haazinu / rosh hashana

The posuk says, קל אמונה ואין עול צדיק וישר הוא; a trustworthy G-d with no injustice He is righteous & upright. The אוצרות התורה asks, what is the praise that we're giving 'ה that He's אין עול? We wouldn't even praise a person that he doesn't harm other people unjustly, so what's the great praise that 'ה doesn't harm unprovoked? 'ר ישראל סלנט explains, in normal circumstances, if a person commits a crime, and goes before a judge based on his crime, he's sentenced . If he's sentenced to a long jail time, it not only affects him, but his family as well. Even if his aging parents whom he supports, would come to court to ask for leniency, or his wife, children, or close friends would beg the judge, it would be to no avail; the court wouldn't waiver. One gets punished based on his crime. However, the judgment of 'ה is not like that. His judgment is אין עול; without any injustice, He takes into account all the mitigating circumstances, and won't punish unless everyone who would be effected deserves it. ר אליהו לופיאן says, based on this, that a person should surround oneself with friends & loved ones in order to be saved on the יום הדין, for the more people you affect the better your chances for a good judgment. In the סימנים on ר"ה night we say שירבו זכויותינו - that our merits should be increased. The ספר תורת חיים asks, what kind of request is that? Either we have merits or we don't. If we want them increased we have to go out & do mitzvos, & then we'll have more. We can't ask 'ה to give them to us - how can he give us merits?
Based on the explanation of אין עול, maybe we could say that what we're asking 'ה when we say שירבו זכויותינו is that He give us the ability to positively affect many people, whether it be spiritually or materially. As the סבא מקלם says, don't live just for yourself! The more people we affect the better our chance of getting a good judgment. There's a story told about the רב מפונביז. When he was sick in the hospital, he called over some of his influential talmidim to ask if there was anything he could do for the klal, such as to open a new yeshiva or the like. The talmidim asked him, why is the rav asking us this now? Wait until you're better and then do it. The rav answered, now that I'm in a state of פיקוח נפש, I need to do something for the klal, and then I'm sure I'll be healed. So too with us, coming into ראש השנה, we need to make sure we're doing things for the klal, getting involved, helping people, affecting as many people as possible to ensure that we merit a year of health, wealth & happiness!
Wishing everyone a כתיבה וחתימה טובה!!