצווה שלא לעבור בפעם ראשון קודם שחטא בין מ"ע בין מל"ת] חייב להתודות לפני השי"ת שנאמר כו' והתודו כו', ומה שצריך שבשעה זו יחשוב שלא ישוב לכסלה ולא יעבור עוד מצות פי ה' הוא נכלל בהודוי, יעו"ש, וכן בא אחריו החנוך וביאר דבריו, אבל על התשובה בעצמה אין לחשבה למצוה חדשה זולת הצוויים שכבר נצטוו עליהן. וז"ב.
Hi, I really enjoyed this article.
I don't see any contradiction between Sforno, Rambam and Rabbi Moskowitz zt"l.
>"it is not hidden from you – such that you will need prophets, nor is it distant from you"
This does not refer to the process being easy. Instead, it refers to the fact that only you can do Teshuva for yourself -- no one can do it for you. I would even go as far to say this makes Teshuva harder, since you can't hire some rabbi/prophet/sigulah giver/molybdomancer to repent on your behalf.
> “What if he is right? What if Sforno maintains that the teshuvah process is exactly what he says it is: recognizing the sin and Whom you sinned against, feeling regret, and confessing verbally? What if making a commitment not to return to the sin is laudable, but not actually required for teshuvah? How would this view change our relationship with teshuvah?”
If you sin after doing Teshuva did you even do Teshuva in the first place? "Recognizing the sin" is realizing the action you did was bad. If you truly thought the action is bad, why would you do it again? A student writes 2 + 2 = 5 on the first test, and then the teacher corrects him saying 2 + 2 = 4, then on the second test the student again puts 2 + 2 = 5. Did the student actually learn 2 + 2 = 4? Likewise, one who willfully sins after "recognizing the sin" never actually "recognized the sin", and as such never did Teshuva according Sforno.
>"Rabbi Moskowitz zt”l, was right: that instead of trying to change, I should instead focus on knowledge of God’s will and allow change to happen naturally?"
This is sound advice. Let's say if someone has an issue with drinking and follows the Rambam naively. He says "I resolve never to drink alcohol again" and in order to do so he moves to a country with strict alcohol laws. Did this person repent? The answer is no. For who knows what what will happen, and there are many ways he could stumble upon alcohol. The only way to never drink alcohol again would be that he realize alcohol is bad for himself. This would be true Teshuva. Similarly, with positive and negative mitzvot if one truly realizes that abrogating a mitzvah is harmful, he would never sin.
TLDR:
1) "It is not hidden from you" indicates that Teshuva is personal, not that it is easy.
2) "Recognizing in your heart your sin..." is hard.
3) The Rambam saying "resolving in his heart not to do it again" is an elaboration on "recognizing in your heart your sin..." not an additional step.
4) This is consistent with Rabbi Moskowitz zt"l since the only way to "resolve in your heart not to do it again" is to truly know the sin is bad, and not to just try using willpower or forcing yourself in a situation where merely by happenstance you will not sin.
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts! I actually FORGOT I wrote this article, so it was nice to be reminded. Ordinarily I'd respond to each of these points, but because I'm "out of the sugya," and I need to be really THINKING about teshuvah in order to break new ground, I'm going to plan to revisit this next time the teshuvah train comes around, whether that be in Elul or next time I focus specifically on Sforno. Thanks again for reading, and for your subscription!
He doesn't go as extreme as you are suggesting here, but Saadia Gaon also isn't as strict as Rambam appears (although the Rav says Rambam agrees with Saadia Gaon as well, based on the Lechem Mishneh):
"And let me further clarify: that if a man resolves in the course of his repentance that he will not repeat the sin, his repentance is accepted. And if he be later persuaded by lust to repeat his transgression, his repentance is not retroactively effaced; but only the sins which preceded that repentance will be forgiven, and whatever (sins) follow it will be recorded against him. And this applies repeatedly, if he repents, and sins anew: only that which follows repentance is to be held against him, so long as each repentance is done honestly and sincerely and if, in each case, the penitent firmly resolves not to revert to sin" (Emunot VeDe'ot 5:5).
