Thought of the Week: Ha'azinu - 5779

A HOME IN TORAH 

Maimonides, in The Guide for the Perplexed, notes that the experience of leaving the Sukkah and returning to the comfort of our home on Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah creates a level of happiness that surpasses our happiness of Sukkot.

Perhaps the idea of "home" is the reason why the last days of this holiday are chosen as the time to celebrate our relationship to the Torah.

When we open our eyes and notice the magnificence of this world, we come to a recognition that there must be more to life than the physical realm.  We, as Jews, are blessed with a tradition that gives us the tools to understand, appreciate and utilize our existence for the sake of something far greater than our physical life.

We find our identity, discover our essence and recognize our task in the words of the Torah.  Torah is indeed a Jewish home.  Our nation was able to survive a two-thousand-year exile by making the sacred text an ambulatory homeland.

So, as we appreciate our move from the temporary unprotected structure of the Sukkah to the stability and welcoming environment of our homes, let us recommit ourselves to the wonderful place of comfort for the soul- the Torah.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach