Spiritual Cravings
Why should we observe the commandments? Because God says so. This is the wisdom of the Hasidic sages.
In this week’s portion Aaron’s sons, Nadav and Avihu, are killed because they offer a strange fire. Why is it called strange? Because God did not command it. The Sefat Emet, Yehudah Leib Alter of Ger, comments:
Why keep kosher?
Because unkosher animals are not healthy. Pigs carry trichinosis. Lobsters are bottom feeders. Owls eat rats. Such are the explanations we offer to justify these ancient laws.
This week the Torah also reveals the lists of permitted and forbidden animals. Nowhere does it say anything about the character of these animals. There is a list of permitted animals: “These are the creatures that you may eat from among all the land animals: any animal that has true hoofs, with clefts through the hoofs, and that chews the cud—such you may eat.” (Leviticus 11) And then there is a list of forbidden animals.
Nowhere does the Torah offer an explanation. Nowhere do we gain a glimmer of why.
Nowhere is there a discussion of the many reasons people so frequently offer. Eat these animals. Don’t eat those animals. That’s it. That’s all the Torah offers.
Why keep kosher? Because God says so.
Then again there is nothing like the taste of crispy bacon. And lobster is so wonderfully delicious.
Why then not eat it? Because God says so.
And so we must now decide. We must ask ourselves, “Do I wish for God to gain some rule over my daily life?”
It is a wonderful, and then again strange, or perhaps mysterious idea to ponder. Saying no to something we love might be the beginning of letting God into our lives.
Why keep kosher? Because God says so.
Is that really enough? Some rabbis suggest that is the only reason that matters.
Then again why does God even care about what we eat?
Because God says so.
Decide if that is the sustenance you seek. Decide if that is the food your soul craves.
In this week’s portion Aaron’s sons, Nadav and Avihu, are killed because they offer a strange fire. Why is it called strange? Because God did not command it. The Sefat Emet, Yehudah Leib Alter of Ger, comments:
The most important component in the performance of commandments is the fact that one performs them because he was commanded to, rather than any lofty intentions he has in performing them. The proof is here, in that we see Nadav and Avihu, who were great sages, surely had the most lofty of intentions, yet they were punished for doing something they had not been commanded to do. How much more, then, is the reward of a person who fulfills a commandment solely because it was commanded by God, even though he knows nothing about the hidden intentions involved.Such wisdom contradicts our modern sensibilities. We want to uncover the reasons for the commandments. We wish to unravel God’s intentions.
Why keep kosher?
Because unkosher animals are not healthy. Pigs carry trichinosis. Lobsters are bottom feeders. Owls eat rats. Such are the explanations we offer to justify these ancient laws.
This week the Torah also reveals the lists of permitted and forbidden animals. Nowhere does it say anything about the character of these animals. There is a list of permitted animals: “These are the creatures that you may eat from among all the land animals: any animal that has true hoofs, with clefts through the hoofs, and that chews the cud—such you may eat.” (Leviticus 11) And then there is a list of forbidden animals.
Nowhere does the Torah offer an explanation. Nowhere do we gain a glimmer of why.
Nowhere is there a discussion of the many reasons people so frequently offer. Eat these animals. Don’t eat those animals. That’s it. That’s all the Torah offers.
Why keep kosher? Because God says so.
Then again there is nothing like the taste of crispy bacon. And lobster is so wonderfully delicious.
Why then not eat it? Because God says so.
And so we must now decide. We must ask ourselves, “Do I wish for God to gain some rule over my daily life?”
It is a wonderful, and then again strange, or perhaps mysterious idea to ponder. Saying no to something we love might be the beginning of letting God into our lives.
Why keep kosher? Because God says so.
Is that really enough? Some rabbis suggest that is the only reason that matters.
Then again why does God even care about what we eat?
Because God says so.
Decide if that is the sustenance you seek. Decide if that is the food your soul craves.