Hearing the shofar’s powerful clarion call

Anyone who hears the sound of the shofar, the ram’s horn sounded in synagogues on the Jewish New Year, can attest to the potency of the sound. Its haunting simplicity evokes awe, commitment, and fortitude. That it should continue to do so even in our day and age is astounding. Think of the vast barrage of sensory stimulation that has become part of our daily existence. How can a simple sound — an instrument that can play but one tone — be so powerfully evocative?
The answer is clear. Precisely in its simplicity lies the force of the shofar. In an ever more complex world simplicity has become profoundly underrated. “God created humanity straight, but they have sought out many designs.” Many of those designs can be good. Many but not all. Many but not too many. The Jewish New Year is a time to for new beginnings in which we go back to the basics. The shofar helps us do precisely that.
When God reveals Himself to Elijah the Prophet, we are told that “the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small sound”(I Kings 19:11-12).
We often live lives of fire, earthquakes, and mountain-tearing winds. And those complicated, fast-paced, and unpredictable lives are often our greatest paths to Godliness. But calibration is necessary from time to time. And to calibrate, one needs to stop; to stop and to listen closely for that “still small sound.” One tone can carry infinite depth. This year, may we all hear that tone, hear its depth. May we all be moved by that tone — to where we need to go. And may the year ahead bring only peace, goodness, and blessing.