Teshuvah is a Miracle

A person should know how teshuvah works.

Teshuvah does not mean that if a person doesn’t learn Torah all year, he should hit his heart and say: “Chatati! From now on I’m going to start learning Torah.” That is not teshuvah.

It does not mean that if someone doesn’t daven all year, he should say: “Chatati! From now on, I’m going to pray.” That is not teshuvah.

Teshuvah is a miracle.

Only Hashem can perform miracles.

Just like we know that Kriyat Yam Suf was a miracle, and just like we know that the Ten Makkos were a miracle, Chazal tell us in Talmud Yerushalmi and in the Medrash that the fact that teshuvah works is a miracle. The fact that someone’s aveirot can be erased is a miracle that can only be executed by Hashem.

In reality, every time someone does an aveirah, it cannot be taken back. If I take my hand and crack a glass, I can’t suddenly make the glass whole. So too, every time someone does an aveirah, it does damage that cannot be fixed.

Al pi derech hateva, according to the rules of nature, sins can never be erased. The only way misdeed can be rescinded is if Hashem says, “I will stop nature for you and take back the sin.”

That is the definition of teshuvah.

This means that a person can always do teshuvah.

Even if a person did the worst possible aveirot, Hashem is unlimited and He can erase them. No one can tell Hashem that they have committed too many aveirot and they cannot be altered. Since teshuvah can only be performed through a miracle that can only be orchestrated by Hashem, and because Hashem can do anything, every person can do teshuvah.

No matter how someone may have erred in the past, if one does their part to return to the fold of Hashem, it is possible for every mistake to be overturned, because only He alone has the ultimate control.

It is important to know that teshuvah is a miracle, because if a person is aware that Hashem does teshuvah for us, then they will realize that all that is necessary is to further our relationship with our Creator.

More than just reciting the Selichot from a prayer book, a lipservice, we have the chance to return to Hashem and receive complete forgiveness. The whole idea of Elul, Selichot, and the Aseret Yemei Teshuvah is to come back to Hashem. When HaKadosh Baruch Hu sees that a person sincerely wants to be welcomed back into his arms, only then does He step in, lift you up, and raise you out of your aveirot.

May we all merit complete forgiveness for our sins.

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Rabbi Yaakov Rahimi has created a storm in the Jewish world bringing back many unaffiliated young men and women to the pathways of Hashem. He has been involved in the Chazaq and Torah Anytime organizations, among others including NCSY, BJX, and Partners in Torah. He has since returned to his hometown of Lakewood, N.J. Rabbi Rahimi is a graduate of Deal Yeshiva, and learned in Beth Medrash Govoha becoming a very close talmid of Rabbis Yeruchem Olshin shlit”a, and Yitzchok Sorotzkin shlit”a. Rabbi Rahimi partook in the Sephardic halachic project Mishnah Berurah Tiferet. He can be reached at, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..