Beha'alotecha - Real People

Drawing on the Lubavitcher Rebbe's teaching (Likkutei Sichot vol. 4), this piece reflects on the Manna described in Sedra Beha'alotecha: a food "from Heaven" that nourished the Jewish people in the Wilderness. Though Heavenly, the Manna was eaten by everyone, the righteous and the far-from-perfect alike, teaching that what is Divine in Judaism is meant for all people, not only the spiritually accomplished. It also shows how the Heavenly is meant to blend with the earthly, sustaining body and mind together. Shabbat is our parallel today: sacred yet open to everyone, bringing a Heavenly atmosphere into a real human home. Ultimately this expresses the purpose of Creation itself, a physical world inhabited by real men and women in which the Divine Presence dwells.