He also doesn't require you never do the sin again, and I think, based on the Sforno's you brought, this view fits into what he says, although it is slightly less radical than only recognition, regret, and confession.
I JUST spent this morning learning this perek in Saadia Gaon as well! :D Still thinking about the implications, especially since he does require עזיבת החטא and החלטה שלא לחזור. If you have דברי הרב, check out page שנג (I believe). I can send it to you if you don't have it.
Sforno on his introduction to Breishit has a couple illumaniting comments... in general he sees Teshuva as a hachana for a level Tahor, it's more preparatory than the telos of the process itself. He expands this in a different direction in his long comment on parah adumah Bamidbar 19:2.
From the beginning of his comments on Devarim 30 he basically seems to say teshuva is the process of separating the lies and the truth (earlier he describes it as this preparation of the mind for ascertaining truth) and by doing so your teshuva will reach it's paradigm (reaching the throne of glory) where you not only recognize the sin and feel regret and recognize who you sinned against and confess but ultimately you do all that for the sake of "doing the Will of your Creator alone"
It's different from Rambam in some sense- it's more relational to my mind.
This is super helpful. I'll look into these comments. Thank you!
Can't edit comments? Oy
*Illuminating
*Lev Tahor
Very intriguing and thought provoking. Perhaps he is implicitly alluding to the following: Meshech Chochmah asks (need to track down where) why refraining from the sin should be included in teshuvah as the same mitzvah that commanded us to do/refrain from whatnot initially is still in force, the fact that one sinned does not make it any less binding now. I think he concludes that changing your actions isnt actually included in teshuvah but rather only charatah & vidui etc. If memory serves he even reads it into Rambams formulation at the beg of hilchos teshuva. Note too that Rambams emphasis isnt so much on refraining from the actual sin prospectively but rather that the commitment in your heart needs to reflect your complete repudiation of it to the extent that you wont ever return to it in your current mindset, so maybe he and R Seforno aren't quite as far apart as they seem. All the best and Shabbat shalom
Nice angle! If you find that Meshech Chochmah, please extend it to me (heh).
Found it. Devarim 31:17. ואמר ביום ההוא הלא על כי אין אלהי בקרבי מצאוני כו' – נתקשו רבים בזה דאמאי לא מועיל התשובה. ונתבונן דשם תשובה כפי מה שמורה שמה איך נחשבת למצוה שישוב מכסלו ולא יחטא עוד, הלא בלא המצוה מצווה ועומד לבלי לעבור על מצות השי"ת, וכי בשביל שעבר ושנה בה הותרה לו ס"ד, הנה האזהרה הראשונה המונעתו מחטוא טרם שחטא היא מונעתו מחטוא גם אחרי שחטא, ועיין ספרי סוף שלח בזה [וכן כתב רבינו בפירוש המשנה לנזיר פ"ו במשנה דנזיר שהיה שותה יין הרבה, יעו"ש דברים נמרצים]. אמנם מצות התשובה אשר על זה צריך מצות פרטית הוא שאם חטא ועוזב את חטאו מצוה להתודות ולהגיד לפני השי"ת כי יודע בעצמו שחטא ומבקש כפרה, וכן הוא לשון רבינו בהלכות תשובה כשיעשה תשובה וישוב מחטאו [פירוש לבלי לחטוא מחמת הצווי שהוא מצווה שלא לעבור בפעם ראשון קודם שחטא בין מ"ע בין מל"ת] חייב להתודות לפני השי"ת שנאמר כו' והתודו כו', ומה שצריך שבשעה זו יחשוב שלא ישוב לכסלה ולא יעבור עוד מצות פי ה' הוא נכלל בהודוי, יעו"ש, וכן בא אחריו החנוך וביאר דבריו, אבל על התשובה בעצמה אין לחשבה למצוה חדשה זולת הצוויים שכבר נצטוו עליהן. וז"ב.