The Shema<\/i> paragraph (Deuteronomy 6:4-9) consists of three sections: 1) the foundation of faith, 2) the meaning of this foundation in our lives, and 3) instructions on how to instill faith into our lives.<\/p>\n
1) From the first verse, \u201cHear O Israel, Hashem is our God, Hashem is One,\u201d we learn the foundation of the unifying belief of Israel, that Hashem Blessed Be He is the Master of everything, and there is no force in this world other than He. Even though it may seem to us that there are other distinct powers, separate from one another, Hashem, Who is One, sustains all life, and there is no one else.<\/p>\n
2) The significance of this belief in our lives is that there is no other value in this world aside from the devotion to Hashem Blessed Be He. Hence, \u201cLove Hashem your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.\u201d The Chachamim<\/i> (Berachot<\/i> 54a) interpret these words: \u201cWith all your heart\u201d \u2013 with both your inclinations: your good inclination (yetzer hatov<\/i>) and your evil inclination (yetzer hara<\/i>), \u2013 because one\u2019s evil inclination must also be controlled to serve Hashem, whether by force or by transforming it into good. \u201cAnd with all your soul\u201d \u2013 even if it takes your life, for a person must be ready to give his life for his belief in Hashem. \u201cAnd with all your might\u201d \u2013 with all your resources; even a person\u2019s money should serve as a basis and a means to serve Hashem, so that if it were demanded of a Jew to violate his religion or lose all his wealth, he would forfeit his money rather than defy his belief. Additionally, they interpret, \u201cWith all your might\u201d \u2013 for each and every measure that Hashem bestows upon you, be grateful to Him very very much.\u201d<\/p>\n
3) In the third section, the Torah instructs us regarding how to instill these foundations of belief in ourselves. First, \u201cPut these words that I am commanding you today into your heart\u201d and additionally, \u201cTeach them to your sons.\u201d Even after a person learns the basic tenets of faith very well, if he does not repeat them to himself every day, life\u2019s dealings and worries can cause him to forget them. Therefore we are commanded, \u201cAnd say them when you sit in your house, when you walk on your way, when you lie down and when you rise up.\u201d From this we learn the obligation to recite Shema<\/i> both in the morning and at night. Nevertheless, the Torah does not suffice with its recital alone, but rather adds the commandment to place these paragraphs of belief into our tefillin<\/i> and to bind them on our arms and heads, as it is written, \u201cAnd you shall bind them as a sign on your arm and they should be as frontlets between your eyes.\u201d We are also commanded to fix them firmly in the mezuzot<\/i> on our doorposts, as it is written, \u201cAnd write them on your doorposts of your houses and your gates.\u201d This is so that every time we enter and exit our houses, we look at the mezuzah<\/i> and are reminded again of the foundations of Israel\u2019s faith. Thus, the paragraph that discusses belief and the oneness of the Creator constantly guides us, in our hearts with Keriat<\/i> Shema<\/i>, on our bodies through tefillin<\/i>, and on our property, meaning our houses, via the mezuzah<\/i>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Shema paragraph (Deuteronomy 6:4-9) consists of three sections: 1) the foundation of faith, 2) the meaning of this foundation in our lives, and 3) instructions on how to instill faith into our lives. 1) From the first verse, \u201cHear O Israel, Hashem is our God, Hashem is One,\u201d we learn the foundation of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6243","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-15-keriat-shema"],"yoast_head":"\n