(13) Every citizen, when presenting an offering by fire of pleasing odor to Ad-nai shall do so with them. (14) And when, throughout the ages, a stranger who has taken up residence with you, or one who lives among you, would present an offering by fire of pleasing odor to Ad-nai — as you do, so shall it be done by (15) the rest of the congregation. There shall be one law for you and for the resident stranger; it shall be a law for all time throughout the ages. You and the stranger shall be alike before Ad-nai; (16) the same Torah and the same rule shall apply to you and to the stranger who resides among you.
Pesikta deRav Kahane, Beshallach
Rabbi Yohanan was once sitting and expounding about how the waters became like a wall for Israel [at the time they miraculously passed through the Sea which had split open before them to permit their exodus from Egypt]. Rabbi Yohanan explained that the waters looked "like a lattice." However, just at that moment, Serah bat Asher looked down and said: I was there and they were not like that, but rather like lighted windows.
אמרו, בן ארבעים שנה היה ולא שנה כלום.
פעם אחת היה עומד על פי הבאר.
אמר: מי חקק אבן זו?
אמרו לו: המים שתדיר נופלים עליה בכל יום.
אמרו לו: עקיבא אי אתה קורא "אבנים שחקו מים"?
מיד היה רבי עקיבא דן קל וחומר בעצמו: מה רך פסל את הקשה, דברי תורה שקשה כברזל על אחת כמה וכמה שיחקקו את לבי שהוא בשר ודם.
מיד חזר ללמוד תורה.
הלך הוא ובנו וישבו אצל מלמדי תינוקות.
אמר לו: רבי למדני תורה.
אחז רבי עקיבא בראש הלוח, ובנו בראש הלוח. כתב לו אלף בית ולמדה. אלף תיו ולמדה, תורת כהנים ולמדה.
היה לומד והולך עד שלמד כל התורה כולה.
הלך וישב לפני רבי אליעזר ולפני ר' יהושע.
אמר להם: רבותי, פתחו לי טעם משנה. כיון שאמר לו הלכה אחת, הלך וישב לו בינו לבין עצמו. אמר: אלף זו למה נכתבה? בית זו למה נכתבה? דבר זה למה נאמר? חזר ושאלן והעמידן בדברים.
רבי שמעון בן אלעזר אומר: אמשול לך משל למה הדבר דומה: לסתת שהיה מסתת בהרים. פעם אחת נטל קרדומו בידו, והלך וישב על ההר, והיה מכה ממנו צרורות דקות.
ובאו בני אדם ואמרו לו: מה אתה עושה?
אמר להם: הרי אני עוקר ומטילו בתוך הירדן.
אמרו לו: אי אתה יכול לעקור את כל ההר!
היה מסתת והולך, עד שהגיע אצל סלע גדול. נכנס תחתיו, סתרו ועקרו והטילו אל הירדן.
ואמר לו: אין זה מקומך אלא מקום זה.
כך עשה להם רבי עקיבא לרבי אליעזר ורבי יהושע.
אמר לו רבי טרפון: עקיבא, עליך הכתוב אומר (איוב כח) "מבכי נהרות חבש ותעלומה יוציא אור". דברים המסותרים מבני אדם הוציאם רבי עקיבא לאורה.
A place for growth no matter how young you are
What were Akiva's beginnings?
It is said: Up to the age of forty, he had not yet studied a thing. One time, while standing by the mouth of a well. He inquired, "Who hollowed out this stone?" and was told, "Akiva, haven't you read that 'water wears away stone' (Job 14:19)? - it was water falling upon it constantly, day after day."
At that, Rabbi Akiva made an inference at thought: The soft molds the hard. Is my mind harder than this stone? And Torah words that are hard as iron, surely they will carve my heart that is just flesh and blood. He immediately went to study Torah. He and his son sat in front of the children's teacher. He said to the teacher: Rabbi, teach me Torah! Rabbi Akiva took hold of one end of the tablet, and his son of the other end. The teacher wrote down the letters alef and bet for him, and he learned them; alef to tav, and he learned them; the book of Leviticus, and he learned it. He went on studying until he learned the whole Torah.
Then he went and sat before Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua. "My masters," he said, "reveal the sense of Mishnah to me."
When they told him one halakhah, he went off to reason with himself. This alef, he wondered, what was it written for? That bet - what was it written for? This teaching - what was it uttered for? He kept coming back, kept inquiring of Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua, until he reduced his teachers to silence.
Rabi Shimeon be Eleazar says: I will give you this in a parable: This is similar to a stone cutter that was chiselling mountains. He took his chisel and sat upon the mountain, and began cutting simple shapes out of it. People asked: 'What are you doing?' He said: 'I am uprooting this mountain and I will put it inside the [river] Yarden. They answered: You are not able to uproot the entire mountain!
He chiseled continuously until he got to the main rock. He entered underneath it, tore it down at threw it in the Yarden; and said to the mountain: This was not your right place, this is. And this is what Rabi Akiva did to Rabi Eliezer and Rabi Yehoshua.
