Episode Details

Why does Hashem make us work so hard for something that, in the end, only He can make happen?

In this Rosh Hashanah shiur, Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David learn an extraordinary teaching from the Tolna Rebbe that begins with an almost unbelievable halacha: what happens when the ba'al tokeia simply cannot get a sound out of the shofar?

From there, we enter into the deeper meaning of Vihi Noam, the miraculous building of the Mishkan and Beis Hamikdash, and the Menorah that Moshe Rabbeinu could not make no matter how hard he tried.

And that's where this becomes about our lives.

There are things we want so badly. Things we work for, daven for, fight for. And sometimes we wonder: if ultimately everything is in Hashem's hands, why am I being asked to work so hard?

The answer lies in one tiny letter—the yud separating ta'aseh from tei'aseh.

We have to do everything we can. Empty the tank. Exhaust what we believe is possible. And then discover that the greatest things in our lives were never ours to accomplish alone.

That's one of the deepest preparations for Rosh Hashanah: our job is to give Hashem everything we've got. The miracle was never our job.
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CHAPTERS
00:00 Opening & Dedications
01:40 A Rosh Hashanah I'll Never Forget
04:07 When the Shofar Wouldn't Blow
08:31 The Strange Halacha of Vihi Noam
17:57 Why Vihi Noam?
19:56 Did We Really Build the Mishkan?
22:38 The Mishkan's Final Miracle
24:04 When Human Effort Isn't Enough
25:04 The Beis Hamikdash Built Itself
26:39 The Menorah Moshe Couldn't Make
28:05 Ta'aseh vs. Tei'aseh
33:46 If Hashem Does It, Why Do We Have to Try?
41:37 Have You Really Tried Everything?