Rabbi's Sermons

Shabat Shalom!

This weekly portion Vaetchanan is a continuation of Moses' story, in the moment just before the entering of the people of Israel to the Promised Land. A new generation looks forward to conquering the desired land, leaving behind 40 years of travel around a desert world on the Sinai Peninsula. After so long, Moses addresses a generation that was born free in the desert, but was not present during the outstanding event of the delivery of the law on the slopes of Mount Choreb.

This may explain the reason why Vaetchanan describes again the text of the Ten Commandments, although in a slightly different version than the original, delivered in the two tablets of the Law in the book of Exodus. In another related issue, in three days coming Monday, it will be Tu beAv, the 15^th day of Av, considered as the Valentine’s love day version in Judaism. Curiously, Tu beAv falls right after one of the most interesting and important parts of the Jewish liturgy is read: The Shema Israel and the 1^st reading after the Shema called “Veahavta” (Thou shall love), both recited during our religious services. There is a huge number of interpretations about Shema Israel, several songs in Israel have been composed about it. Even those who define themselves as agnostic or non-believers are familiar with the Shema Israel, and find in this six words expression, kind of a “mantra” that identifies and unites the entire people of Israel, not only in the Holy Land, but also throughout the whole Diaspora. On this occasion, I would like to focus only on the “Veahavta”, one of the most difficult commandments to conceptualize in the Jewish world. To commandment to love God. The Catholic version of the Ten Commandments, mentions as its first commandment: "Thou shall Love God above all things", while in the Torah itself the first commandment speaks of the existence of one God. The ordinance of loving God is not related to the Decalogue itself, but in the “Veahavta”, familiar to all those who visit the synagogue, since we all sing it almost by heart during the religious services: “וְאָהַבְתָּ, אֵת ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ, בְּכָל לְבָבְךָ וּבְכָל נַפְשְׁךָ, וּבְכָל מְאֹדֶךָ” - Veahavta et Adonai Elohecha, bechol levavecha, ubechol nafshecha, ubechol meodecha, "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might". Deuteronomy 6:5

If we notice, curiously, the commandment do not only speaks of loving the Eternal. It also indicates HOW to do it, in three incremental levels: “bechol levaveja, ubechol nafshecha, ubechol meodecha”, “with all your heart, and with all your nefesh – soul and with all your MEOD” when Meod actually in modern hebrew means “a lot”. How could we understand MEOD? How can I love God that cannot be perceived using any of our senses – MEOD - a lot?

The Talmud Babel Berachot 61b describes the terrible end of the great Rabbi Akiva, imprisoned and judged by the Romans for publicly teaching the Torah. The Romans tortured him by tearing his skin with metal rakes, so that he had a slow and especially exorbitantly painful death... Rabbi Akiva gave his soul reciting the Shema. His students managed to ask him: “Teacher, up to this point?!”, to which he replied: “The Shema teaches us to love God with all our soul bechol nafshecha, which I understand that means: 'Even if They are taking your soul'. All my life I wondered how I could fulfill it, would I love God even if my soul was taken from me? And now, that I have the opportunity to do it, how could I not seize this opportunity?” Soon after, while Rabbi Akiva reached the last word “Echad” (One) his soul left his body. This is the reason some communities extend on the word ECHAD at the end of the Shema declaration: “Echaaaaaaaaaaaaad” until you are left without air.

And how should we understand "bechol meodecha"? The only way to translate it from Hebrew has been “with all your strength”, however as I explained, it means “A LOT”, that it may be understood as to perform it many times… at every moment, in each place, for each situation, ¡always!. An interesting connection is that that “Veahavta” comes just from the indication of Moses, to listen: Shema Israel! - Listen Israel to his voice, and how may we we hear A VOICE?

To understand this, we need to recall the meeting of the prophet Elijah on Mount Choreb, described in the first book of Kings 19:11 - ”And He said (God), “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice – kol demamá daká”. We can hear the Creator’s voice in the sound of all his creation, and thereby, understand that by doing so, we can fulfill loving God, when we manage to love his own creation.

When we feel that our hearts fill up with pleasure, when we see an amazing sunset; or when we observe the earth from the heavens; when we feel those “butterflies” when we hear a beautiful musical work; or feel our eyes filled with tears when we see our beautiful beloved one, when our being vibrates when we sing together as brothers; when we feel a great satisfaction admiring nature, its creation and its created beings, we can say with certainty, that we are loving the creator, with all our heart, with all our soul and with all our MEOD, a lot, many times and with an infinite love. "Veahavta" teaches us that in loving creation, nature and those close to us, friends and family, we are loving God Himself. Shema Israel... listen to that inner voice, and give love, get closer, give a smile, a good wish, a firm handshake. We must understand that a bad face, an insult, a hurtful word, take us away from others, but even more than that, they take us away from the eternal creator Ribono shel Oma! King of the Universe! Let us learn from the "Veahavta", that if we love ourselves and get even closer between brothers, we get closer to the very essence of our soul, and to that spark that was given to us in creation by the Divinity. In the spirit of the beautiful Beatles song: “All you need is love, love is only… Veahavta"

Shabat Shalom!

Rabbi David Laor

August 16^th 2024