The holiday season reveals a different face of the Jewish people. People become softer, more reconciled. The synagogues filled on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur reflect the deep connection to Jewish tradition.
Yom Kippur, when an entire country is occupied and stands in awe, is an unprecedented phenomenon in the entire world. The highlight is the dancing until the wee hours of the morning on Simchat Torah with Torah scrolls clasped to our laps.
During the holidays, the masses of the Jewish people connect to their roots, tradition, faith, and sense of unity. Sukkots stand in the courtyards of homes, and even those who do not necessarily observe the strictest observances try to sit in a sukkah and continue the continuity of generations.
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Every Jew feels the need to express his Judaism, in one way or another.
Appearance doesn't matter.
In everyday life, we tend to judge things by their outward appearance. It is not easy to ignore the image seen with the eyes and look into the inner self. God alone examines the kidneys and heart, while we see the actions and hear the words, and based on that, we determine our attitude toward a person.
Therefore, it takes effort on our part to discern the true essence that lies behind the outer covering.
The great Hasidic scholars likened the Jew to a precious diamond that has fallen into the mud and is covered with a thick layer of slime. Those who look at him superficially will quickly throw him aside, like a worthless lump of dirt. But those who know the truth will hold onto this lump of dirt with excitement, knowing that within lies the precious treasure. The mud is only an outer layer, but behind it lies the shining diamond.
Every Jew is like this, whoever he may be. Inside his soul he is a precious diamond. The Jewish point shines and illuminates inside his soul, even if he is alienated from it all year round.
He may present to his surroundings, and even to himself, the layers of mud. But let us not be fooled by the camouflage. We must always remember that within lies the most precious Jewish point.
Shared joy
When we see this Jew come on Simchat Torah to dance with the Torah scroll, this is the moment when he discovers who he really is. He wouldn't have come if he didn't feel that this joy was also his. Here the Jewish point in his soul comes to light. Suddenly he feels that he too is a Jew, that he too loves the Torah, that he too misses the holiness symbolized in it.
On this day, all the barriers suddenly fall. The scholar dances alongside the common man, the professor next to the plumber, the one who extols the mitzvot next to the one who does not observe the Torah's commandments.
The shared joy is about the very fact that we are Jews and that we have Torah. This joy is shared by all, and therefore encompasses us all.
This joy of Sukkot and Simchat Torah seals the holidays of Tishrei, and this is the message with which we go out into our daily lives throughout the year – that we are all warm Jews, lovers of Torah and enthusiasts. We only need to gently remove the layers of dust, and then the great Jewish soul will be revealed in all of us.
• The column is published in The Conversation of the Week.
