One layer at a time - Matos/Massei
Recently, I have been meditating on ways to make being Jewish more meaningful. Last week, I spoke with a friend who pointed out that opening up about personal spiritual experiences can make these articles more meaningful. Opening up about my religious flaws or experiences isn't the most comfortable for me. To help others who might be experiencing the same thing, I would like to share some thoughts that may benefit you.
In this week's Parsha, we read about ritual impurity regarding a pot. According to Jewish Law, if you accidentally mix milk and meat in a pot, the pot is now not kosher. To clean the pot, you need to take something hot like a blow torch or boiled water and use it to take away the impurity. The idea is that if you have something full of impurity, even though it looks impossible to clean, you can take the impurity away.
The pot analogy reminded me of a scenario of two Jewish people. One person had the most immaculate "pot." He did every mitzvah perfectly, but his activities were robotic, without desire or feeling. Another person had a lot of trouble with mitzvos/facing impurity. Still, he did one mitzvah every day to the best of his abilities. He also strived to remove one layer of impurity at a time, becoming cleaner eventually.
Like a pot, one might think that because their life is full of impurity, they are now worthless. I believe that the opposite is true. A person can spend their life imbuing themselves with spiritual and physical impurity. However, no Jewish person is beyond redemption. It might be challenging to accomplish, but it is doable. When the Yidden crossed the Yarden in this Parsha and had yet another battle with the opposing forces, Hashem put them there because he knew they could handle it.
Similarly, no matter our thoughts or feelings, Hashem is always with us, giving us the challenges we can handle with love. No matter where we are in life, whether on the highest or the lowest level, we can always take one moment to connect with Hashem meaningfully. This way, we can defeat the Yetzer Hara by doing one good deed at a time and bringing Moshiach today!
Have a fantastic week!
Good Shabbos
All The Best
Avroham Ross