By Divine Providence, as we enter the season of Elul, on Thursday night, Major League Baseball returned to a cornfield in Dyersville, Iowa.
The Philadelphia Phillies and Minnesota Twins played the much-anticipated Field of Dreams Game, beside the site made famous by the iconic Kevin Costner movie. And this isn't merely an exhibition. Both teams are battling for postseason berths, making every game increasingly consequential as the regular season heads toward its home stretch. There could hardly be a more appropriate image for Elul. The Alter Rebbe famously describes this month with the metaphor of HaMelech basadeh — “the King is in the field.” Before the king returns to his palace, he comes out to the field, where everyone can approach him. He receives each person graciously and smiles upon them. And notably, baseball is played on a field. At this point in the season, teams with postseason aspirations are pulling out all the stops. Every at-bat matters. Every pitch counts. Because you don't qualify for October based on what you plan to do once the postseason begins. You get there because of the work you put in during the regular season. Elul is our regular-season stretch run. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are, in a sense, the “postseason” of the Jewish calendar, when the King returns to His palace in all His majesty. But our preparation happens now, while the King is still in the field: another mitzvah, another moment of Torah study, another act of kindness, another honest look at ourselves, another step closer to Hashem. And then comes baseball's ultimate stage: the World Series. It's an interesting name. Unlike soccer's World Cup, nations from around the globe aren't competing. Two North American teams play each other — yet we call it the World Series. Perhaps there is a spiritual truth hidden in the name. On Rosh Hashanah, the Mishnah teaches that the entire world passes before Hashem in judgment. It really is the World Series. Yet who is standing on the field sounding the shofar and proclaiming Hashem as King of the universe? The Jewish people. We are the team on the field, but we are playing for something much bigger than ourselves. Our prayers, our mitzvos and our shofar have an impact upon the entire world. And ultimately, that is our real Field of Dreams. Our mission is to transform this world itself into Hashem's field — a world permeated with goodness, holiness and awareness of its Creator. Every mitzvah moves us closer to the day when that dream becomes reality: the “field” of Geulah — Redemption. So as the King comes into the field, it's time to play our hearts out. May our Elul bring us a winning season, a sweet new year, and ultimately the greatest World Series victory of all — when the Shofar Gadol, the Great Shofar, sounds and ushers in the coming of Moshiach. Then the entire world will finally become Hashem's Field of Dreams. Good Shabbos and Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Ruvi New 
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