I have only a few minutes to jot down some of these ideas about Hatarat Nedarim - the annulment of vows that we make to God -- which we say before a Beit Din, a court, on Erev Rosh Hashanah.
Content-wise, it's very similar to Kol Nidrei. It only affects vows between us and God, not commitments to other people.
But it raises questions:
1) The common understanding is that we don't want to have vowed something and not fulfilled it, thus committing a sin - and go into Rosh Hashanah, the Day of Judgment, with that on our spiritual ledger, as it were.
However, this should be true for all sins! I saw it quoted that Rav Soloveitchik views Hatarat Nedarim as similar to teshuvah -- both involve regret for the past.
And yes, we do teshuvah during Elul... but why single out vows? Why not have a "mini Yom Kippur" the day before Rosh Hashanah, to truly repent of all of our sins so we can go into the Day of Judgment with a clean spiritual ledger?
So while I think the common understanding is part of the story, it is not the whole picture.
2) In contrast to commitments we make to each other, where we can be hurt by the failure of the other to live up to their commitment, in what way does the failure to fulfill our vows to God in any way hurt or bother Him? Essentially, why does God care?
3) Another question is how big a deal is this anyway? Doesn't God forgive our forgotten vows and commitments to Him? We don't even remember them - -and our intentions were for the good!
I think that an approach is that of course, we can't harm God directly by our failure to keep our commitments to Him. He doesn't need our mitzvot -- They are for our benefit.
Once that context is clear, the failure to keep vows and commitments becomes serious. Because when we intend to do mitzvot or improve ourselves religiously, spiritually, and morally, and then fail to do so, we cheapen the meaning of our commitments. I've tried and failed numerous times to improve -- so what good are my commitments anyway? My current commitment to change will be as valueless as my previous commitments.
The response to that: Hatarat Nedarim. It reminds us that our commitments have meaning, and failure to keep them doesn't mean that they are cheapened - it means that we must address the failure and maintain our integrity.
When we retain the integrity of our commitments, it then empowers us to do teshuvah for our other sins. Because part of the process of teshuvah is regret, yes, but another part is commitment to the future. The integrity of our commitments upheld and corrected by Hatarat Nedarim, we can begin the process of teshuvah, of repentance, during the Ten Days of Repentance that begin with Rosh Hashanah.
p.s. Another point connecting Hatarat Nedarim to teshuvah: The response of the court includes the words not just of annulment, but also of forgiveness: הכל מחול לך....
יש כאן מחילה סליחה וכפרה
Everything is forgiven you .. there is here forgiveness, etc...
