Covenant at Sinai Overview What this booklet covers: o The concept of Covenant o The significance of the Covenant at Sinai (the Ten Commandments) o The role of Moses within Judaism o Issues related to the Covenant at Sinai, including the nature of the promises made by G-d to the Israelites and their significance for modern Judaism o Common and divergent emphases placed on the Covenant at Sinai by different Jewish groups o Sources of wisdom and authority 1
The concept of Covenant A covenant is a two-way agreement or promise between two or more people. It entails promises made by both sides towards each other. There are many covenants found in the Torah. They are exclusively covenants between G-d and either individuals or groups of people. The word for covenant in Hebrew is Brit. An example of another covenant is Brit Milah. The significance of the Covenant at Sinai (The Ten Commandments) The Ten Commandments are perhaps the most well-known group of commandments in history. Before we examine their significance, we should remind ourselves of what they are. They are found in two places in the Torah including Exodus chapter 20. 1. Belief in One G-d 2. Do not make any images of G-d 3. Do not use G-d s name incorrectly 4. Keep/Remember Shabbat 5. Honour parents 6. Do not murder 7. Do not be sexually immoral 8. Do not steal 9. Do not be a false witness 10. Do not be jealous These Ten Commandments were given as the first direct communication between G-d and the Jewish People at Mount Sinai after the Exodus. The Jewish People had only recently left Egypt, and G-d had brought them to Mount Sinai to educate them in how He wanted the Jewish People to live their lives. Why were these ten chosen as the introductory mitzvot? Why were these grouped together? After all, there are another 603 mitzvot, and these ten don t include some of the important and well-known mitzvot such as kashrut or festivals. These Ten Commandments are significant for Jews for two main reasons: 1. They are headings for all the other 603 mitzvot. For example, the mitzvah of kashrut can be grouped under the heading of belief in One G-d, since it is a chok (a mitzvah that has no rational reason). The festivals can be grouped under the heading of Shabbat because they are all holy days like Shabbat. 2
2. These Ten Commandments are universal. That means that, unlike the other mitzvot, these apply to all people at all times regardless of age, gender, era and location. The 10 Commandments can be split into two groups of five. The first five govern the relationship between humans and G-d. The second five govern the relationship between humans. Looking closely at them, there is a clue as to how we are meant to relate to G-d and each other. The first five (relating between humans and G-d) start with mitzvot that are intellectual/emotional (Belief in G-d), move on to control of how we speak (not taking G-d s name in vain), and ending with action (Shabbat & honouring parents). The second five (relating between humans and other humans) are the opposite. They begin with mitzvot that require action (not stealing, killing etc), move on to a mitzvah that requires control of speech (not giving false evidence), and end with a mitzvah that is intellectual/emotional (not being jealous). In other words, if we want to get close to G-d, the most important thing is to understand G-d. Only then is it possible to speak to G-d appropriately (including tefillah), and only then is it possible to perform action towards G-d appropriately.. However, to get close to people it is the other way around. The most important thing is to first act appropriately towards others. Only then can we work on speaking appropriately and after that is it possible to become intellectually/emotionally attached to people correctly. The role of Moses in Judaism Moshe (Moses) is considered to be the greatest and most influential leader in Jewish history. Therefore his role & influence in Judaism is considered to be one of the most influential: Moshe has the title of Moshe Rabbeinu meaning Moses our teacher. In the Jewish tradition, the role of a leader is considered mostly to do with educating those he/she leads and setting the correct example. Moshe is described as an Eved Elokim a servant of G-d. He is also considered to be the greatest of all the Jewish prophets. Despite being the greatest of all Jewish prophets, who had the closest relationship with G-d, Moshe is also described as being the most humble of people. 3
