פרשת נצבים - וילך
אתם נצבים היום כלכם.|. דברים כ"ט, ט
'
You are standing today, all of you…
Moshe Rabbeinu gathered all the Yidden prior to their crossing of the Jordan River to underscore the fact that the Yidden must unite as one in order to conquer Eretz Yisroel.
This requirement also has Halachic ramifications, for only tracts of land conquered by the entire nation become sanctified with respect to laws pertaining to Eretz Yisroel – כיבוש יחיד לאו שמי' כיבוש.
Similarly, explains the שם משמואל, our coronation of Hashem as our King is only effective when there is unity amongst us as the Possuk says – ויהי בישרון מלך בהתאסף ראשי עם יחד שבטי ישראל He became King over Yeshurun (the Yidden) when the numbers of the nation gathered – the tribes of Yisrael in unity (see Rashi).
The primary focus on Rosh Hashanah is our acceptance of Hashem’s sovereignty. In order to hone in on the importance that unity plays in our coronation of Hashem as King, Parshas Netzovim, which describes how Moshe Rabbeinu assembled all the Yidden, is read immediately prior to Rosh Hashanah, to effectively coronate Hashem as our King on this day.
A valuable message to begin the year with. A message to transmit to our students and a message to model; the message of unity.
About the Author: Rabbi Yisroel Meir Rubinfeld
Rabbi Rubinfeld has been in the field of Torah education for over 3 decades and serves as an Executive School Consultant for Torah Umesorah. He provides an array of services to schools across North America, including teacher and principal mentorship, school and curricula evaluations, professional development and parent education.
Rabbi Rubinfeld's expertise includes classroom management and discipline, effective instruction, bullying, cultivating sensitivity in the classroom, impulse disorders (such as ADHD and ODD), and balancing the educational needs of mainstream and special needs children in the classroom.
Rabbi Rubinfeld is the also the founder and director of Torah Umesorah's Lilmod U'Lilamed department which provides professional development for teachers and principals throughout the year.
Rabbi Rubinfeld is a talmid of the distinguished Yeshivos of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin, the Mirrer Yeshiva in Yerushalayim and Bais Medrash Govoha in Lakewood.