What Does Judaism Think

There is a book, it is called the Book of Life. On Rosh Hashana, our liturgy tells us, we are written down for life - we hope. The evildoers are written for death. On Yom Kippur, it is sealed. How do we merit to be written for life? What does the writing-sealing process mean? And who is actually reading this "book"? Why not just say that God decides who shall live and who shall die, and leave the publishing industry out if it?

Further, why is the phrase "they shall be written" used? Why not use the active tense together with the subject and state that "God will write?" This is clearly hinted at by the strange phrase in the prayer Unetaneh Tokef: "And the signature of every hand is in it (the Book)." In other words, WE are the ones doing the writing. If this is so, why would anyone be written down for death? Who would do that to themselves? What does this mean?
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It always puzzles me how Rosh Hashana is portrayed as the Day of Judgement, filled with awe-inspiring descriptions of how God will inscribe people in the Book of Life (or the other alternative), and yet we seem to say not a word in our own defense! There is no confession, no breast beating, no commitments made to improve our observance of God's laws. It's almost as if we are conceding the trial, admitting guilt by refusing to defend ourselves!

And yet I believe that Rosh Hashana is, indeed, a day of true repentance. Yes, without confession of sin or overt begging of forgiveness, but a day of repentance no less powerful. How so?
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As the world seems headed for chaos, and the forces of evil are mobilized, redemption seems far, far away. And yet, these are the conditions that may just give birth to the moment you have been waiting for, the Messianic Era and the redemption of mankind. But it will require us to do one fundamental thing. Read on to find out what that is.
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