Rabi Tarfon said to him: Akiva, there is a verse about you - ''He binds the streams that they trickle not; and the thing that is hidden he brings to light"(Job 28:11). Words/things that were hidden from humans Rabi Akiva brought to light.
מדרש תנחומא פרשת ויקהל סימן א
כל זמן שאדם מרבה במצות הוא קונה שם טוב לעצמו, את מוצא שלשה שמות נקראו לו לאדם, אחד מה שקוראים לו אביו ואמו, ואחד מה שקוראין לו בני אדם ואחד מה שקונה הוא לעצמו, טוב מכולן מה שקונה הוא לעצמו
Midrash Tanhuma, VaYakhel
A place for self-discovery through Jewish actions
Every time a person increases their mitzvot, they acquire for themselves a new name. There are three names by which a person is called: one which their parents call them, one which people call them, and one which they earn for themselves. The last is the best one of all.
Jonathan Sacks, The Home We Build Together (2007; p.133)
A place where we live dignity and co-creation
…I have argued for a metaphor of society as the home we build together. It focuses on our individual and collective responsibility for the social order. We did not make the
country house: we were guests there. We did not make the hotel: we were visitors there. Both of these models locate responsibility for society somewhere else, and that is a disempowering way of seeing things. The home we build together is one in which I have the dignity of co-authorship. I helped plan and build it. I invested my time and energies into it. Because of this it holds a special meaning for me. It is where I belong. It is home.
פרי עץ הדר, אלו ישראל. מה אתרוג זה, יש בו טעם ויש בו ריח. כך ישראל, יש בהם בני אדם, שיש בהם תורה, ויש בהם מעשים טובים. כפות תמרים, אלו ישראל. מה התמרה הזו, יש בו טעם ואין בו ריח. כך הם ישראל, יש בהם שיש בהם תורה ואין בהם מעשים טובים. וענף עץ עבות, אלו ישראל. מה הדס, יש בו ריח ואין בו טעם.כך ישראל, יש בהם שיש בהם מעשים טובים ואין בהם תורה. וערבי נחל, אלו ישראל. מה ערבה זו, אין בה טעם ואין בה ריח. כך הם ישראל, יש בהם בני אדם שאין בהם לא תורה ולא מעשים טובים. ומה הקב"ה עושה להם? לאבדן אי אפשר, אלא אמר הקדוש ברוך הוא יוקשרו כולם אגודה אחת, והן מכפרין אלו על אלו
A place where people with different Jewish lives feel included and responsible
"Take for yourselves a fruit of a beautiful tree, the leaves of a palm tree,palm branches, twigs of a braided tree and brook willows..." (Lev. 23:40) The Etrog which has both taste and smell, symbolizes Israel - there are those who study Torah and do mitzvot. The palm branch, which has taste, but no smell, symbolizes Israel - there are to those who have only Torah study and no mitzvot. The twigs of a braided tree (myrtle) which has smell but no taste, symbolizes Israel - there are those who have only mitzvot. The brook willow which has neither taste nor smell symbolizes Israel - there are those who are without Torah study and without mitzvot. And the Holy One of Blessing does to them? It is impossible to abandon them, so the Holy One of Blessing says they should bind to one another in one bunch and those make up for those.
... אמר רבי לוי: שני דברים שאלו ישראל מלפני הקב"ה: שיראו כבודו וישמעו קולו והיו רואין את כבודו ושומעין את קולו, שנאמר (דברים ה): ותאמרו הן הראנו ה' אלקינו את כבודו ואת גדלו. וכתיב (שם) ואת קולו שמענו מתוך האש. ולא היה בהם כח לעמוד, שכיון שבאו לסיני ונגלה להם, פרחה נשמתם על שדבר עמהם, שנאמר (שיר ה): נפשי יצאה בדברו, אבל התורה בקשה עליהם רחמים מלפני הקב"ה. יש מלך משיא בתו והורג אנשי ביתו, כל העולם כולו שמחים ובניך מתים?! מיד חזרה נשמתן, שנאמר (תהלים יט): תורת ה' תמימה משיבת נפש:
A place where we find healing and renewal through Torah
R. Levi said: Two things Israel requested from God—to see His glory and to hear His voice. And they did see His glory and hear His voice, as it is said, “See, God our God has shown us His glory and His greatness,” and it is written, “His voice we have heard from out of the fire.” (Deut 5:21) But they did not have strength to stand, for when they came to Sinai and He was revealed to them, they fainted (lit. their souls flew away), when He spoke with them, as it is said, “I was faint (lit. My soul left me) when he spoke” (Song of Songs 5:6). But the Torah asked God for mercy: “Does a king marry off his daughter and kill his household? The whole world is rejoicing, and Your children die!” Immediately, they revived, as it is written, “God’s Torah is perfect, restoring life” (Ps 19:8).16
(א) אנכי ה' אלקיך, הה"ד (דברים ד): השמע עם קול אלקים. המינין שאלו את ר' שמלאי, א"ל: אלוהות הרבה יש בעולם? אמר להם: למה? אמרו לו: שהרי כתיב, השמע עם קול אלהים! אמר להם: שמא כתוב מדברים, אלא מדבר. אמרו לו תלמידיו: רבי לאלו דחית בקנה רצוץ, לנו מה אתה משיב? חזר ר' לוי ופירשה, אמר להם: השמע עם קול אלקים, כיצד? אילו היה כתוב קול ה' בכחו, לא היה העולם יכול לעמוד, אלא קול ה' בכח, בכח של כל אחד ואחד. הבחורים לפי כחן, והזקנים לפי כחן, והקטנים לפי כחן. אמר הקב"ה לישראל: לא בשביל ששמעתם קולות הרבה, תהיו סבורין שמא אלוהות הרבה יש בשמים, אלא תהיו יודעים שאני הוא ה' אלקיך, שנאמר (שם ה): אנכי ה' אלקיך:
