Thought for Shabbat

We begin, this week, reading the Book of Leviticus, which is replete with hundreds of ritual laws. There are two basic approaches to Jewish law: 1. Obey the Mitzvot because God gave them and they are commanded to you…or 2. Learn the Mitzvot, apply them meaningfully to your life and enjoin them upon yourself when you have plumbed the deeper meani

For example, the Torah portion (as we prepare for Passover) states, “No leaven . . . [shall be present] in any offering of God (2:11)”

The Chassidic rabbis of the 17th Century taught us the deeper meaning, “Leaven, which is dough that has fermented and risen, represents self-inflation and pride, and there is nothing more abhorrent to God. In the words of the Talmud, God says of the prideful one, ‘He and I cannot dwell together in the world.'”

As we celebrate our freedom in the coming weeks, let us remember this lesson about why to eat Matzah – such a ritual keeps our ego in check and is a good reminder to be humble, kind and thoughtful and then God will dwell among that goodness.