I Spirituality
THE PARK
LIVING
TORAH PORTION
An Involved God
Shabbat Nachamu; Parshat
V'etchanan: Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11;
Isaiah 40:1-26.
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50
July 22 • 2010
ou know it; I know it; we all
God has spoken we shall do!" The
know it.
First Commandment requires some-
The First Commandment, thing else: to recognize that this God
"Anochi Hashem Elokecha . . . "I am
Whom we believe in is a God Who is
the Lord your God:' is repeated by
involved in and Who directs our indi-
Moses in this week's Torah portion.
vidual lives. Each and every day.
It seems clear that this
Only when we under-
is a command to believe
stand and accept a personal
in God. The problem is,
and involved God, can we
however, that such a com-
appreciate and happily fulfill
mandment makes abso-
Judaism's demand for a daily
lutely no sense!
commitment to our faith, as
God logically cannot
is mandated in the Shema
command us to believe
(also in this week's Torah
in Him. One who already
reading). "And these words,
believes does not need
which I command you this
this commandment and
day ... you shall teach them
Rabbi Shneur
one who doesn't believe
to
your sons and speak of
Silberberg
can't be "commanded" to
them
when you sit in your
Special to the
do so.
house,
and when you walk
Jewish News
If belief in God cannot
on the way, and when you lie
be a commandment, per-
down and when you rise up."
haps it's a reminder? Or a suggestion?
Of course, I can mention Him
So what exactly is the First
when I wake up because God made
Commandment? One of the answers
my awakening happen. I can wrap
lies in studying the totality of the
those words on my arm and head
statement — "I am the Lord your
every day, and I can teach my chil-
God, Who brought you out of the
dren to recite the Shema and to kiss
land of Egypt."
the mezuzah as they enter our home
There are two important points
because God is in our home and at
here that can be easily overlooked:
our dinner table. God didn't just cre-
1.God introduced Himself as
ate the universe; He is involved in
the architect of the Exodus, rather
every part of my life.
than as the creator of the universe.
This is the First Commandment.
Although the creation of heaven and
In 1961, Soviet cosmonaut
earth out of nothing was certainly the Gherman Titov orbited the earth. "I
greater achievement, He chose rather
went into space and didn't see God:'
to present Himself as an involved
he said, "so that must mean that God
God, reminding the Jewish People
does not exist:'
that "it is I who, just recently, helped
When John Glenn orbited the Earth
you in your time of need."
in 1962, he stated: "To look out at
2. In the Hebrew language, differ-
this kind of creation out here and not
ent words are used when addressing
believe in God is to me impossible."
an individual or when speaking to
The choice between Titov's view-
two or more. The word Elokecha
point and Glenn's is not limited to the
— "your God" — is correctly used
existence of God; rather, we can and
when speaking to a single person; the must choose to see God's involve-
proper wording when speaking to a
ment in every part of our day, and
nation is Elokeichem. God was speak- then to reciprocate with a daily com-
ing to the entire Jewish nation, but
mitment to Him.
He was addressing each person indi-
vidually: I took you — specifically
Rabbi Shneur Silberberg is director of the
— out of Egypt.
Hyman and Sonya Blumenstein Outreach
Prior to the revelation at Sinai, the division of the West Bloomfield-based
Jews had already accepted that there
Sara and Morris Tugman Bais Chabad
is a God and had stated, "All that
Torah Center.
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