Yom Kippur is the only day of the year when we say out loud the words, "Baruch Shem", Blessed [is His] Name Whose glorious majesty is forever and ever, this after the verse of Shema Yisrael. Normally, "Baruch Shem" is said in a whisper whiile Shema Yisrael is said aloud with our hands over our eyes. Why? Our Sages explain that in contrast to the reading of the "Shema", Hear, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one", which is always said out loud, and expresses a clear confirmation of God's unity in the world, the "Baruch Shem" expresses a lesser pronouncement of Divine Providence ("glorious majesty") and is therefore whispered quietly all year round. On Yom Kippur, on the other hand, it is possible to identify the fingerprints of God's leadership in the world more clearly and therefore we say it out loud. On Yom Kippur this year, the choice facing each and every one of us is how to say, "Baruch Shem Kevod Malchuto Lolam Vaed". There are those who may whisper it softly or not say at all, since for them, the glorious majesty of the Holy One, blessed be He, was not seen in the past year. On the other hand, there are those who will say loud and clear: "Blessed [is His] Name Whose glorious majesty is forever and ever!" Last year, on the eve of Yom Kippur 5784, while the monsters were growing across the border and the suffocating noose was tightening without our consciousness of it, the State of Israel was in a national coma. spiritual culture was in confusion until a handful of violent bullies imagined that they had public legitimacy to prevent prayer in the streets of Tel Aviv. Today, on the eve of Yom Kippur 5785, we are in a completely different place: on the security level, the monster was exposed and jis decisively being beaten; the stranglehold is loosening and victory is just over the horizon. On the internal level, traditionalism has grown so much this year that even the High Court of Justice is in alignment with the public mood interested in Jewish prayer. The battle is not yet over on all fronts, but the identification of God's glorious majesty is sharp and clear. Therefore, this year we will shout as loudly as possible – even in the streets of Tel Aviv – " Blessed [is His] Name Whose glorious majesty is forever and ever!" Shabbat Shalom and Gmar Chatima Tova!
