It takes Two to be a Jew

There are two often overlooked verses in Parshat Yitro which recounts the events leading up to the giving of the Torah and the "Ten Commandments."

Moshe has been instructed (almost like Jared Kushner might be in preliminary talks leading up to peace negotiations) to make sure that the Jewish people and Hashem are on the same page. And so, Hashem commands Moshe to seek the fledgling nation's consent:

"Now then, if you will obey Me faithfully and keep My covenant, you shall be My treasured possession among all the peoples. Indeed, all the earth is Mine, you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel.”

In other words, this two-fold command, and mandate, have become the modus operandi of the Jewish people. They are to become the chosen nation, inimitable, like no other, but to achieve that they have to be willing to take on two precepts.

One, the world is going to turn to them for guidance. They are going to be under a microscope. A nation of priests, who have to use their ingrained moral compass to better the world, the same way a Cohen's, or priest's chief role is to instruct and elevate others, nurturing and honing their inner capabilities and faculties.

Secondly, it will come with a price. Anyone who ever saw the difference between kosher and non-kosher meat knows that all too well! I say that in a tongue and cheek way but the meaning of kedusha or holy nation very much speaks to that value, not necessarily elevating one's self through actions with one's fellow man but rather, permeating one's relationship with Hashem with symbolic significance that resonates that closeness, bringing Hashem into one's life with prayer, learning Torah, saying kiddush and other commands that forge a personalized relationship individual to one's self and his or her creator.

These are two prongs, or facets of our national experience, the one that began at the giving of the Torah. They serve as a mission statement, without whose acceptance we never could have become the chosen people. It is after this dual command or mandate that the Jewish people say, as one, with one heart and one soul, "First we will do, and then we will hear." Na'aseh V'nishma.

Each of us in our own lives has to find that balance between these two interwoven elements of our Jewish experience, from kindness to ritualistic observance. It is only through the right balance and integration on an individual and national level that we can each best fulfill our role and join ourselves to the national consciousness imbued in the giving of the Ten Commandments.

It is no coincidence that the "Ten Commandments" are split down the middle, the first half focusing on the mitzvot ben adam la'makom, between one's self and Hashem, and the second half, ben adam la'chavero, between ourselves and our fellow man.

Life can't be bifurcated into one or the other, and the two are needed to hone and finetune our strength as people, individuals, family members and members of society. One can not be exclusive of the other, and the same way there are two partners in creation, our parents and Hashem, likewise, in our own creation as individuals it's the balance we strike between these two avenues of our lives, and collective experience that shape who we become.

Like Nietzsche, of all people, said, "Become who you are." That, in many respects is the message of the abovementioned two verses that were the precursor and antecedent for being gifted God's greatest gift, the Torah.

Shabbat shalom!

Yoav