David Hamelech (Psalm 39:7) describes the extreme frailty of a human being’s hold onto his assets: Only in shadowy darkness does man make his way, it is but in futility for which they are in turmoil; he amasses riches, but he knows not who will harvest them. The initial acquisition of wealth comes with great struggle. That is not nearly enough. A constant effort must be exerted to hold on to what has been acquired. The danger of competition, theft, spoilage, devaluation along with other hazards stand awaiting to plunge a person from wealth to poverty.
As this is true referring to wealth, it is equally so with every facet of life. A person’s dignity is earned through great effort at maintaining a good reputation with personal conduct in purity, being honest in business, generous in charity and kindness. A lack of caution may cause scandalous conduct that will replace honor with shame.
One could be very health conscious, follow a good diet, maintain a fit body by cautious exercise, control of stress and avoiding contact with infectious matter. He could be extremely safety conscious, always conforming to traffic laws both vehicular and pedestrian. Negligence in any of these areas could make null and void all the vast efforts of the past.
A person may acquire the best of quality in the areas of housing, furniture, appliances, clothing, automobiles, electronics, etc. Without constant, vigilant and skilled care all that may quickly fall into ruin.
As it is in our material pursuits, so is it in the spiritual level. Great effort was put into the preparation and observance of the Festival Pesach. We are uplifted, imbued with sacred energy, our minds and hearts are filled with love and reverence and we are overwhelmed with residual holy feelings. As great as all this is, there exist hazards of loss of the spiritual no less than that which loom before the material.
This is the purpose of counting our days and weeks following the festival of Pesach. We make an effort to refine all forty nine divisions of our emotional structure. So fortified, we are in a position to reaffirm our ancestors’ receiving the Torah. As a Kingdom of Priests and a Holy Nation, we can celebrate the Festival of Shavuos—the time of the giving of the Torah.
Ohev Shalom Voice
