30 Jun PINCHAS: THE SECRET OF THE GREATEST ARTISTS & THE MISSION STATEMENT OF JUDAISM HOW ONE STRANGE BIBLICAL VERSE CAME TO CAPTURE THE SUCCESS OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE

The Verse that
Says It All
A fascinating
Midrash credits an
isolated verse in this
week’s parsha,
Pinchas, encapsulating the quintessence of
Judaismm.
The Midrash quotes four opinions as to
which biblical verse best sums up the
ultimate message of Torah. One sage, by
the name of Ben Azzai, believed it was the
verse in Bereishis: “This is the book of the
chronicles of man; on the day that G-d
created man He created him in the image
of G-d.”
Another sage, by the name of Ben Zoma,
holds a different verse to be more central to
Jewish thought: “Hear O Israel, the Lord is
our G-d, the Lord is One.”
A third Talmudist, Ben Nanas, chooses this
verse: “You shall love your fellow man
like yourself.” Finally, the fourth sage,
Shimon, the son of Pazi, casts his pitch for
the epic verse of the Torah. It is culled

from the section in this week’s parsha that
deals with the obligation during the time of
the Beis Hamikdash to bring each day two
lambs as an offering to G-d. “One sheep
you shall offer in the morning and the
second sheep in the afternoon.”
This verse, according to Shimon, the son
of Pazi, is the defining verse of Judaism.
The Midrash concludes: “One of the rabbis
stood on his feet and declared, ‘The verdict
follows the opinion of Shimon the son of
Pazi!’”
The Big Question
This is strange. The first three opinions
make sense. The notion that all of Judaism
can be traced back to the idea that a human
being reflects G-d seems right. The same
can be said about the concept of a single
and universal G-d, or the injunction to love
our fellow man like ourselves—these
ideas, introduced 3300 years ago by
Tanach, vividly embody the
essential weltanschauung of Judaism and
its contribution to civilization.

But how does the verse
“One sheep you shall
offer in the morning and
the second sheep in the
afternoon” represent the
core essence of Torah?
How can one even
begin to compare the
message about offering
two lambs with the
global and noble ideas
contained in the other
three opinions?
What is even more astonishing is that the
final verdict in the Midrash selects this
verse about the sheep as the “winner.” The
biblical verses dealing with love,
monotheism and human dignity, the
foundations of morality and civilization,
did not “make it” in the contest; it is
precisely this verse enjoining us to offer a
lamb in the morning and a lamb in the
afternoon — that was chosen as the ultimate
embodiment of Judaism!
The Depth of Perseverance
One of the most seminal Jewish thinkers
in the post-medieval period was Rabbi
Judah Loew (1525-1609), who was
known as the Maharal and served as the
Chief Rabbi of Prague. In one of his
works he offers a powerful answer.
What the fourth and last sage,
Shimon the son of Pazi, was suggesting
is that the verse that ultimately defines
what it means to be a Jew is the one that
speaks of unwavering consistency, “One
sheep you shall offer in the morning and
the second sheep in the afternoon.”
Every single morning and every single
afternoon you shall make a sacrifice for
your Creator.
The biblical declarations that reveal the
philosophical depth of Torah and its
grand vision for humanity—
monotheism, love, human dignity—are
powerful, splendid, and revolutionary.
They have redefined theology,
sociology, and psychology. But what
makes Judaism and Jewish life unique is
the unswerving commitment to live and
breathe these truths day in, day out,
seven days a week, 365 days a year.
I can be moved to tears by the notion
of tikkun olam, of healing the world; I
can preach about the ideals of human
dignity, love, and peace. But the ideas
and inspiration are fleeting. The real and

ultimate power of Judaism is that it
managed to translate the profound
visionary ideals in daily routines and
behaviors. Judaism always inspired its
people to cultivate their relationship with
G-d on a continuous basis, every day of
their lives. Torah asks the human being to
make daily sacrifices for truth, for love, for
peace, for G-d, for family, for marriage.
“One sheep you shall offer in the morning
and the second sheep in the afternoon.”
During exciting days and monotonous
days, on bright days and bleak days—“One
sheep you shall offer in the morning and
the second sheep in the afternoon.” In the
morning, when you awake, you are called
to make a sacrifice to G-d. In the afternoon,
when your day is winding down, you are
called, once again, to sacrifice something
of your ego and insecurity for G-d.
Judaism is not only about a moving Yom
Kippur experience or an emotional
memorial ceremony; it is something the
Jew lives every moment of his life. It is the
dedication of ordinary people to construct,
through daily ordinary acts, a fragment of
heaven on planet earth.
It is a truth the great artists grasp
well: Consistency is the soil in which
creativity blossoms. The mission statement
of Judaism is that you are always an
ambassador of the Divine, an ambassador
for love, light, and hope. When your sun
rises and when your sun sets, you are G-d’s
agent here on earth to infuse it with
meaning, purpose, and harmony, creating
unity out of chaos, oneness out of
fragmentation, light weaved from the stuff
of darkness. You may be having a good
day or a bad day, you may be at peace or in
the midst of a struggle, but you are, in the
words of the Maharal, an “Eved Hashem,”
a servant, a messenger of G-d. You are a
ray of infinity, working for G-d, and
reflecting His oneness in the world you
inhabit.