Weekly D'var Torah

Our Parsha this week continues Moses’ month-long seminar as he bids farewell to his beloved, maddening, exasperating, loving, funny and always amazing nation, the People of Israel.

Like any worried parent, Moses often focuses on the dire consequences of failing to be careful.  But he also adds in moments of light and reminders of joy.

See, I have set before you today a blessing and a curse: a blessing if you will commit to the mitzvot of Adonai your G-d that you should think of as being given to you anew every day.

And a curse if you abandon the mitzvot of Adonai and turn aside after false gods whom you do not know…

The Rabbis want to know: what does Moses mean when he says, “See…”  See what exactly?

The answer: the word “see” in Hebrew is pretty concrete.  In English we say, “I see” when we understand something.  Not so in Hebrew.  Seeing means, well, actually seeing something.

So… how do we “see” the blessing of doing the Mitzvot?  By doing the Mitzvot!

Judaism gets planted into the heart by actions.  Concrete, visible, actual actions.  These actions convey values in ways that words cannot and they inspire the heart to form connections and find inspiration. 

When I was just starting out as a Jewish educator, I proposed a model that every Mitzvah in the Torah has four dimensions:

1. An invitation to create something: whether an act of giving, preparing a meal for a mourner,  lighting a Shabbat candle, building a Sukkah, joining a Passover Seder or sitting over a Torah text, every Jewish act is an act of creation, of bringing something, an experience, a moment, something new into the world.
2. An invitation to take responsibility for something; even something like hearing the Megillah or the  Shofar where you are basically passive, you are required to be mindful, to “own” the experience.  When you give Tzedaka, it’s not a random click of a link but an act of taking responsibility for fixing something in this broken world.  Every Jewish action, from saying the Shema with concentration or affixing a Mezuzah to your door is an act of mindfulness and responsibility.
3. An invitation to deepen Jewish identity.  Our sacred Hebrew language gives us ways to channel acts of love and kindness into nurturing our Jewish souls, our neshamas.  Caring for a homeless animal is called Tzar Ba’alei Chaim (preventing cruelty to living creatures).  Taking environmental action to recycle or reduce is called Bal Tashchit- (you shall not wantonly destroy the world).  Every kind action awakens this mitzvah language and connects us to the Torah.  Visiting the sick is fulfilling the mitzvah of bikur cholim and helping two friends make up is called hava’at shalom bein adam l’chavero.  By studying Torah and learning the names of these great Jewish value-actions, we widen and deepen the good we do.
4. Every mitzvah, every Jewish act, even ritual acts, has a powerful moral dimension. Saying a prayer for healing helps remind us that we have an obligation to bring healing.  Lighting a Shabbat candle is creating a moment of closeness for all present- and if it’s just us, it connects us in peace and compassion to our tradition and reminds us of the power of love and peace.  Tzedaka, acts of kindness, caring for nature, social justice- all of these Mitzvot are directly connected to morality.  But so are the less obvious Mitzvot.  Even fulfilling the Mitzvah of Sever Panim Yafot- literally of simply smiling at others- can have a profound impact.  And so it is with every mitzvah. 

What’s the upshot of all this?  Judaism might be transmitted through “Shema”- hearing the teachings, stories, memories and passing them on.  But Judaism is lived through “Re’eh”- seeing the candles, the mezuzah, the Torah text, the Siddur (prayer book), the tallit and tefillin, the Tzedaka box, the Lulav, the Sukkah, the synagogue, the land and people of Israel the expressions of Jewish identity that are concrete and present- when we make them so.

How will you create a visible Judaism today?  Only a moment is all that it takes- Re’eh… see it, and make it come to be!

Shabbat Shalom!