The following was posted on the door of the Talmud Torah
in Kelm during the month of Elul by the Alter from Kelm.
Chazal say that on Rosh Hashana we should say pesukim
of malchiyos, "so that you may accept My reign over
you." If we analyze the necessary conditions for the rule of
an earthly king, we realize that he can only rule if all his
people are united in allegiance and service to this king.
Only where there is unity among the people can a kingdom or
government persist. If, chas vesholom, divisions
appear among the king's officials, then the king's government
will fall and, chas vesholom, the whole world can be
destroyed. As Chazal said, "If not for the fear of the
government, men would swallow each other alive." (Avos
3:2) In summary, unity of the people is a necessary condition
for an earthly government.
As Rabbenu Tam wrote in Sefer HaYashar, we should
learn by analogy from the service of earthly kings to service
of the King of Kings, HaKodosh Boruch Hu. Thus, we
realize that an essential component of "so that you may
accept My reign over you" is unity among us, the servants of
HaShem yisborach. The Yalkut says of the
posuk, " `When the King appeared...' When did the King
appear? [As the posuk continues] when `the heads of
the people gathered together, with all the tribes of Israel'
" (Devorim 33:5).
For HaShem, there is no difference between private and public
acts. Thus it is incumbent upon us to undertake--even
privately--to fully fulfill the commandment "Love your friend
as yourself" throughout the coming year, before we enter the
upcoming yom hadin. [Thus, even though it is only a
personal undertaking, since HaShem knows what is in our
hearts] there will be real unity among the servants of
HaShem, yisborach, and we will be successful in our
malchiyos, as we focus on the essential component of
His rule. Thereby will we be remembered for good.
