In this week’s parsha we encounter one of the most famous verses in the Jewish liturgy, that being, “V’Shamru bnei yisrael et Hashabbat,” meaning, “And the Jewish people should guard Shabbat.” We recite this every week at kiddush and it is sung throughout the world in Jewish day schools.
What is less known is that the conclusion of this verse (la’asot it Hashabbat… i.e. to observe the shabbat for generations…) is one of the sources of the oral Torah (the gemara) which learns that we MUST violate the laws of Shabbat for pikuach nefesh, to save a life. Specifically, we learn that you violate one Shabbat in order that one can observe many more Shabbatot.
Rooted in the mitzvah of loving our neighbor as oneself and the Jewish legal doctrine that all Jews are responsible (‘arevim’) for one another, the Chafetz Chaim (Rabbi Yisrael Meir Ha-Kohen Kagan in Chomat Hadat) asserts that we are also responsible to ensure that our Jewish brothers and sisters (and all those we come across, Jewish and non-Jewish) are spiritually and emotionally alive.
On Sunday, May 17th, we will be bringing in a new Torah (Tree of Life) into our midst. The goal, though, is to use this opportunity to enLIVEn, reJEWvenate and upLIFT each other and the ENTIRE Jewish community… and beyond.
“The Glory of the Kind is in the multitudes” )Ecclesiastes 14:28)- for this to be truly successful we need every Jew of every stripe and color… a true reflection of the multitude and beauty of the Jewish people.
Please visit and share www.ohrtzion.org to take part in the writing of the Torah and also in the communal challenge to engage with the Torah (10 000 minute Torah learning challenge) and become part of this wonderful initiative