Eiton Cooper, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Schechter Institute, pointed out that this week’s Torah portion begins with an admonition to see: “Re’eh,” and concludes with the commandment “Yira’eh” (you are to be seen), which obligated all Jews to appear with gifts and offerings at least several times a year in the Temple in Jerusalem
This bookend of
two types of seeings teaches us that to fulfill our human potential and become
in the image of an invisible God, we actually need to be visible, show up and
be responsible for each other.
We should be on
the lookout for people who remain invisible. These are the forgotten people;
they are overlooked as we go about our daily life. How many of us turn away in
order to not see the homeless, the poor, and the beggars on our city streets?
How many lonely people are out there waiting for us to see them and reach out
to them to assuage their loneliness? How many people in the hospital and
nursing homes are forgotten because nobody visits them? Who are the invisible
people in our synagogue? They are the singles, widows and widowers.
Woody Allen once said,
“Showing up is 80 percent of life. Sometimes it’s easier to hide at
home in bed. I’ve done both.” He is partially correct. Hiding in bed and not
seeing is certainly easier. But God demands more of us. Just being visible and
showing up is not enough. God wants us not only to see those who are invisible
but to help all them so they too can be seen and thrive.
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