A place where we find God according to our capabilities
“I am God your God …” (20:2). It is written, “Has a people ever heard the voice of God …?” (Deut 4:33). Heretics asked R. Simlai: “Are there many gods in the world?” He asked, “Why?” They answered: “Because it is written, ‘Has a people heard the voice of elohim,’ in the plural!” He told them, “But it does not say, ‘God speaking—medabrim’—in the plural, but medaber—in the singular!” His students then said to him: “You have fobbed them off with a reed (i.e., easily): what do you answer us?” So R. Levi explained again: “Has a people ever heard the voice of God …?” If it had said, “The voice of God is in His strength,” the world would not have been able to stand. But the text says: “The voice of God is in strength” (Ps 29:4)—that is, according to the strength of each individual—young men, according to their strength, and the old, according to their strength, and children, according to their strength. God said to Israel: “Just because you heard many voices, do not think that there are many gods in heaven, but be aware that I am God your God, as it is said, ‘I am God your God …’ ”
אמר רב נחמן בר יצחק למה נמשלו דברי תורה כעץ שנאמר (משלי ג, יח) עץ חיים היא למחזיקים בה לומר לך מה עץ קטן מדליק את הגדול אף תלמידי חכמים קטנים מחדדים את הגדולים והיינו דאמר ר' חנינא הרבה למדתי מרבותי ומחבירי יותר מרבותי ומתלמידי יותר מכולן
A place where we learn from each other:
Said Rabbi Nahman the son of Yitzchak, Why are the words of Torah compared to wood? As it says, (Proverbs 3:18), "The tree of life for those who hold it." That is to say to you, just as a small piece of wood lights a big piece of wood, so too small scholars (wise ones) sharpen larger ones. As Rabbi Chanina said, I have learned a lot from my teachers, and even more. from my friends. But from my students I have learned the most.
A place where we are welcoming to the stranger, Jewish and non-Jewish
It was taught in a baraita that a non-Jew came before Shammai and asked him, "How many Torahs do you have?" Shammai responded, "Two, the Written Torah and the Oral Torah." The non-Jew said, "I believe in the Written Torah, but not in the Oral Torah. Convert me and teach me only the Written Torah." Shammai berated the non-Jew and chased him out The non-Jew came before Hillel and Hillel converted him. One day Hillel taught him the alef-bet, and the next day he switched the names of the letters. He said to Hillel, "Didn't you teach me the opposite yesterday?" Hillel responded, "Just as you trust me in the instruction of letters, so to you must trust me in the instruction of the oral Torah." Another time a non-Jew came before Shammai and said, "I will convert if you can teach me the entire Torah while I stand on one foot." Shammai pushed the non-Jews aside with the ruler that was in his hand. The non-Jew came before Hillel and Hillel converted him saying, "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor, that is the entire Torah, the rest is just commentary, now go and study." Another time a non-Jew was passing behind the Beit Midrash and hear the voice of the sofer who was saying, "These are the garments you shall make , a breastplate, and an ephod" (Exodus 28:4) The non-Jews asked, "Who are these garments for?" The sofer responded, "For the Cohen Gadol." The same non-Jews said to himself, "I will go and convert so that they will make me the Cohen Gadol." The non-Jew came before Shammai and said, "Convert me on the condition that you make me Cohen Gadol." Shammai pushed him aside with the ruler that was in his hand. The non-Jew came before Hillel, and Hillel converted him. Hillel said to him, "We cannot anoint someone unless they learn the ceremonies of kingship, go and learn the ceremonies of kingship." The new convert went and learned the ceremonies of kingship. When he arrived at the verse, "and the common man that draweth nigh shall be put to death" (Numbers 1:51), he asked, "Who is this verse speaking about?" Hillel answered him, "It's even relevant to David, King of Israel." The new convert made himself a "kal v'chomer": Israel are called Children of God, and out of God's love for them, they are called the first born children of God. If even in regards to them it is said, "and the common man that draweth nigh shall be put to death..." how much more so for me who comes to the Jewish people with his staff and bag. He came before Shammai and told him: "How could I have ever qualified to be a high priest? The Torah states: 'and the common man that draweth nigh shall be put to death'" He came before Hillel and told him: "You are humble Hillel, may blessings rest on your head for moving me under the wings of the divine presence." Eventually the three [converts] happened to meet somewhere and said: "Shammai's strictness would have killed us. Hillel's humility brought us under the wings of the divine presence."