A thought on פרשת ואתחנן
"...Shema Yisroel...""...Hear, Israel..." (6:4)
Our tradition relates that far before Moshe wrote this verse in the Torah, the words were declared by the twelve sons of our Patriarch Yaakov as they assembled before him. The Talmud records that he echoed their words with the response, "Boruch Shem Kavod Malchuso L'Olam Va'ed" : Blessed is the Name of His glorious kingdom forever.
Moshe did not write those words here, yet Yaakov asserted them. Our practice is to recite them silently after the opening line of Shema. That way, we preserve the words of Yaakov yet do not veer from the instruction of Moshe. Of course, on Yom Kippur we say them loudly.
The Recanati excavates the depths of this practice. If these words were introduced and valued by Yaakov Avinu, why did Moshe omit them? If they are not intended as a facet of the Torah commandment here, why would we include them?The Recanati contrasts the missions represented by each of these two great leaders. Yaakov was the father of a family who would one day evolve into the Kingdom of HaShem. Moshe was the shepherd of a nation who had become the prototype of that Kingdom. The descendants of those twelve brothers became a great nation, and forever would serve the role of being HaShem's Kingdom on earth. We received the Torah and by living by it, and living up to its standards, we serve as the vanguard of all that is sacred and heavenly.
HaShem is One and His Name is One (Zecharia 14:9). Every, and any, of those qualities which we attribute to G-d, even when they appear mutually exclusive (such as the middos of rachamim and din) are not a contradiction to His Oneness. This is why, the Recanati says, our very declaration of that Oneness in the Shema refers to Him as HaShem Elokeinu, HaShem Echad - that which we associate with His Compassion (HaShem) and that which we associate with His Justice (Elokeinu) are One G-d - HaShem Echad.
In the fading light of exile, when Jews enter or exist in galus, we do not apprehend HaShem with the clarity and the awe which is possible during times of revelation and the sanctity which can be part of ge'ula. Yaakov was poised, near death, on the frontier of exile and his twelve sons had begun that descent. When they declared HaShem's Oneness, he made known that the Presence of HaShem during exile is a different Presence, while nonetheless a facet of Oneness. Yaakov proclaimed that in exile, HaShem is known only through the efforts of His people, when they live by His laws. This is the meaning of the Boruch Shem ---Blessed is that Name of HaShem which is made glorious through His Kingdom, the Jewish nation.
However, Moshe Rabbeinu knew HaShem in a fuller and intimate manifestation. For Moshe, there was only that sense of Oneness. The words of Shema declare that He is One. That is the ideal and loftiest apprehending of the Divine. After the giving of the Torah, there was no exile, hence no diminished consciousness of the Presence. This is why Moshe did not reference the golus-linked Name of HaShem. He does not mention that Boruch Shem.
We recite Shema, and express that ideal. We then acknowledge quietly that His Name in exile is a "different" one, a manifestation made known only when we function as His glorious kingdom on Earth. We whisper the Boruch Shem. Those words are relevant to us in exile and were not a part of the broader consciousness known to Moshe and to our nation in those earlier, better times.
Sometimes, I have ended these parsha thoughts with a question to ponder, and this week I pose, based on the Recanati's analysis, why then do we proclaim the Boruch Shem on Yom Kippur? Eager to hear your ideas.
Good Shabbos. D
Our tradition relates that far before Moshe wrote this verse in the Torah, the words were declared by the twelve sons of our Patriarch Yaakov as they assembled before him. The Talmud records that he echoed their words with the response, "Boruch Shem Kavod Malchuso L'Olam Va'ed" : Blessed is the Name of His glorious kingdom forever.
Moshe did not write those words here, yet Yaakov asserted them. Our practice is to recite them silently after the opening line of Shema. That way, we preserve the words of Yaakov yet do not veer from the instruction of Moshe. Of course, on Yom Kippur we say them loudly.
The Recanati excavates the depths of this practice. If these words were introduced and valued by Yaakov Avinu, why did Moshe omit them? If they are not intended as a facet of the Torah commandment here, why would we include them?The Recanati contrasts the missions represented by each of these two great leaders. Yaakov was the father of a family who would one day evolve into the Kingdom of HaShem. Moshe was the shepherd of a nation who had become the prototype of that Kingdom. The descendants of those twelve brothers became a great nation, and forever would serve the role of being HaShem's Kingdom on earth. We received the Torah and by living by it, and living up to its standards, we serve as the vanguard of all that is sacred and heavenly.
HaShem is One and His Name is One (Zecharia 14:9). Every, and any, of those qualities which we attribute to G-d, even when they appear mutually exclusive (such as the middos of rachamim and din) are not a contradiction to His Oneness. This is why, the Recanati says, our very declaration of that Oneness in the Shema refers to Him as HaShem Elokeinu, HaShem Echad - that which we associate with His Compassion (HaShem) and that which we associate with His Justice (Elokeinu) are One G-d - HaShem Echad.
In the fading light of exile, when Jews enter or exist in galus, we do not apprehend HaShem with the clarity and the awe which is possible during times of revelation and the sanctity which can be part of ge'ula. Yaakov was poised, near death, on the frontier of exile and his twelve sons had begun that descent. When they declared HaShem's Oneness, he made known that the Presence of HaShem during exile is a different Presence, while nonetheless a facet of Oneness. Yaakov proclaimed that in exile, HaShem is known only through the efforts of His people, when they live by His laws. This is the meaning of the Boruch Shem ---Blessed is that Name of HaShem which is made glorious through His Kingdom, the Jewish nation.
However, Moshe Rabbeinu knew HaShem in a fuller and intimate manifestation. For Moshe, there was only that sense of Oneness. The words of Shema declare that He is One. That is the ideal and loftiest apprehending of the Divine. After the giving of the Torah, there was no exile, hence no diminished consciousness of the Presence. This is why Moshe did not reference the golus-linked Name of HaShem. He does not mention that Boruch Shem.
We recite Shema, and express that ideal. We then acknowledge quietly that His Name in exile is a "different" one, a manifestation made known only when we function as His glorious kingdom on Earth. We whisper the Boruch Shem. Those words are relevant to us in exile and were not a part of the broader consciousness known to Moshe and to our nation in those earlier, better times.
Sometimes, I have ended these parsha thoughts with a question to ponder, and this week I pose, based on the Recanati's analysis, why then do we proclaim the Boruch Shem on Yom Kippur? Eager to hear your ideas.
Good Shabbos. D
posted by Rabbi Dr. Fox at 10:39 AM
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