Canada Is No Longer Safe for Jews
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Our perceptions of relevance can change with the times. For this reason, some Torah concepts and practices have come to seem irrelevant. But why? Widespread assimilation, coupled with an inadequate understanding of the Torah, has produced a pervasive lack of Jewish spiritual awareness. The Torah was given to the Jewish People to observe and internalize—not to neglect and forget. Why are many contemporary Jews unaware of the Torah’s unparalleled value? For many, lack of Torah wisdom has resulted in time-honored traditions falling by the wayside.
Conversely, the unprecedented growth of Jewish day schools and yeshivas that has accompanied the rising percentage of observant Jewish families demonstrates that these Jews perceive the relevance of the Torah to their daily lives. They’re aware of how expansive and multilayered the Torah truly is.
The spiritual vitality of our generation can be fortified by meaningful Torah experiences, which provide a clear corrective lens with which to offset distorted perceptions. Enlivened Torah study generates valuable insights. Many obscure concepts that at first appear to be irrelevant become clarified; their inner relevance is revealed. Torah study provides needed tools. Torah observance embodies a framework with which to maximize the quality of one’s life. It enriches each Jew’s relationships with God, himself, and others.
Throughout history, exiles dispersed the Jewish People around the globe. Wherever they went, Jews brought their cherished Torah with them. However, conscientious observance, which once engendered a robust spiritual life among all Jews, has been lost to many over the years. For a majority of Jews, observance—and even awareness—of fundamental practices (Shabbos, kosher dietary laws, and family purity, among others) has been lost. How have so many Jews become distant and removed from these essential matters?
The Torah is both multidimensional and interconnective. The Hebrew term tumah, most often translated as “spiritual impurity,” is related to flawed character traits and inappropriate or depraved values, beliefs, and behaviors. Our Sages point out that the skin condition known in Hebrew as tzaraas, comes about because of slander, arrogance, or insolence. Appearing as a physical malady, tzaraas has a spiritual cause.
Consequently, an individual with tzaraas is declared to be in a state of temporary tumah, spiritual impurity, until such time that the overall condition and its cause are corrected. Understandably, the process of purification relates exclusively to rectifying specific offensive character defects. As a blending of both spiritual and physical components, the human being must be balanced and in alignment. Abusing our spiritual and physical capacities hinders personal growth and distances us from our primary life’s objectives.
Misusing time, speech, or our bodies is, in reality, missing the mark. Rather than directing our energy to higher aspirations, we’re wasting our valuable resources. Just as the body requires regular care, the soul does too. Think of your soul as a Divinely installed and activated spiritual SIM card. It can be likened to a spiritual “chip” that vivifies the body and mind. We shouldn’t forget how integral its optimal function is to our physical lives. We shouldn’t expect a neglected soul to be fully functional any more than we would a malnourished body.
It’s interesting to note that one’s Hebrew name expresses his or her inner essence. Likewise, the name of a parashah relays its essential theme and purpose. The word tazria, which is the name of this parashah, means “to produce seed.” In regard to women, it refers to conceiving a child. Likewise, we are to nurture our character traits so that they become fruitful.
Man and woman are superior to everything else among God’s creations, in that they have been endowed with the inherent potential to refine their character traits. Why then, in the order of Creation, were they the last to be created, rather than the first? Torah commentators have presented various explanations.
The Tanya states that, in a way, mankind can be considered lower than all other species, due to our innate potential to transgress God’s commandments. This possibility isn’t accorded to animals. However, the Divine blueprint of creation endows humanity with a greater capacity for inner growth and spiritual development. Therefore, man and woman can merit to become the crown of God’s creation or, inversely, the very lowest of all creatures. Every individual is given this recurring choice.
We’re endowed with the inner potential to transform our baseline character traits and refine them. When we do so, men and women represent the apex of God’s ongoing Divine plan.
A woman’s potential to conceive a child is alluded to in the Hebrew word tazria. Once again, there is deeper meaning beneath the surface. The act of conception puts into motion a plethora of moral and ethical choices to be made throughout a lifetime. The ongoing struggle to control and sublimate our conflicted inner wills refines us. The virtues that we acquire through determination and ongoing efforts come to define who we truly are. This distinction expresses mankind’s elevated status as the pinnacle of creation, yet the last to be created. The prayer Lecha Dodi succinctly relates this idea: “last in action, first in thought.”
As the name Tazria suggests, we cultivate our own characters much in the same way that we cultivate seeds. When we partner with God in creating the best version of ourselves, we become the apex of His creation.
