Pour Out Your Hearts
The Haftarot of the High Holy Days
On the Haftarah for the First Day of Rosh Hashanah (1 Sam. 1–2:10)
The haftarah for the first day of Rosh Hashanah centers around Hannah, mother of the prophet Samuel. Elkanah, a man of the hill country of Ephraim, had two wives: Peninnah, who had children, and Hannah, who was childless. In a moment of overwhelming challenge, Hannah approaches the Temple in Shiloh to offer a personal prayer: “O Adonai Tzeva’ot, if You will look upon the suffering of your maidservant, and if You will grant Your maidservant a male child, I will dedicate him to Adonai for all the days of his life” (1 Sam. 1:11).
Watching Hannah’s prayer from a distance, Eli the priest mistakes her for a drunk, and he rebukes her: “How long will you make a drunken spectacle of yourself? Sober up!” (1:14).
Hannah quickly corrects his mistake explaining: “Oh no my lord . . . I have drunk no wine . . . but I have been pouring my heart out to Adonai” (1:15).
Hannah provides a powerful paradigm of prayer for us on these Days of Awe. Are we concerned with how we may appear when we are in prayer? Do we shy away from moments of visible supplication, such as when the clergy bow and touch the floor during the Aleinu and the Avodah service? Does that make us feel too conspicuous in a sea of congregants? How many of us would have our davening mistaken for disorderly conduct? Have we become too staid? Too self-conscious?
Perhaps an answer comes in the words of Eli’s mistaken rebuke: “Sober up!”
This is not a moment for rote performance. This is not a time for spiritual self-restraint—these are the Days of Awe, the gates are open, and, just like Hannah, our job is to cry ourselves straight through the door.
Back to Glimmers of Light: Reflections on Hope for the Days of Awe 5785
