Twerski on Machzor - Yom Kippur

Rambam says that a person is influenced by his environment and associations (Deius 6:1), and each of us constitutes part of the environment. That is why in the Al Chet we say, "We have sinned," rather than "I have sinned."

Yom Kippur is an example of arvus. Klei Yakar says that the reason the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) may not enter the Holy of Holies except on Yom Kippur is because as the agent and representative of Klal Yisrael, he is affected by and shares in their sins. It is only on Yom Kippur, when their sins are forgiven and they attain a quasi-angelic state, that the Kohen Gadol is in a state of kedushah (holiness) that permits him to enter the Holy of Holies

One year my father was scheduled for surgery after Yom Kippur, and was taking a strong antibiotic. The doctor said that he did not have to eat, but the antibiotic required that he drink two liters of water over a 24-hour period. My father said, "If all I need is water, then I could take it intravenously and I would not have to drink." I called Harav Yaakov Kamenetzky and told him what my father said. Harav Kamenetzky said, "Chas veshalom (Heaven forbid)! We do not look for ways to circumvent the halachah. If the doctor said he should drink, then that is what he must do."

Some people ask, "Why does Hashem want to hear His praise?" This question is worded wrongly. Hashem is absolute perfection and He has no need for praise or for anything else. The question can be asked, “What do we get from praising Hashem?" The more we can be aware of Hashem's majesty, the more we should be able to avoid sin

One Yom Kippur eve, R' Shalom of Belz saw one of the worshipers tearfully repeating the phrase "Im avoneinu anu banu - If our sins testify against us, act mercifully toward us for the sake of Your Name." He asked the man what about this verse was so emotionally moving. The man answered, "Because it says, Im avoneinu - If we have sinned-anu banu — we are still Your children."

R' Chaim Friedlander suggests that the word ashamnu is related to the word shemamah, "empty" or "desolate." Sin occurs only when a person's life is empty of real substance, i.e., he is bereft of Torah and mitzvos. The Rebbe of Kotzk said, "A person should not sin, not because sin is forbidden, but rather because one's time should be so occupied with Torah and mitzvos that he simply does not have free time to sin."

The Chazon Ish assembled ten men for a minyan at his home. One of them, a rosh yeshivah, told the Chazon Ish that he had made an appointment to meet someone in ten minutes. The Chazon Ish told him to leave promptly, because coming late to an appointment is theft of time.

It is of interest that the majority of sins listed in Al Chet are in the category of bein adam lechavero, offenses against another person, rather than sins of a ritual nature. These sins are generally due to faulty middos, bearing out R' Chaim Vital's statement that a person must be more meticulous about character traits than even about performance of mitzvos and commission of sins.

Chametz is forbidden even in infinitesimally small amounts. Why? Bnei Yissaschar explains that in making matzah, from the very moment that the flour and water are combined, someone is always doing something to form it. The dough is kneaded, rolled out, perforated, and baked. The dough is never allowed to be left idle for even a moment. Bread, on the other hand, undergoes a spontaneous change. After the ingredients are combined, the dough is set aside and is allowed to rise. This change occurs without further human intervention. No one makes the dough rise. Thus, matzah symbolizes that Hashem is managing everything in the world. There is nothing too small or too insignificant to escape Hashem's attention. Chametz, on the other hand, represents the idea that things happen by themselves, without supervision. On Passover, the festival of our liberation, when we became servants to Hashem, we are taught that even the tiniest amount of chametz is forbidden, to teach us that we should not allow ourselves to think that even the tiniest happening escapes Hashem's attention

Yismach Moshe asks: Inasmuch as all sins are forgiven on Yom Kippur, how is it possible that at times the wool would remain red? He answers that there are two components to forgiveness. 1) The sinner would not be punished for the sin, and 2) the sin is totally erased so that it does not blemish the neshamah. The forgiveness of Yom Kippur removes only the punishment, but removal of the blemish on the neshamah depends on teshuvah. When the wool turned white, it indicated that their teshuvah had been accepted and their sins had been totally erased, leaving their souls unblemished.

The Talmud (Shabbos 115a) cites an interesting practice. After Minchah of Yom Kippur, people would crack walnuts and peel pomegranates. One reason given for this is to assure people that they will have something with which to break their fast. But why specifically use walnuts and pomegranates? Ben Ish Chai says that these are symbolic. The fruit of the walnut is contained in a hard shell, which one must crush. We are really good at the core, but our body is a "hard shell" that prevents the good from being expressed. On Yom Kippur, we "break the hard shell," and our internal goodness can now emerge. The Talmud says that even the lowliest Jew is "as full of mitzvos as the seeds of a pomegranate." This reminds us of the good within us, which we should strive to implement.

The Kohen Gadol had the responsibility of supervising all the Kohanim in the Temple. Therefore, the Torah commanded that he be seen as a leader, and he was given special vestments corresponding to his lofty position. But this was only when he was in the presence of other Kohanim who were his subordinates. When he entered the Kodesh HaKodashim, he was completely alone. This was not a place where it was necessary to show his authority. Therefore, he did not wear his gold vestments, but just those of the common Kohen. This was where his anivus should prevail. This is an important teaching. As meritorious as anivus is, there may be times when one should not retreat, but should stand up firmly for what is right and just. Misguided anivus may allow arrogant and unprincipled people to take the lead.