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In our Torah portion this week, Parashat Ki Tavo, we encounter the instruction to donate the first fruits of our crops to the service of God. The Torah states the following in Deuteronomy, chapter 26, verses 1-3, "When you enter the land that the almighty your God is giving you as a heritage, and you possess it and settle in it, you shall take some of every first fruit of the soil, which you harvest from the land which the Almighty, your God is giving you, place it in a basket and go to the place where the Almighty, your God, will choose to establish the Divine name. You shall go to the priest in charge at that time..."
Our first fruits represent the finest of our fruits. We seek to give the best of what we have to offer to the Divine service!
Today, most of us are not farmers with crops to donate. But we can still strive to offer the best of ourselves. This message is most important right now as we are getting deep into the month of Elul and anticipating the arrival of Rosh Hashanah and a brand new year.
As we reflect upon ourselves and our own behavior, we most certainly do want to offer only the very finest version of ourselves. We all have plenty of room to improve and to grow. Let us aspire to be like those first crops of the ancient harvest which our ancestors so eagerly presented - fine, healthy, and of beautiful form!
Shabbat Shalom!
Cantor Zachary Konigsberg
cantorzkonigsberg@gmail.com
917-696-0749
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