Nitzavim-Vayeilech: Hiding Underneath the Diamonds

I love it when the Torah is cryptic. Most of the time, it just seems like any other book, especially if/when we focus on the English translation. But occasionally

we are given little hints and clues that it really is an ancient book, filled with mysterious, strange, and obscure details that are trying to tell us... something? This weekend, as we conduct the Selichot service on Saturday evening to officially begin the High Holiday season, and as we make final preparations for Rosh Hashanah, and as we also contemplate the many challenges we're facing around the world and in our country; one of those enigmatic little cryptic messages has leapt out at me. It's almost imperceptible, yet vitally important. At first glance, it is literally hidden between the lines of our text, yet upon further examination, we realize it's actually shouting a message at us that we simply can't ignore. I certainly won't.

Sometimes the mysteries can be found in odd word choices or peculiar phrases. Syntax errors and seeming grammar mistakes are actually messages with hidden meanings. Well, at least we can choose to read them that way.

And other times, the secrets are not concealed in meaning, but in the written text itself. For instance, a particular letter is written larger than the others around it, and every time new scrolls are commissioned, scribes know to print that unique letter in that special way. Tradition tells us it MUST be enlarged. Elsewhere in the Torah, a letter may be smaller than the "normal text," while another letter has an intentional crack in it. And believe it or not, ALL scrolls have these same "flaws." One of my favorite examples is a set of little diamonds. In just a handful of places throughout the entire Torah scroll, tradition tells us that a specific sequence of letters are to be written with tiny, black rhombuses added above them. Why? Your guess is as good as mine.

We don't KNOW, with any certainty, why they are there. They just are. But one thing is for sure, we (rabbis, mainly) use this opportunity to zero in on these letters and/or words and offer interpretations. Hey, it's what rabbis do best! I am, of course, mentioning all this now because this week's Torah portion offers a particularly
poignant example. In Deuteronomy, 29:28, the Torah tells us: "The secret things (?) belong to Adonai our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law." In that verse, the words "to us and to our children" - "Lanu ul'Vaneinu" - have diamonds over each letter... in EVERY Torah scroll around the world. Of course, we may also ask ourselves, what the heck is the text talking about here??? A fair question. I'll offer you my interpretation: Society can only govern behavior that is seen and known, or (if initially hidden) that ultimately comes to light. But we KNOW there's more going on behind closed doors or whispered off-camera. The Torah is saying that we are STILL responsible for those actions, and will eventually be held accountable. If, say, you pledge a donation but never make good on it, you might think no one will find out. But God will know... and there is reckoning to be had, even if it has to wait until we reach The Other Side.

But as ominous as that part sounds, I'm actually more concerned about the second half of the sentence; the rhombus-ed part. Why are these words, "us and our children" singled out? We can't control the secret "stuff" that happens. But we - and

according to the text, our children (and children's children, and so on) - are responsible for everything else. We must govern justly, and we must speak up against immoral behavior. God is "only" in charge of the unseen; we simply MUST take responsibility for ourselves and one another in our society. The text even puts an extra exclamation point on this lesson, with glistening (sort of) diamonds to make us pay attention! As we enter the holiday season, and sit surrounded by Jews and fellow congregants in the hundreds, we need to recognize the power we have as a community. We need to see ourselves as obligated to care for our neighbors and indeed our entire world, because NO ONE ELSE is going to do it for us. And there's no better time than the present. We need to step up, and we need to set for ourselves a gold standard. Or maybe it's a diamond-standard?

Shanah Tovah u'Metukah - I wish you all a Happy, Healthy, (Revealed), and Sweet New Year!

Photos in this blog post:

1. CC image courtesy of Mizunoryu on Wikimedia Commons

2. CC image courtesy of Lokal Profil on Wikimedia Commons

3. Image of Deut. 29:28 (Blue arrow indicates where the "diamonds" begin)

4. CC image courtesy of Wiktor Brodzki on Wikimedia Commons