Parshas Ki Savo: Have Some Swag!

Buried within the Torah lies a mitzvah so unexpected and profound that it redefines how we understand spiritual growth. The commandment of Viduy Ma’aser—the confession of tithes—stands apart as perhaps the only mitzvah that calls upon us not to confess our failures, but to declare our successes.

Unlike the familiar confessions of Yom Kippur, where we openly acknowledge our shortcomings, Viduy Ma’aser asks us to stand before God and confidently proclaim, “I have done what You commanded me.” This statement, made twice in each seven-year cycle, requires farmers (and by extension, modern observant Jews) to affirm aloud that they have distributed their tithes according to divine instruction, ensuring they reached the Levites, strangers, orphans, and widows.

What makes this mitzvah so groundbreaking is how it addresses a universal imbalance in our spiritual lives. As Rabbi Aaron Lopiansky observes, while we tend to dwell on our shortcomings, we often struggle to recognize our achievements. Here, the Torah, in its infinite wisdom, establishes a ritual framework that compels us to acknowledge our successes. It invites us to embrace our “spiritual swag,” to recognize our capabilities and celebrate how far we’ve come. This act of positive affirmation doesn’t just build confidence—it lays the foundation for authentic growth and self-transformation.

The timing of this lesson is especially poignant. As we approach a season of introspection and self-assessment, it’s vital to remember that honest spiritual accounting requires balance: acknowledging not only where we fell short but also where we triumphed. Over the past year, you’ve likely accomplished more than you realize. You’ve made hard choices, overcome challenges, and fulfilled divine expectations in meaningful ways. The mitzvah of Viduy Ma’aser reminds us to give voice to these victories—not out of arrogance, but as an honest acknowledgment of the divine potential within us.

Rediscovering this often-overlooked mitzvah offers a powerful lesson: recognizing and articulating your spiritual successes might be the missing key to deepening your relationship with God. Let this practice inspire you to look back with gratitude and forward with confidence, knowing that growth and transformation begin with the truth of what you’ve already achieved.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Viduy Ma'aser
• 6:21 Understanding the Mitzvah's Requirements
• 9:12 The Crown Jewel of Speech
• 13:43 Modern Application of Viduy Ma'aser
• 17:20 Uniqueness of This Confession
• 20:23 Confessing Success, Not Failure
• 24:35 Finding Your Spiritual Confidence

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

When the following topic is brought up in conversation, people act uninterested. When the following topic comes up in conversation, people's eyes glaze over. They find the topic colorless, bland and uninspiring. But as you will soon see, with the help of Hashem, with the help of the Almighty, that the mitzvah of Viduy ma'aser yes, viduy ma'aser that is found in the second aliyah of our parasha is one of the most colorful, impactful, inspiring and hope-filled mitzvos. There's so much to learn from it. Parak chaf vav posok yud beiz kisichale la'aser es kol ma'aser t'vuascha ba'shona. When you have set aside in full the tenth part of your field during or after the third year, the year of the tithe, you've given all of your sufficient and necessary tithes. You've paid your dues to the Levite, to the stranger, the fatherless and the widow, all so that they should have food and sustenance and their family should be able to live on. You are, as the next Pesach says, to declare that you have done this sufficiently. You're to make a declaration that you have tithed Satisfactory, satisfactorily. I've cleared out all of the sufficient level of tithings, all of the consecrated portions from my house. I've given it to the family of the lavy and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow, and I've done it just as you have commanded me. I have neither transgressed nor neglected any of your commandments. It's the mitzvah of Vidoi Meisir, two or three more psukim, go through what you are to say and what blessing you ask for and where you are to do this declaration. But the rules and regs of the law are codified by Maimonides, the Rambam in Mitzvah 131, and the Sefer HaChinuch in Mitzvah 607, and basically the mitzvah is Shitzivan u'lesvados lefonav boitsas mishpetei ha'maisos vachumas u'lesnakos me'en b'maymer. Rambam says it's commandment that after you have sufficiently taken your tithes, you have to verbally express and to clean yourself, verbally, clean yourself to ensure or to be clean You're supposed to be clean from any sort of consecrated produce in your portions. You're supposed to verbically declare that Mitzvah 607 gives us and fills us in in even more details about the law. You have to make this declaration, when To do it where, in front of Hashem, you have to do it in the base, hamikdash that you have sufficiently given all your tithes, the confession of Meisr, the Sefer HaChinuch, one of the great and anonymous authors, a medieval commentator who wrote a Sefer HaChinnok, one of the great and anonymous authors, a medieval commentator who wrote a Sefer HaMitzvot to give an overview to his son about what God's commandments are about and what their lessons are.

