DETROIT JEWISH NEWS EIREAMIATORKs PICTURES J' N Torah Portion DIAMONDS INE JEWELRY INVITES YOU AND A GUEST TO ATTEND AN ADVANCE SCREENING Thursdaq, August 16 • Star Southfield 7:00 Honosis Show 8:00 Movie E OVE STINGS. IMENNIES ;ittidetENVibledinilinat DUE ERNI( OODY mum MD/ I run__ "MIA ._ HER HIIN1 NM NINON WARACERIAWN 11A1101100Rigilli CHEW NOM i; nrirn rinnut JO EINE CHAAif H. Jiff Ver BE ONE OF THE FIRST sra""LtuLial= , ItIltNOAUM .k.11T11 .111111 a lE1IY AN HSIIH www.virmiGo.comlywoompooTe....- PEOPLE TO STOP BY ?tr DIAMONDS INE JEWELRY TO RECEIVE A PASS GOOD FOR TWO TO AN ADVANCE SCREENING. No purchase necessary. While supplies last. Limit one pass per person. raweae rmmt monamm-wmaim -ww-, ,,,,w.,:vammxiammowaksmawm-vomm;,:::,: ,:::" ffordable Elegance in Assisted Living. Welcome to The Court At West Bloomfield A residence that combines all the grandeur of your home with assistance available for the asking. A place you can relax, knowing yoi needs are attended to. Where nurs( and their staff provide the care that you need. 24 hours a clay. Conversations The Court offers a true sense of independence in a safe, caring environment. The Court is now offering new pricing, with rooms starting at $2,150 per month. ).4. 8/10 2001 56 The Court...All of the grandeur of fine living in a safe, caring environment. and eventually physical hunger. I think this metaphor works in another way as well. Consider the foods that you ate in the past 24 hours. Perhaps even try to list them. Now, realize just how much intense labor went into producing, packaging, shipping and preparing that food. It takes a lot of effort to feed the human very time the Torah is read body! Yet we have become quite adept for the congregation, a pro- at making the necessary arrangements cession of individuals is to satisfy our physical hunger. invited up to recite blessings In contrast, how much effort do we before and after the chanting. Why do exert to stoke and satisfy our spiritual we do this? needs? How often do we Three theories exist: The neglect them until we blessings, which identify the become numb to the pain of Torah as the key to our a life devoid of deep mean- covenant and indeed to ever- ing? lasting life, were added to As we prepare for the give honor to the Torah. Days of Awe, perhaps we Another explanation is that should see ourselves as the blessings give honor to migrant laborers in the the congregation, with its fields of the spirit. By Rosh active participation. Hashanah, we ought to be My favorite explanation RABBI DANIEL ready to harvest the fruits of employs a form of talmudic our labor. Instead, we often NEVINS reasoning known as kal stand with our machzor Special to the vchomer (minor to major): If (High Holiday prayer book) Jewish News food, which is our material empty-hearted, like a farmer sustenance, requires blessings with a scythe searching his before and after eating, how much unsown field for fruits in the fall. more so should we bless God for the The blessing before the Torah Torah, which is our spiritual suste- acknowledges our spiritual heritage as nance! the key to Israel's covenant with God. And where is the requirement that We acknowledge this gift, as we we bless God for our food? In this acknowledge the gift of food before week's Torah portion. "You shall eat, eating. But the blessing said after read- be satisfied and bless the Lord your ing Torah is even more profound. We God for the good land which He crave b praise God for "giving us a teaching of you" (Deuteronomy 8:10). This is the truth, and for planting eternal life source for Birkat HaMazon, the collec within us." There's the agricultural tion of blessings said after meals. The metaphor again! God has planted blessings before meals are derived by Torah within each of us, an antidote the rabbis more indirectly from verses to all that is false and the key to eter- like, "the earth is the Lord's, and all nal life. It is our task to tend that ten- that it contains." Blessings such as der plant, to nurture and nourish it HaMotzi (blessing over bread) are in with all our might. This is the spiritu- effect requests for permission to con- al hunger that must be satisfied. ❑ sume that which belongs to God. In fact, the physical sustenance of food and the spiritual sustenance of Torah are intertwined throughout our Torah portion. Repeatedly, we are warned that we may enjoy the We say that the Torah is a tree of blessings of the Promised Land only life for those who cling to it. What ii on condition that we live a life of does it mean to cling to the Torah? fidelity to God and the command- Try- to identify your best efforts ments. But should we become arro- this past year — how can you gant, abandoning God and relying build upon them? If the Torah is solely on ourselves, the land will be our spiritual sustenance, how 1 cursed for our intransigence. Put dif- come so many Jews seek to sate ferently, should we neglect our spiri- that appetite elsewhere? Think of a tual duties, the result will be spiritual I fellow Jew who you can bring clos- er to Torah this year. Rabbi Daniel Nevins is a spiritual Shabbat Ekev: Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25; Isaiah 49:14-51:3. WOODY MEN DAN AYKROYD HO HUNT OHARIllf 'HERON 1.11111 There's A Need To Feed Our Spiritual Hunger The Court At West Bloomfield Owned & Operated by HCR ManorCare 6950 Farmington Road, just south of Maple West Bloomfield • 248-661-1700 ..13,rffleXMAISMAPNIaNIAZW"Wea;::::7043W,n".P.,FiriMWAMM.r•I:;,',,:1"'"',',...- leader of Adat Shalom Synagogue.