Shavuot; by Rabbi Denise L.Eger
This week Jews around the world observe the sacred festival of Shavuot, the Feast of Weeks. For 50 days we have been counting off the time from the second night of Passover until Shavuot. From the time of our liberation from Egyptian slavery, which we remember and ritually reenact at Pesach, we have with great anticipation looked toward this holy day of Shavuot. This festival marks the moment at Sinai that we became a people. Shavuot is “Zman matan torateinu” – “the time of the giving of our Torah”. We remember and indeed we reenact that moment at the base of Mt. Sinai when God called out to us the Ten Commandments and we in turn accepted the gift of Torah as a sign of our relationship.
As we read the Ten Commandments on this holy day we are reminded that these ten basic rules of morality call to us to a higher plane of existence. Many explain the Ten Commandments as divided into two sections: the first five being our obligations to God and the last five being our obligations to our fellow human beings. But in this is a false dichotomy. The Ten Commandments in truth are our obligations to both God and human beings. Observing the Sabbath Day is no less an obligation to our fellow creatures and to our planet than it is to God. “Remember the Sabbath Day and keep it holy.” We do so because God rested on the seventh day and God does command us. But we also honor our fellow human beings when we create a world that honors rest and renewal. Imagine if indeed our society didn’t run at such break-neck speed 24/7. Imagine if we allowed time for workers to recharge. Imagine if we allowed for true family time and meditation and prayer time. Our world would be a much different place. The rising tide of anger that seems to swirl about us as expressed in the violence on the screen, the road rage of the freeways, the brokenness of the family unit might indeed be reversed!
The commandment, “Thou shall not steal,” is not merely a commandment that deals with our fellow human beings but of course it starts there. But by respecting property of our neighbors we honor God because in Jewish tradition, God is the source of our material wealth. We are but leant it for a time. “Thou shall not steal” helps us to learn that loving our neighbor and respecting our neighbor’s property brings honor to ourselves and yes, to God.
Shavuot can and should be the time where we re-affirm our place in the covenant of the Jewish people. We must imagine that we stand again at Sinai each and every Shavuot, hearing God’s voice anew. We have the chance on Shavuot to say with fervent faith, “Naaseh v’Nishmah” – “We will do it and we will listen” just as the Children of Israel did once so long ago.
May you be inspired this holy Shavuot to pledge your loyalty to our covenant with God and to our people once again.
Posted by Lee at May 30, 2006 09:07 AM
