What it means to be holy #Mattot-massai#devartorah#parashathashavua

Murder is one of the most heinous sins in the Torah because each human being is unique and created in God’s image.  In this week’s Torah portion Mattot-Massai, God warns us, “You shall not pollute the land in which you live, for blood pollutes the land.” (Nu 35: 33) God holds us and the land of Israel to a higher standard.  The Etz Hayyim commentary below the line teaches “Just as one may not enter the sanctuary in a condition of impurity because the sanctuary is a holy place, one cannot live in the land of Israel in a condition of moral impurity because the land is consecrated to holy living.”  (page 965)

No matter where we Jews live whether in Israel or in the Diaspora, we are commanded to be holy as it is written “You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.” (Lev. 19:2) Our High Holiday prayer book (Machzor Hadash) has an inspirational reading reminding us what it means to be holy.

“There is holiness when we strive to be true to the best we know.

There is holiness when we are kind to someone who cannot possibly be of service to us.

There is holiness when we promote family harmony.

There is holiness when we forget what divides us and remember what unifies us.

There is holiness when we are willing to be laughed at for what we believe in.

There is holiness when we love-truly, honestly, and unselfishly

There is holiness when we remember the lonely and bring cheer into a dark corner.

There is holiness when we share-our bread, our ideas, our enthusiasms.

There is holiness when we gather to pray to One who gave us the power to pray.” (page 617)

In two weeks we shall gather to mourn the destructions of the First and Second on Tisha B’Av (August 12 and 13).  The Temples were destroyed and we were exiled from our homeland because we failed to live up to our vision of a holy life.  What better time than now to rededicate ourselves to holy living! In fact, by consecrating our lives to such a noble way of life, we shall have a jump start preparing our hearts and souls for our High Holidays.