There are moments in Jewish life that never lose their magic. This week we traveled to Camp Gan Israel, in the Laurentians, Quebec to be with our dear Aharon as he reached a beautiful new milestone. Our custom is to begin putting on tefillin two months before a boy’s Bar Mitzvah, giving him time to become familiar with this precious mitzvah before the big day arrives. Watching Aharon wrap tefillin for the very first time, surrounded by his camp friends, was one of those moments that fills your heart to overflowing. It was more than learning a new ritual. It was watching another link in an unbroken chain stretching back thousands of years.
In this week’s Torah portion, Re’eh, Moshe reminds the Jewish people that they are an Am Segulah, a treasured nation. “For you are a holy people to Hashem your G-d, and Hashem has chosen you to be His treasured people.” This is not something we earn through our achievements. It is an essential bond that every Jew shares with Hashem simply because we are His children. We are holy, we are treasured, and we are chosen. Chassidus explains that our connection to Hashem is not based on what we accomplish, but on who we are. That bond gives every one of us a unique mission and the ability to bring holiness into the world through our mitzvot and the way we live each day. Our relationship with Hashem is woven into the very essence of who we are.
Watching Aharon proudly put on tefillin reminded me that being chosen is not a title. It is a responsibility. We wear our tefillin with pride. We light Shabbat candles. We make blessings over our food. We further Jewish education. Sometimes standing out is not easy, but our greatest strength has never come from blending in. History has shown time and again that when we abandon our distinct identity, we lose the very source of our continuity. Our strength comes from embracing who we are and the mission Hashem has entrusted to us. Never forget that you are treasured. You are chosen. And you were placed in this world to accomplish something that only you can.