By Casey Silverman
This week’s Torah portion, Nasso, is about commitment to community. A lot of my Torah portion talks about playing one of the many roles in the Israelite community, which we can also apply to our community today. My Torah portion teaches us that it’s important to be part of the community and take responsibility for our actions. This is meaningful to me because I try to care for the people around me to the best of my ability. I also always try to do better and learn from my mistakes.
One of the jobs in the Israelite community was taking care of the mishkan. The mishkan was a portable house of worship for the Israelites to pray in while traveling in the desert. The mishkan was important because it helped the Israelites stay connected to God. One of the main jobs of the Levites was to transport the mishkan and all of the things it had in it. This Torah portion also talks about fixing our wrongdoings. If you steal something, you need to pay back more than it is worth because of your wrong action. The Levites’ work with the mishkan and the laws about fixing our wrongdoings both helped people build a stronger community. A strong community means that people are there for each other in times of need. This was very important for the Jews wandering in the desert because of the desert’s harsh conditions.
It is also important to build a strong community for the people around us today. We need to make sure we are always surrounding each other with love so everyone can be successful and happy together.
Today, around the world, we are seeing countries come together as a global community to support Ukraine against a powerful army. Coming together as a global community gives us the power to stand up against Russia. The opposition to the war in Ukraine is a powerful reminder of the strength we get from building a community. Just as the Israelites built a strong community in the desert, we still need to do that today.
Casey Silverman is a seventh grader at Krieger Schechter Day School.
