A TorahTutors student studying the weekly Torah portions learned a beautiful idea last week from Parshat Naso.
Every Nasi (head of tribe) was told to bring a korban and gifts on behalf of his tribe. The Torah lists each Nasi and what he brought – but their gifts were identical. Why couldn’t the Torah have written “These are the nesi’im, and each gave the following gifts”? Why the need for a separate statement for each one?
Perhaps to teach that even though it might seem like we are all doing the same thing in our religious observances, we are actually all individuals acting independently. Each person has his or her own skills, talents, and life circumstances, and each person’s contribution is appreciated separately.
Examples the student discussed with her tutor included the different contexts in which people might daven: some people are in a full Torah environment and daven regularly in that framework, while others carve out time to daven in the midst of other pursuits. Both are special for who they are and the efforts they make. Another example, highly relatable to this preteen student, was how being kind to annoying siblings might be a challenge for many – but when one has a sibling who presents unusual difficulties, the “gift” of kindness to them may be extra special, even if the acts themselves are similar to what others offer.
Individualized Torah study is a great way to find personal meaning in the same Torah learned by millions of others. We’re so proud of all our students, including this one, for the efforts they make and the ways in which they let their learning enrich their lives.
A Tuesday TorahTutors Tidbit: Real Torah, from real TorahTutors sessions.
