According to the Midrash “Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer,” the month of Elul is the month in which God called on Moses to return to the top of the mountain after the golden calf and the breaking of the tablets. As a result, we blow the Shofar in Elul as a reminder of the shofar that was passed around the camp of Israel.
The Selichot that we chant in Elul also center the story of the Golden Calf, as we chant Moses’s prayer to God to be compassionate and merciful, slow to anger, abounding in kindness.
Throughout Elul, referring to the Golden Calf reminds us that we are not the first to sin nor will we be the last. This month is the time to realize that we can have a second chance, a chance to go up to the mountain to seek God, a chance to come down with a clearer sense of religious purpose and holy living.
The Selichot and the Shofar have two purposes: to know that we sinned and have been forgiven, and to know that we must always strive to improve. We are not required to complete the task, nor are we free to desist from it.
