If I Were Jewish
7 min read
What the world needs now is love, sweet love. It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of.
These lyrics are as timely now as they were when first recorded in the 1960s. Yes, the world needs more love—a love that embraces all of humanity. How can such love be developed and maintained?
The answer was recorded more than 3,300 years ago. The familiar words “Love your fellow as yourself” are found in this week’s Torah reading. The verse concludes with the words “I am God.” Let’s explore the meaning of this passage.
An essential element of loving another as yourself is recognizing that we share something integral in common. It’s natural to gravitate toward others who share your interests and beliefs. What is the one thing that we all have in common? Each of us was created in God’s image; our common denominator is God. Recognizing, and thereby respecting, this connection intensifies the significance of the words “Love your fellow as yourself.”
More than just a cliche, this is meant to be actualized. To know how better to love one another, we must seek to connect with God. It is God who has mandated us to love and taught us how to love.
Yes, the innate connection among all of us is God. Therefore, we seek to enrich this vital connection, so that we truly know how to love one another. Most people mistakenly think that one has to “fall in love.” Not so. One may fall accidentally into a hole or on an uneven sidewalk. This word should not apply to the love between people. Love is too essential and life-affirming to be casually left to our own passing feelings and whims. Love is a choice, a sanctified act.
Subsequently, the Talmud records the words of the Sage Hillel: “What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. This is the entire Torah; the rest is commentary.” The Torah instructs us in how to express love through kind actions and behaviors. Someone who loves others as himself will make sure not to cause them harm in any way. Love is expressed in deed. A person who loves others would not steal their belongings or cheat on them. Furthermore, this view is expressed by not mistreating another physically, verbally, or emotionally. Malicious gossip and hate are the antithesis of God’s will. But why? Because we diminish our own Godly image by choosing to act in such un-Godly ways. It’s crucial to recognize this point. When our actions express respect and love for others, by extension, we are showing respect and love for God. This is not only good for each one of us, but for all humanity.
What is it that we love in another? Can it be identified? Perhaps we love the particular traits that make someone unique. Now, expand this thought; contemplate how or where each specific trait originates. Each one was initially bestowed by God for us to cultivate and bring to the fore. We can thereby amplify our love and direct it to God as well, for He is the one who creates every detail just so.
For love to endure, it must be sanctified. Many refer to marriage as the bond of matrimony. The Hebrew word for marriage, kiddushin, is a derivative of the word kadosh, holy. In this week’s Torah portion, the Torah succinctly states, “You shall be holy, because I, God your God, am holy.” Let’s explore some examples of what the Torah teaches us about holiness.
At Mount Sinai, God communicated to the entire nation of Israel their timeless mission: “You shall be to Me a kingdom of ministers and a holy nation.” From here, we learn that acquiring holiness is a national goal. Holiness is to be practiced and maintained within the community. We each can exemplify the Torah’s ideals when interacting with others with sensitivity and sanctity.
The concept of separation is associated with attaining holiness. Let’s highlight a few examples of this association. Developing holy attributes requires distancing oneself from corrupt influences. Therefore, upon its formation, the nation of Israel was separated from the influence of the other nations. Just as a mother, beginning from pregnancy, must be careful not to expose her child to harmful or toxic physical influences, so too, she must be vigilant against harmful spiritual influences. Such exposure could block burgeoning spiritual sensitivities, thus obstructing the very channels through which holiness flows.
It’s essential to recognize that it is God who determines what is holy. The Torah, Shabbat, the Jewish People, the Land of Israel, and the Temple in Jerusalem are holy because God sanctified them.
Holiness is first mentioned in the Torah when “God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it [va’yekadesh, from the verb meaning ‘to be holy’], for on it He rested from His work, which God created to make.” The seventh day, being the culmination of God’s creative process, is sanctified. Shabbos is the very center of Jewish life and Torah observance. This sanctified day embodies the particular chosen time in which we enrich our relationships with God, others, and ourselves. By mindfully observing Shabbos, we elevate it above all other days of the week and sanctify it. Shabbos observance recharges every Jewish soul from the ultimate source of Divine energy. Such sanctity emanates from the One who continually creates all of creation.
Holiness expands outward. The innate holiness of the Land of Israel is understood from God’s first instruction to Avraham: “Go to the land that I will show you.” Abraham was sent to a specific land and place that God already had chosen. Furthermore, God chose the exact location of the future Holy Temple when instructing Abraham, “Please take your son…Isaac and go to the land of Moriah. Bring him there to one of the mountains which I shall tell you.” That mountain was where the Holy Temple later would be built. God sanctified and designated special times, places, and people to become holy. They were separated from all others.
The connection between holiness and love is not merely theoretical. It’s actualized through thought, choice, and deed. We become what we think and do, continually. Choosing to connect to what God has sanctified contributes to living a sanctified life. By honoring and observing God’s mitzvot, we align ourselves with eternal Godly values. Each of us can strive to make this life-enriching choice daily. By sanctifying our lives through Torah and mitzvot, we choose to manifest our connection to God and to one another. Reaching out to all others with love and kindness connects us to our Creator. Doing so can increase the love in our lives.
Cultivating and expressing true Godly love to all others empowers our values and puts them into action. Continual Torah study provides the fuel to strengthen our momentum moving forward. Each of us, thereby, can become the best version of who we want and are meant to be. By choosing to pay the love we share forward, love won’t be just for some, but for everyone.
Who wouldn’t love that?
