Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Presence / Revelation

This week’s Torah portion Re'ah begins with the Creator commanding the Jewish People to limit their devotional sacrifices to the place of His choosing; ultimately meaning the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. The common question is,”If the Creator is equally present all over, why doesn't He accept offerings from anywhere?”

The author of the work Tanya, Rabbi Shnuer Zalman of Liadi, offers a unique approach to this question by using the human being as his/her own parable. He explains that a human soul is equally present throughout the body. Yet, the soul’s main revelation is in the brain. Similarly, while the Creator is present everywhere, His main revelation is in the Holy Temple. The Creator’s presence and revelation aren’t necessarily the same. He could be present and yet, not revealed. That’s why sacrifices and certain other devotional services require that site.

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