My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) - Ekev
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel on August 22, 2008 | Tags: Ekev, Ekev
"Love, therefore, the Lord your God, and always keep His charge, His laws, His rules, and His commandments." (Deut. 11:1) This passage from Parshah Ekev is not unique. It is one of many places we are told to "love" God. But what does that mean? Rabbi Jakob Petuchowski wrote, "Jews study Torah the way a person reads a love letter, eager to squeeze the last drop of meaning from every word." That's an echo of Psalm 130 which reads, in part, "I yearn for God more eagerly than watchmen await the dawn." (Psa. 130:6) For all the talk of the covenant between God and the Israelites, we're not supposed to emulate W. C. Fields who, when asked what he was doing reading the Bible replied, "Looking for loopholes." Instead, we're to care so much that we study the Torah not only to derive the laws that govern our lives, but to make sure we obtain every subtlety it contains. How do you read the Torah? Like a love letter or a service contract? If you're wondering about your relationship with God, perhaps here's the place to begin.
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Daniel M. KimmelJoined: October 2, 2007 Daniel M. Kimmel is a Boston area film critic, lecturer and author. He does these weekly mini-lessons for the Mishkan Tefila Brotherhood's newsletter. You are free to use them for similar purposes. Divrei Torah (117) |
