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Why does the Rambam (רמב"ם) emphasize vidui as the primary mitzvah (מצוה) of teshuvah rather than inner repentance? The shiur reframes vidui not as psychological confession for guilt relief, but as accountability - giving an accounting to HaKadosh Baruch Hu. This transforms teshuvah from self-improvement into relationship repair with God.
Rabbi Zweig begins by examining the Rambam (רמב"ם)'s position in Hilchos Teshuvah that the primary mitzvah (מצוה) is vidui (confession) rather than teshuvah itself, which seems counterintuitive since confession appears to be merely the external aspect of repentance. He explores several perplexing questions: why the Rambam emphasizes vidui as the main obligation, why even insincere confession has some value, and why certain Torah (תורה) portions are called "vidui" when they contain no apparent confession. The rabbi identifies a crucial psychological phenomenon - people have a tremendous need to confess their sins to relieve guilt, similar to going to a psychiatrist or Catholic confessional. However, this type of confession often leads to feeling cleansed and then repeating the same sins with renewed vigor, because it's merely expiation rather than true repentance.
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Rambam Hilchos Teshuvah
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