Speaker 1: 3:58

He tells us that some of the psychological and philosophical underpinnings of the mitzvah is based on the greatness of man's speech. Human beings are no greater than animals, no greater than trees, no greater than insects, no greater than other objects Well, I guess they're greater than trees in the way that they can move. But a human being is no greater than any animal or living being for that matter, except that he has the crown jewel called speech, and it is for this reason Zavra Hinnach says something astonishing when he says there are many people. There are many people. Are his words that? Because their speech is their crown jewel, they are more conscientious about speaking just pointless words, because that's the great glory and splendor of a human being. They're more scared of speaking nothingness, even more so than sinning in action. What an absolutely extraordinary thing to state. Can you imagine somebody really more careful about saying, hey, how's the weather up there? Even more so than doing something against Hashem. Even more so than doing something against Hashem. It speaks tremendous volumes about just how special our crown jewel of speech is, the Dine HaMitzvah.

Speaker 1: 6:02

He continues to show us how the Mitzvah of Vidoi Meister is very much based on the crown jewel, that you should speak out. What you have done. You have to do it during the daytime. You do it specifically on the final day of Pesach in the fourth and seventh years of the Shemitah sabbatical cycle. It's a very precise time. You affirm that all the required tithes were given.

Speaker 1: 6:27

The Sefer HaChanech gets into a little bit of a discussion in the Rambam about whether or not we are obligated to do this mitzvah during this generation. Is it dependent upon us having a temple of Beis Hamikdash Seems to be a very controversial topic. The Rambam seems to imply that the mitzvah of Vidoi Meisur is still applicable today, See chapter 11, halacha 1 of of the laws of Maiser Shani. The Shulchan Aruch in Simeon 331 also seems to imply that well, we have farmers in Eretz, yisrael, that are part of the Holy Land and we can confess that we've given sufficient trumos and maestros.

Speaker 1: 7:08

The Aderes, a great gadol who lived between 1843 and 1905, rabbi Eliyahu David Rabinowitz, a Lithuanian rabbi who served as the leader of the Jewish community of Panevez I guess that's Panovich, the rabbi of Mir, the leader of the Ashkenazi community in Yerushalayim, wrote a pamphlet and anonymously published this Torah journal. All about how we really should take back on upon ourselves the practical obligation of confessing that we have given our tithes correctly. It's interesting that he wrote the Sefer. It has a haskama, an approbation from the Netziv and the Orekha Shulchan, and he also gives a haskama to it by himself from the Adderet, the Adderes. But since he had authored it anonymously, it's cool that now that we figured out who it was, that now the anonymous author has given himself the Hasgama, there's some debate and pushback from the Vilna Gon and the Raivid, how Vidoi Maiser is dependent upon the Kohanim and the Besa Migdash. It's a very poignant and precious matter for us to figure out the practical halacha, because the upcoming years of the confession of the tithes are 5786, 2026 next year and the fourth year of the current Shemitah cycle. Well, that is 5786, but 5789 as well, 2029, the seventh year of the Shemitah cycle. There's a big question should people declare that they have tithed sufficiently? But let us turn our attention from the practical matters, the halachic matters, and direct our attention to the next point of concern, which is more of a hashkafa point but also needs to be addressed, about this mitzvah. You really see how deep Torah is, how rich it is, how many layers there are. But isn't it interesting that this is, in my calculation, my estimation, the only mitzvah in the entire Torah, from A to Z, aleph to Toph Brashas to V'zos HaBracha. That requires a audible review. An audible review Going over of the notes and audibly in front of Hashem, in a very verbal way, in a very official way, following rules and regulations, you need to declare that you've done the mitzvah properly.

Speaker 1: 9:44

What's this Chazara Review Necessary? I don't recall us ever having to voice that we have shaken, shooken, shaked the lulav and the estrog and sat inside of the sukkah. There is no obligation at the end of the year to say I have sufficiently eaten matzah, shaken the lulav and celebrated Shavuos. But it seems odd, specifically, one needs to triennally review that he has given sufficient tithes. If Hirsch answers this question in his classic sort of way, that you see here how important the Meister, the tithes, are, that they represent the Shul Duz, the material wealth, the material possessions, and you see how critical they are your connection with the community and the monetary value that you're supposed to, in your Jewish life, use to further the will of God. So, at the heart of the mitzvah, in one of the most crucial mitzvahs, where money and material wealth oversecks, intersects, overlaps with Torah, aka Meisr, tithing, charity, taking care of others. It is specifically there that you need to ensure that you have done what has been asked of you. Hence you are to double-check that your checkbooks are balanced, to ensure that the rabbis of the community are taken care of as well as the Kohanim and the impoverished folks. A classic of Hirsch, real important point, eye-opening point about the halachos of Meisr and how we need to take them seriously.

