Behar-Bechukotai

Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee
Little Jackie Paper loved that rascal Puff
And brought him strings and sealing wax and other fancy stuff

Now before you go off singing the rest of the song, I want to stop and draw your attention to that last line, which mentioned something that I used in my earlier years. Yes, I’m talking about sealing wax.  Its origins date back to before the invention of pen or paper. Its first use, in Mesopotamia, came in the form of a cylinder seal used to authenticate written tablets by leaving its impression in the clay. Of course, Puff and Little Jackie Paper aren’t that old. Sealing wax was a novelty back in the 1960s, which means that some of you aren’t old enough to have used it. But I did. The wax came in a stick, whose wick was lit with a match and the wax dripped onto the back of an envelope. A little metal embosser was then pressed into the wax to create a design, and to seal the contents into their paper container.

Sealing a message to a recipient is something, however, that goes back even farther than the invention of sealing wax. It goes back to this week’s double parasha of Behar-Bechukotai. We read: “… You shall not wrong, one man his fellow Jew … for I am the Lord, your God – Ani Adonai Eloheichem.” God reinforces an I-THOU relationship between God’s self and the Children of Israel. When we acknowledge our responsibility to treat our brother and sister fairly, as we would have God treat us, we seal the message for those who seek to emulate us.

“You shall not give him your money with interest, nor shall you give your food with increase. I am the Lord, your God – Ani Adonai Eloheichm.” Our family is an extension of ourselves, created in the image of God. To enjoy material gain at the expense of our family is disrespectful of the Holy in us.  Share what you have with those in your circle. It will seal the familial bond that we would wish for one another.

“For the children of Israel are servants to Me; they are My servants, whom I took out of the land of Egypt. I am the Lord, your God – Ani Adonai Eloheichem.”  Each of us is commanded to see ourselves as if we personally had been taken out of Egypt. And that reminder returns time and again in our Jewish lives as we move from one form of metaphorical slavery to another. Being redeemed from slavery by God is the sealing wax of our Jewish lives.

No less than seven times in this double parasha, an injunction is followed by those powerful words, Ani Adonai Eloheichm – I am the Lord, your God. “Don’t make idols for yourselves.” Yep, that’s me, Adonai, your God, speaking to you. “I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be My people.” That’s me, Adonai, your God. Recognize me and cling to Me. “I will not break my covenant with you.” I may not like what you have done to turn away from me, but I will love you and will not abandon you. After all, I am Adonai, and I am your God. Each message is put into the envelope, let’s call it the Torah, and is sealed with drips of wax, and then embossed to save it for all time.

This week I’d like to challenge you to think about your own personal Torah, the story of you. What messages will you put into that symbolic scroll? What are the actions that define who you are and what message will be left for future generations? Finally, what words form the drops of sealing wax that seal your envelope, that make a lasting mark, drawing from your past and reaching into the future, and creating a bond that is Godly? Chazak, chazak, v’nitchazek – Be strong, be strong, and may we all be strengthened, to  seal the messages in our Books of Life, from the tallest mountain, “Behar,” to the depths of your soul from where we take direction, “Bechukotai.”