Our New Torah, Our Heritage
After months and months of anticipation and amidst great excitement, the day has finally arrived. This Sunday afternoon we will welcome our new precious treasure – a Sefer Torah – into our community.
In preparing for this historic occasion I came across a letter from Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak of Lubavitch which he penned in 1941. In this letter he describes the significance and holiness associated with welcoming a new Torah.
Here are a few lines that I’d like to share with you:
“...One must do all possible that every Jew, men and women and particularly children, have the merit to kiss the Sefer Torah’s mantle at the time the Sefer Torah is being carried to the synagogue. It is auspicious for health and long life.”
There were those who brought their children still in the cradle to a position on the processional path of the Sefer Torah, so to merit to place the Sefer Torah’s mantle on the child’s face...”
These words got me thinking:
What is it about the mere touch of the mantle that carries such great importance and holiness? A small child, after all, in incapable of understanding or grasping the greatness of the Torah. What then will the child ‘gain’ by placing the Torah’s mantle on his or her face?
The answer, I believe, lies in the first Hebrew sentence our Sages suggest we teach our children: “The Torah which Moses commanded us is the heritage of the congregation of Jacob”. The first thing we tell our children is that the Torah is your heritage.
The Torah doesn’t belong to us because we come to appreciate it. It doesn’t belong to us because we understand it. It is ours because it is our heritage. We share its history and its destiny whether we know it or not. And thus, adult and child alike, the Torah is our life. It is part of our DNA and it resonates with the deepest levels of our psyche and soul.
So as we enter this Shabbat, a Shabbat that blesses the days of the week to come, let us remind ourselves of our innate connection to the Torah and strive to more deeply connect to our heritage; our collective heritage – the Torah.
May this Community Torah infuse new energy and bring an abundance into our community and bring tremendous blessing to you and your family
Wishing you a Shana Tova – a joyous and sweet new year.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Raleigh Resnick