Speaker 1: 11:40

But now let us get to the core of the topic. Let us turn our attention to the final matter of interest, the point that I want to dwell upon. As we stand at the very top of this precipice, kind of already wetted wet our palate had our appetizers about the Vidoi Meisir. I want to now ask what you should ask. What everyone asks is that there's no such thing in all of Torah, except for here you have a viduy. That's not for sins. The words, the grammar seems off as soon as you bump into this puzzle.

Speaker 1: 12:27

If you've never learned Torah before and you are aware that there's to be a viddui ma'aser, you would imagine that after the person is stepping forward to confess that he has something to say and share about his tithes. Probably he's going to klop al chet, bang his chest and say bang his chest and say I didn't tithe, I messed up. God, I'm sorry I didn't give charity like I should have. I messed up, I'm sorry, I gambled away my extra funds. I could have supported the community communal rabbi and Torah scholars better, but instead I used it on my own, luxuriant. That's not what we have. Instead we get a beautiful avowal of how the person stepping forward is wonderful and he's taken care of his obligations. His veto is not for a sin, is wonderful and he's taken care of his obligations.

Speaker 1: 13:31

His Vidoi is not for a sin, but it's a Vidoi unlike anything else. It's a Vidoi of success. A Vidoi unlike Yom Kippur's Vidoi, where it's a confession of sins. But this is a confession of one's virtues, a positive declaration of compliance with God's commandments. Regarding the tithes, we've never seen anything like it. How does this qualify as a vidoy?

Speaker 1: 14:03

Rabbi Bamberger, great Rav author. I'm a big fan of his. He speaks out a lot of wisdom from Rabbi Yerucham L'Vovitz, the great spiritual dean of Yeshiva Asmir during the Roaring Twenties, but he explains a very interesting approach to the topic that ultimately, when you need to preach your success, like making a siyum where you audibly declare Hadron Eloch Masechta Zu, I have sufficiently learned it and that's what you're telling everyone that's invited to your steak and wine siyum. Just imagine for a second that not just your dad and mom were invited, but Rav Chaim Kanievsky, rav Dov Landau, the stipler Goyn, rav Shimshindov and Pincus and Rav Hirsch are all there listening and you're declaring how great you are, how I have learned this sufficiently and I've done what's asked of me.

Speaker 1: 15:10

It can make a person kind of second guess himself. Have I really learned it sufficiently? Do I really know what I have studied? Hadron alach means I'm going to return to it. Am I truly going to return to this tractate? It makes a person look deeply at himself, because when a person has to confess his success, it's actually one of the most powerful ways of doing the opposite, which is to wake himself up and say I got be better. I gotta give my miser better, I gotta give more charity, I gotta take care of my fellow man better, and hold on, let me relearn the Gemara again before I make my seum. It's an interesting approach.

Speaker 1: 16:04

It is not exactly what's apparent from the literal taking of the words. It seems like the Meisr maybe is a positive Meisr in the way that Rabbi Bamberger is explaining it, which is beautiful and definitely is true on many levels. It's more of taking in the other direction, that the Meisr is there in a positive way to bring out honest contrition in the heart and of course there's truth to that. But I'd like to share also something that I heard in passing from the great going to Godel, the Urim V'tumim, the giant in our generation, rabbi Aaron Lopiansky. He said it in passing in a question and answer session. Please forgive me for my sore throat, but he used it to answer kind of off the cuff. He dropped it in a conversation to answer a question about Chuva. I packed it in my back pocket, I put it in the notes, I put it into Dropbox and put it into Kisavo section and waited for the week to come and what Rabbi Lepensky described as he was asked by a young boy about how to repent, feeling bad about himself and the Oshamnu and the Bogadnu and the disastrous nature of some of the misdeeds and misappropriated monies that he was involved in in the past year.

Speaker 1: 17:41

After giving the boy some encouragement, a perspective. He also mentioned that. You know it's interesting, the Torah also is not just interested in you confessing your sins. There actually is another type of vidoy and it's a revelation Vidoy. The Torah wants you at times to declare your success. A vidoy that every couple of years a crucial part of your avodah, an avowal, is made an acknowledgement that quote in front of Hashem I have done what was asked of me. A vowel is made, an acknowledgement. That quote in front of Hashem I have done what was asked of me. In front of Hashem, you say that I did it. I'm pretty good, I got something done In ultimate vidoy.

