Thursday, July 26, 2012

Torah for your table!

The fifth book of the Torah, Devarim, starts its discussion with Moshe telling the Jewish people, “Today Hashem, your G-d, commands that you do these laws” (16:26). Wait a minute, wasn’t the Torah given to the Jewish people forty years earlier, and didn’t Hashem command the people to follow the laws then? What is the sense of the repetition?  In other words, Hashem wants Bnai Israel to follow the Torah each and every day as it if was just given to them. He wants the Jewish people to feel as connected to following the commandments as they were on the day they received the Torah.

Throughout our lives, we have our inspiring moments that drive our souls to places we never knew existed, and we have moments where we feel as though we are holding onto our faith by a shredding thread. Despite the volatility of our inspiration, we have to keep the Torah near and dear to us, just as if we had just received in on Mount Sinai. By developing this sense of awareness, our inspiration and connection to the mitzvot will heighten without question, and a part of our neshama- soul- will feel as though it is constantly receiving the wisdom of the Torah at every moment.

Emunah- Devarim’s Powerful quotes


Emunah- Devarim’s Powerful quotes
Emunah- commitment/loyalty- is the foundation of the Jewish people.  When we pray to Hashem, we say, “our G-d, G-d of our forefathers, etc.” We are calling out to Him as our Father first and foremost. In His greatness, we are meant to attach ourselves to Him through fulfilling His commandments. The Book of Devarim teaches a Jew how to strengthen his emunah to Hashem. Additionally, Devarim discusses many mitzvot pertaining to believing in Hashem’s oneness, loving, and fearing Him.

Throughout our thousands of years in exile and the much suffering our nation has endured, the one thing that has kept us inspired is our emunah. Yirmeyahu, the prophet, quotes, “My soul is bereft of peace, I have forgotten the good times, I thought my eternal world and my souls are lost from Hashem, because I sinned so greatly” (Aicha 3:17:18). However, he immediately encourages himself and says, “this I recall to my heart and therefore I will hope: Hashem’s kindness does not cease, His mercies do not end. His mercies are new every morning, great is His emunah (ibid 2:21:23). What does Yirmeyahu mean when he says, His emunah? Rashi explains that Hashem promised to never forsake us and that He will keep His promise to us (our future redemption) and continuously extend His kindness to us. Despite the bad times we may experience, we must always encourage ourselves, just as the great prophet Yirmeyahu did, and remember the eternal kindness Hashem displays toward His people.

Additionally, the book of Devarim teaches us: “Only guard yourself and guard your soul very much, lest you forget the things which your eyes have seen and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life, but teach them to your sons and your sons’ son- the day you stood before Hashem, your G-d at Sinai” (4:9-10). The Torah recognizes that there are many factors that may lead us astray from observing Hashem’s mitzvot, hence causing us to lose our emunah. The drive for greed, honor, lust, etc., are some of the many factors that may drive us away from serving Hashem with our entire heart. Moreover, by misinterpreting the Torah, or not having the sufficient knowledge to observe it properly, we stray from Hashem.

Our goal as Jews is to continuously strive to stay connected and develop our emunah. We need to pray that Hashem will strengthen it. We need to be persistent and determined to fight all the evil inclinations that pull us away from serving Hashem with joy. Additionally, we need to know that Hashem is in control of our lives and all the circumstances we are presented with. With this awareness and developed emunah, we will be able to maintain the bond Hashem created with our ancestors all those years ago.