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By Rabbi Naftoly Bier
Mr. Moshe (Morris) Salzberg, who passed away in 2015, was a survivor of the concentration camps. He related that as a “laborer” at the gas chambers, he witnessed that no Jew would enter without articulating “Shema Yisroel”. This despite that moments before, they were atheists, agnostics, Christians, Maskilim, etc. Yes, all six million are called קדושים for they died sanctifying Hashem’s Name, but this was a monumental revelation! Every Jew has a special, unique נשמה , soul, that at the moment of truth, is able to remove all falsehood and express the ultimate expression of faith, .שמע ישראל
We find that the “Shema” is called שירה , a song of praise. The מדרש רבה , quoted by the תורה תמימה in שיר השירים ח:יג says, “When the Jewish people enter into the synagogue and in unison with the same inflection of voice, with the same focus, say Shema… Hashem says… we all listen… but when everyone says it at a difference pace, all disconnected from one another, one faster and one slower, the ‘ רוח הקודש ’ screams… ‘My beloved, emulate the angels who say praise with ‘one voice, with the same sweetness’.”
Every day in תפלת שחרית we say, “ לפיכך… we are obligated to thank, praise… fortunate we twice daily say, Shema Yisroel.” In ברכת היוצר , we elaborate on the idea of how the מלאכים , in a unified, selfless manner praise Hashem.
The recitation of Shema is simultaneously the epitome of praise to Hashem and the greatest expression of subservience to Hashem; for when one truly recognizes His boundless dedication to us, one will logically subjugate oneself to Him and to His people, Klal Yisroel.
שמע , the Rambam in ספר אמונה ובטחון , points out that while in all languages there is a different word for seeing and perceiving, for hearing and understanding, in our language, לשון הקודש , the word שמע means to hear and to understand, ראה is to see and to perceive. For if one hears and doesn’t ponder and absorb the lesson, one is not living properly.
שמע . Hear and understand, Yisroel. You are coming to articulate your praise of Hashem, your love of Hashem; don’t express it without sincere, unmitigated, attentive focus and clarity.
ישראל . When one praises and accepts Hashem’s sovereignty, attach yourself in a decisive manner to all of Klal Yisroel. This in itself is a tremendous זכות , merit, as we beseech Hashem in תחנון ,u שומר ישראל , the Guardian of Yisroel… let not Klal Yisroel be “lost”, in the merit of just saying the words שמע ישראל . The desire to understand Hashem’s love, to unite in love with all of our brethren is a most significant achievement!
The rest of the verse has many explanations/lessons:
יקוק – The name of Hashem which denotes kindness and mercy
אלוקינו – The title of Hashem that signifies remonstration and sufferering
יקוק – They are both reflections of His inimitable love of His people, for it all emanates from His altruism אחד – Hashem is the only Source of all of Creation, the absolute sustainer and supervisor of all that transpires.
Another explanation:
יקוק – All פוסקים agree that when reciting this name, one has to have two distinct thoughts, 1) that אדון הכל , He is the Master and ruler of all, 2) היה הוה ויהיה , He was, He is, and He will be – two attributes of Hashem. He has always and will always exist (an idea that is beyond human comprehension) and He is the absolute source of all.
אלוקינו – Hashem is our G-d, the name אלוקים is associated with creation ( בראשית פרק א ). It is affilliated with the ברית מילה with אברהם אבינו , a covenant of promising the land of כנען to the Jewish people and eternal love ( רש“י בראשית י“ז:ב,ז ). The purpose of Creation is those who embrace all of Torah – henceforth אלוקינו , He is our loving Creator – our G-d, for we are following the dictates. ה‘ אחד – The day will come when all of humanity will accept Hashem for who He is, the loving Creator of all of humanity.
This theme is the second paragraph of תחנון ,v… ,שומר due to our articulation of ה‘ אלוקינו ה‘ אחד ! First we prepare ourselves to be attentive to the praise we will express, and then we passionately and wholeheartedly articulate it. We are being taught that each one is a great achievement that warrants Hashem’s loving protection. When one recognizes with unadulterated acuity that the Almighty is a loving Being, one has arrived at the fundamental essence of life, the greatest praise possible. If one truly feels bonded to Hashem due to His infnite caring love, then one logically reciprocates… ‘ ואהבת את ה אלוקיך , and one should due to His love, love Him…
