The Privilege to Be Special
Your Timeline for Wednesday, May 13th, - 26 Iyar, 5786
Good morning,
How different are we? Are some people more precious than others?
I’ve recently been mulling over this question. Doesn’t the person who dedicates his or her life to Torah study accomplish something that the person focused on the mundane daily grind simply cannot? In some ways, the division seems real. Afterall, a kohen, someone from the priestly class, has unique responsibilities in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. So too someone from the tribe of Levi, assigned to a special role in the Temple. There are people, it seems, whom G-d sets aside to serve Him. Yet we stand now days away from Shavuot, when G-d gave the Torah on Mt. Sinai and declared, “And you shall be to Me a kingdom of princes and a holy nation.” (Shemot 19:6).
Clearly transcending our born station is within our reach. Today’s Chumash has something to say about it.
The Daily Thought:
“As for Me, I have taken the Levites from the Israelites…”
- Bamidbar 3:12
Divisions are baked into the Jewish people: The tribe of Levi stands apart from the other Tribes, while the Kohanim stand apart from the rest of the tribe of Levi. G-d dedicated the tribe of Levi to a unique task. And yet, despite these differences, we too have the ability to dedicate ourselves to serve our Creator in transcendent ways. As Maimonides famously notes (Rambam Laws of Shemita 13:13):
Not only the tribe of Levi, but any one of the inhabitants of the world whose spirit generously motivates him and he understands with his wisdom to set himself aside and stand before G-d to serve Him and minister to Him and to know G-d … is sanctified as holy of holies. G-d will be His portion and heritage forever and will provide what is sufficient for him in this world like He provides for the priests and the Levites.
There is a profound lesson here: We can all achieve a truly profound bond with the Creator through our divine service, while still remaining within our unique station in life. A businessperson can work hard in that sphere while at the same time dedicating his or her life to serving G-d.
Each and every one of us can do our work while also choosing to embrace the Creator and thus be “sanctified as holy of holies.”
Today’s Timeline is based on Torat Menachem Vol 40 pg 225, read it in the Hebrew transcript on the Torah Text platform.
Asides:
The Levites. A look at what it means to be a spiritual Levite.
Embedded within Maimonides’ words here, is the idea that both Jews and non-Jews (“any one of the inhabitants of the world”) can dedicate themselves to serve G-d in this most sacred way. What Are the Seven Noahide Laws?
📖 Today’s Complete Daily Study:
Chumash: Parshat Bamidbar, 4th Portion (Bamidbar (Numbers) 3:1-3:13)
Psalms: Chapter 119, Verses 97-176
Rambam: 3 Chapters, 1 Chapter, Sefer Hamitzvot
Hayom Yom: Iyar 26, 41st day of the omer
Today’s Features:
What do you do when your efforts don’t yield visible results? Do you keep going or do you give up? As with so many such questions, the answer is: it depends. How to Know When to Give Up.
Teenage members of CTeen France met with United States Ambassador to France Charles Kushner and his wife Seryl at the official ambassador's residence in Paris on May 4, after the ambassador had extended an invitation to hear directly from them about Jewish life in France. French Teens Meet With U.S. Ambassador To Discuss Jewish Life in France.
What do you know about the most sacred site in Judaism? Take the Temple Mount Quiz.
Do you have questions or comments? Please leave a comment or reply to this email—I’d love to hear from you!