SPIRITUAL EATING By Rabbi Eli Glaser, CNWC, CWMS
Ready to Embrace the Change, Whatever It Takes This is where our greatness lies “When Hashem was ready to give the Torah, He first went to all the nations of the world and offered it to them. One after another, the nations all asked, ‘What’s written in the Torah?’ Finally, Hashem went and offered the Torah to the Jewish people. They accepted it sight unseen, as the Torah says (Shemos 24:7): ‘We will first do the Torah, and then we will understand it’” (Midrash Sifri, Devarim 33).
A common misconception is that the Yidden accepted the Torah on blind faith: “Na’aseh venishma — We will do and [then] we will understand.” However, shortly before Klal Yisrael uttered these awe-inspiring words, Hashem began His proposal by saying, “You have seen what I did to Egypt, and that I have borne you on the wings of eagles and brought you to Me. And now, if you listen well to Me and observe My covenant, you shall be to Me the most beloved treasure of all people, for Mine is the entire world” (Shemos 19:4–5). In their recent past, the Yidden had clearly grasped the omnipotence of Hashem as He overturned every aspect of the natural world, demonstrat-
24
WELLSPRING / MAY 2021
ing His sole control of the universe while executing the ten plagues on the Mitzriyim. There was absolutely no doubt that the Almighty was the Infinite Creator and Sustainer of the universe, who put all things into being, wrote the rules of nature, and had constant supervision over the biggest and smallest elements of creation. The Yidden’s acceptance of the Torah was based on firsthand experience and immutable evidence that Hashem is their Creator. Therefore, anything He told them to do was, by definition, in their best interest. They did not have to investigate the Torah’s contents in order to validate its worthiness. There was no blind faith involved whatsoever. The information