Moshe grew up in the palace of the Pharaoh of Egypt, in the very centre of the dynasty that he was destined to lead the slaves out from. Moshe was 80 years old when he became the leader of the Jewish People. He led the people for 40 years, which included The Exodus and Receiving the Torah. Moshe was not allowed to lead the Jewish People into the Land of Israel as a punishment for not obeying G-d s instructions to speak to the rock to get water. He was shown the Land, but died before the Jewish People crossed into the Land. In the Torah it states that G-d Himself buried Moshe and his burial place is unknown to this day. Issues related to the Covenant at Sinai As we have seen, a covenant is a two-way promise/agreement. At Sinai, the Covenant at its basic level was a promise by G-d to make the Jewish People a Treasured People, a Kingdom of Priests and A Holy Nation. In return, the Jewish People accepted upon themselves the Torah and mitzvot. Treasured People vs Chosen People The term Treasured is a translation from the word Segulah in Hebrew. This word has also been translated as Chosen, giving rise to the idea of the Chosen People. The Chosen People idea has been misinterpreted throughout history as meaning that the Jews are automatically superior because they are Chosen. In reality, it means something else entirely. It means that Jews have a greater responsibility to the world, rather than superiority. This covenant means that if the Jews keep the Torah, and show humanity how G-d wants the world to work, then they will be close to G-d. However, if the Jews do not so this then their relationship with G-d and other people will suffer. An analogy to explain this could be a sports team. Every player on the team has an importance to the team as a whole by playing their specific role. However, the captain of the team, as well as being an individual player with the same importance as all the other individual players, also has a greater responsibility to represent the team to the referee and the manager. The captain s role is to ensure that his/her team respond to different conditions in order to win the game. The impact of an effective captain getting sent off, for example, would be greater than if another player was sent off because they are expected to set the tone for the rest of the team. So too with the Jews and their relationship with humanity. Jewish people are no different to other people in that there are certain expectations of humanity that we all 4
need to live up to. However, as a group of people chosen by G-d to represent Him, they are also expected to be the captains of the world, showing the way in correct behaviours and influencing other societies to do the same. The Jewish People get their guidance from the Torah and humanity gets guidance from the Jewish People. The significance of the Covenant at Sinai on modern Judaism is therefore clear. As the Torah is eternal i.e. it is always relevant, and the Ten Commandments in particular are universal, modern Judaism expects Jews to play the most significant part in influencing the modern world in general to behave correctly. Common and divergent emphases placed on the Covenant at Sinai by different Jewish groups All Jewish groups will believe that Judaism demands Jews to behave as role models for the rest of society. How they do this will depend on how each Jewish group interprets the Torah. 5
Things to do 1. Explain how and why the 10 Commandments are significant to the Jewish People. 2. Moshe has the title of Moshe Rabbeinu meaning Moses our teacher. In the Jewish tradition, the role of a leader has most to do with educating those he/she leads and setting the correct example. Contrast this with how modern political leaders are viewed. Does the idea of leadership as defined by Moshe Rabbeinu still hold true today? 3. Modern Judaism expects Jews to play the most significant part in influencing the modern world in general to behave correctly. Explain how this could be done by a) an individual Jewish person, b) a Jewish community in London, c) the State of Israel. 4. In your opinion, do you think the Jewish People could be considered a Holy Nation today? Explain your answer. 5. All Jewish groups will believe that Judaism demands Jews to behave as role models for the rest of society. How they do this will depend on how each Jewish group interprets the Torah. Explain how different Jewish groups will contrast in how they expect their congregations to be role models for the rest of humanity. 6
Sources of Wisdom Source 1 I believe with perfect faith that the prophecy of Moshe our teacher, peace be upon him, was true, and that he was the greatest of the prophets, both of those that came before him and those that came after him. (Rambam (Moses Maimonides) Principles of Jewish Faith number 7) Source 2 Never again has there arisen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom Hashem had seen face to face. (Devarim/Deuteronomy 34:10) Source 3 A prayer of Moshe, servant of G-d (Beginning line from Tehillim/Psalm 90) Source 4 And now, if you listen well to Me and observe My covenant, you shall be to Me the most beloved treasure of all peoples, for Mine is the entire world. You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words you shall speak to the Children of Israel. (Shemot/Exodus 19:5-6) 7