Speaker 1: 18:42

Rabbi Leplansky showed that while coming to terms with some of the missteps that we have in life, one cannot ever fall into depression from his sins. One always needs to have the chin up because the mentality and the mindset and the long-term goal needs to be prevalent. Term goal needs to be prevalent and you should not go yardi duma with thoughts of what immediately just transpired or how many sins you have done in your past. You're supposed to look to the future, but not to be forgotten is that you can't forget the goodness that you have accomplished last year. One needs to be aware of that.

Speaker 1: 19:24

At times he did wake up on time. At times he did give a larger donation than was comfortable for him. At times he did come home on time for dinner, do bath time and bed time. Presently, happily, he did study Torah and recite Kriya Shema. Presently, happily, he did study Torah and recite Kirishma Bechol, peroteh v'diktu keha, with all of the aspects of the mitzvah.

Speaker 1: 19:56

There are times that we do good things, that we put a check box, check mark in the check boxbox next to some of our obligations, and one cannot disregard his success. In fact, one needs to audibly voice it with a positive video that helps him to comprehend that he has a capacity to succeed. He's handing his employees timesheet, submitting it to his employer and saying here you go, hashem, I didn't blow it, I wasn't late, but the opposite. A beautiful declaration. I didn't eat it while I was mourning. I didn't eat it while I was mourning. I didn't eat it while I was impure. I listened. I have done just as you commanded me. I did it. That vidoy is the ultimate vidoy. It's the vidoy of success. I have done just as you commanded me. I did it. That vidoy is the ultimate vidoy. It's the vidoy of success. It's the vidoy of acknowledgement, acknowledgement of your triumphs. It's a vidoy unlike any other.

Speaker 1: 21:23

You say before Hashem that I can accomplish and I am capable. In truth, it is hard for us to compliment ourselves. We like to be humble, we like to feel good about ourselves, but never to voice in front of somebody that you're good at something. That's awkward socially off but subconsciously, often it feels like it's misplaced honesty, as if if I speak out that I'm struggling or have my problems and never declare that I can do it, I never declare, I never make an ultimate vidoy like a vidoy meiser, that I've done correctly and I have the capacity for success. It feels like you kind of stay cozy and nothing more is asked of you. But as soon as you say that I could do it, I did it. You won a game. In a certain way that shows that there's an expectation of you in the future to continue to win.

Speaker 1: 22:46

But that's exactly what Hashem wants, especially as we come up to the season of the high holidays, the days of awe that you're going to be second-guessing yourself a lot and you're going to be voicing your sins a lot. And you're supposed to do that. That's mandated. You're supposed to be aware of your shortcomings, yearly, but every couple years, twice, every seven years. You need to audibly declare to yourself, as the shorish of this mitzvah, that oh Sisi, god, I did it. Everything you asked of me, I can do this.

Speaker 1: 23:34

You have to toot your own horn, you have to have a certain amount of confidence and you have to find your spiritual swag every three years, even boast, awkwardly, brag about your accomplishments and achievements. It's commanded of you. What's more, as soon as you're done with your declaration, god wants you to look up at him and say gaze down God from your heavenly abode. And please, now down God from your heavenly abode. And please, now that I have done God, now that we have done what you have asked of us, now you do God, what you promised and what you told us you were going to do. Really startling words, but they only seem to find their place after one has stated his success, confessed his success, acknowledged his success, Confessed his success, acknowledged his competence. That's what the mitzvah of V-Day Meisr is about Take a really close and hard look at your life and maybe acknowledge what needs improvement.

Speaker 1: 24:45

Actually, you can reach out via email or WhatsApp, and the Motivation Congregation has a template to help you learn about yourself. A cheshbon, ha-nefesh to learn about where you can improve. But I probably missed a couple spots. Now that I'm thinking of it and we have to add a ninth page to this cheshbon, a ninth page to this worksheet about what it is that you did beautifully last year, where it is that you actually flexed your spiritual muscles. You need to write down and admit your achievements. Like that. You kind of have your spiritual swag back, you kind of you see that you can do it.

Speaker 1: 25:30

My voice is sore. There's one more thing to discuss, but for the sake of pain in the throat and the time going late, I'd like to bring this idea to your attention that you've done a lot of good this past year. Take note of it, even if it's just one mitzvah like tithing. Properly You've only done one of 613. But God wants you to confess that in front of him. He wants you to know that you are very connected and probable in your spiritual success. Listen to yourself, say it that I have what it takes to repent. I have the strength to do what is asked of me and you can I can audibly declare Assisi I have done all that you have asked of us, all that you have asked of me, I can do it. You can do it. You are all all of us included are capable of great things. And that's the lesson of Vidu Meiser confessing your tithes, that you have to confess your success and get your swag back.