סלח לנו אבינו כי חטאנו
(1) Forgive us, our Father, because we have sinned;
(2) Absolve us, our King, because we have rebelled [against You],
(3) For You, God, are Kind and forgiving.
(4) Blessed are You, HaShem, who is compassionate and generous in forgiving.
In the previous berakha (blessing) we have asked HaShem for help to repent. And once we repent, in this Berakha, we are asking HaShem to forgive us, to absolve us and not punish us for our transgressions.
Transgression impacts us negatively on two levels.
אבינו: First, it affects us on a personal level. Sin, transgression leaves harmful consequences and sequels in our personality. For example: Maintaining Kashrut, the Jewish diet or other similar restrictions, trains us to control our appetites and refine our character. However, when we totally give in to our basic instincts we expose ourselves to falling into other vicious and addictive circles, as we have giving up control of our drives and desires. In a certain way, when we sin, we are acting against our own good. When a young man disobeys his parents and smokes, who is harmed by this disobedience? The young man who smokes! After all, the parents forbade their child to smoke for his own good.
מלכנו: Secondly, when we sin we have also committed “a crime”. Let me explain: The Tora is not a manual of religious ritual. The Tora is a book of Laws. Perhaps the best way to understand the Tora is defining it as “The Constitution of the Jewish People.” Thus, when we transgress the Tora, we are violating the Constitution, and as such, our actions deserves a penalty. Today, we do not have rabbinical courts to judge and penalize crimes, all transgressions to our Constitution are judged by the Celestial Court, i.e., God. HaShem is the King, that is, the supreme Judge who judges and sanctions our actions.
Now we can better understand what this berakha is saying:
(1) Forgive us, our Father, because we have sinned;
First, we ask HaShem, calling him “OUR FATHER”, to forgive us for our sins. In Hebrew, HATAIM, which are the transgressions that we commit for lack of conscience. As that young man who smokes because he is not fully consciously aware of the danger of smoking for his health. In this first sentence we refer to HaShem as “Our Father”, implicitly recognizing that all the restrictions He imposed on us are ultimately for our own good.
(2) Absolve us, our King, because we have rebelled [against You],
Then, in the second sentence, we refer to the “legal” aspect of our transgression. We have violated our Constitution, our covenant with HaShem. In Hebrew this level of transgression is called PESHA, crime, when someone consciously rebels against an authority. That is why in this sentence we call HaShem “OUR KING”. We are not asking now for simple forgiveness. We are asking God, our King to absolve us of the punishment we deserve.
(3) For You, God, are good and forgiving.
We appeal to the goodness of HaShem as Father and to His compassion as King.
And finally we declare:
(4) Blessed are You, HaShem, who is compassionate and generous in forgiving.
What does “generous in forgiving” (המרבה לסלוח) mean?
Many times we commit a transgression, and then we repent. We ask for HaShem’s forgiveness, and beg Him to erase our rebellion. In our supplication, we also assure Him that He does not need to punish us, because we have learned our lesson, and we will NEVER sin again. We feel good because we are sure that HaShem, with His great compassion, has forgiven us. But then, after a short time, we forget the whole process of repentance, and we again commit the same transgression … at this point, we would not normally dare to start the whole process again and ask forgiveness of HaShem … it seems like a bad joke, or a rebellious act of CHUTZPA. How am I going to have the nerve to ask HaShem “again” for His understanding, His forgiveness and His absolution?
That is why this berakha tells us that HaShem is “HAMARBE LISLOAH”, infinitely “generous in forgiving”. And only when I become aware of HaShem’s infinite indulgence I can I arm myself with courage and ask forgiveness again, even for the same sins for which I have repented previously. It is as if our endless CHUTZPA (nerve) is balanced with the infinite generosity of HaShem to forgive us.
These final words invite us to avoid the yeush, the desperation to think that there is no second (or third, etc…) possibility of return. And it teaches us that HaShem, as a loving Father, is always ready to accept the sincere repentance of his children.
