Rosh Hashanah Audio Series by Rabbi Spolter

Judging Others, Judging Ourselves with Rabbi Spolter

The High Holidays are all about judging -- how we judge our fellow man and how God judges us. In this class we'll discuss the nature of the Yom Hadin (the day of Judgment) and how we prepare for it properly.

Note that all audio is in mp3 format and downloads directly, and all source material is in pdf format. You will need a pdf reader (available here) to read the source sheets.

Shiur 1: Who Needs Judging?
Source Sheets  Audio file

Shiur 2: Preparing for the Yom Hadin
Source Sheets  Audio file

Shiur 3: So I've Been Judged. Now What?
Source Sheets  Audio file

Shiur 4: (from a separate series but also for Rosh Hashanah) A shiur on Sha'arei Teshuvah of Rabbeinu Yonah: the different levels of leitzanus, or frivolity, and how that attribute can affect our behavior.
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Al Hateshuvah: Preparing for Rosh Hashanah - A Series from Yad Binyamin

This is part of a series of shiurim given to the women of Yad Binyamin, Israel in the Tahalich Women's Learning Program in Yad Binyamin during Elul 5768.

Shiur 1: Is Teshuvah a Mitzvah or Isn't It?
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The Rav begins with the classic question on the first statement of hilchot Teshuvah: Why does the Rambam give the impression that Teshuvah is not itself a mitzvah? What's the difference whether it's a mitzvah or not? Listen, and find out.

Shiur 2: Action and Intention
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Rav Soloveitchik, in attempting to answer his questions about how Rambam describes Teshuvah and Viduy, makes a critical distinction between the act of a mitzvah, and its fulfillment. We discussed specifically the ramifications of this distinction, especially when we approach the difficult topic of tefillah.

Shiur 3: The Process of Teshuvah, The Essence of Teshuvah
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In our third shiur of the pre-RH series, we study the Rav's explanation about why the Rambam seems to focus exclusively on Viduy when describing the process of Teshuvah. During the shiur, we also focus on how the Rav defines Teshuvah, and the difference between superficial viduy (and repentance) and deeper, more meaningful Teshuvah.

Shiur 4: Standing Before God
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In our final shiur of the series, the Rav looks carefully at the language Rambam uses to describe both the process of repentance and the Viduy itself. Why does Rambam say that we must confess "before God?" Why does the Kohen Gadol (and we) begin viduy with the word "ana" - please? Through his answers to these questions, the Rav teaches us a great deal about the true nature of teshuvah.

Al Hateshuvah - From the YIOP Thursday Night Shiur

In Rav Soloveitchik's first essay, he describes the difference between the Teshuvah of Kaparah, or atonement, and Teshuvah of Taharah, or cleansing.

Shiur 1
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Shiur 2: knowing when to speak to the sinner
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