This week’s parasha , Kedoshim, presents many mitzvot (both positive and negative) dealing with a number of subjects, including justice, exclusive belief in Hashem and the prohibition of immorality. After detailing a number of mitzvot , the Torah concludes, “and you will observe ( shmira ) all of My statutes ( chukim ) and all of My ordinances ( mishpatim ) and you will do ( asiah ) them; I am Hashem.” The Italian commentator, Rabbi Ovadiah Seforno, is perplexed by the difference between observing and doing – shmira and asiah . Observing and doing seem to be very similar! Furthermore, this verse seems to be out of step with the well-known pronouncement of b'nei yisrael at Mount Sinai – na’aseh ve’nishma – we will do and we will listen. The commitment to “doing” precedes “listening”. Is “doing” the cause of “listening” and “observing” or the effect? When we consider this pronouncement more closely, we understand that “listening” cannot refer to learning about the mitzvot – how cou...
Rabbi Benjy Owen, Dean, Margolin Hebrew Academy-Feinstone Yeshiva of the South, Memphis, TN