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Parshat Shoftim: Deuteronomy 16:18-
21:9; Isaiah 51:12-52:12.

M

oses tells his people that,
once they have occupied the
Promised Land and God
has chosen a king for them, the new,
anointed leader should "write" a copy
of the Torah as the ultimate mitzvah of
studying, teaching and living by Torah.
Indeed, this mishneh
(rewriting of) Torah was to be
the "constitution" as it were,
of the Israelite nation — all
would abide by its word, even
the monarch. Since the king
is to be "one of your own peo-
ple expectations of personal
behavior, holiness, fairness
and of righteousness would be
the same for all.
It seems that Moses is
urging the king (and us as
well, I believe) to possess
two copies of the Torah: a private one
and a public one. While it is important
(and expected) that the Torah scrolls
be preserved in the synagogue and
historically in our homes, too, it is also
necessary that a "copy" be carried with
us at all times.
The Talmud describes a portable
Torah for the king to wear — an amu-
let — which undoubtedly contained
not the entire text of the Five Books of
Moses, but the 613 letters of the Ten
Commandments (corresponding to the
613 mitzvot of the Torah itself).
The portable, immediately acces-
sible source of God's teaching, justice
and presence reminds the leader and
the people alike, that knowledge and
guidance gained from the entire Torah
must be shared in public, not merely
stored away in a national archives or
house of treasures.

And more: the king's Torah scroll
must be copied from the original, as
guarded by the Levites, not created
anew, lest it lose its authenticity. But
each king, and hence each generation,
must write its own copies of the Torah,
and not merely inherit them from our
parents. In other words,
how we "write" and bring
Torah into our everyday
lives will be unique to each
of us.
Rabbi Stuart Kelman
asks: "What to make of
these two Torahs? One lies
protected and is the origi-
nal; the other is portable
and the king reads from
it. It is interesting that the
original stays locked up —
so that future generations
can authenticate their version and
copy from it.
"One is carried on the street (avail-
able for day-to-day study and refer-
ence); the other is kept at home. The
one at home is the locus for humility
and power, where the individual king
(and we) are ultimately judged; the
one in the day-to-day marketplace of
life is the authority, the document/
standards we (and the king) use to
judge others:'
As we have entered Elul, the
thoughtful month which precedes the
High Holy Days, let us remember this
teaching of Moses: the authenticity of
our heritage and the necessity to carry
its message into both our private and
our public lives.

❑

Norman T. Roman is the rabbi at Temple
Kol Ami in West Bloomfield.

Conversations
• The king's Torah was to be written in the presence of priests as wit-
nesses; whom would you choose to be the proper "witnesses" for the
symbolic Torah you choose to write and carry with you daily?
• Some rabbis comment that the king's "portable" Torah was to be only
a summary. Which verses of the Torah do you wear on your arm as an
amulet or carry with you in your purse or briefcase?
• If you could speak to the world's kings, queens, presidents or prime
ministers, or give a "Torah present" to the newly-born prince in London,
which teachings would you cite to improve their leadership skills in the
future?

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August 8 • 2013

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