Friendship carved in stone Reflections on Parshat Shoftim

This week’s parsha contains a very interesting mitzvah. The prohibition of not setting up a monument to bring a sacrifice on (16:22). Specifically the Torah describes this monument as one that HASHEM hates. Rashi makes two comments regarding this mitzvah. While his second comment describes the reasoning why GOD hates this monument as being similar to idol worshippers, his first comment describes this monument as a monument of one stone.

From Rashi’s description of the monument being made of one stone, the Shem Meshmuel as quoted by my Rebbe Yeshiva University Rosh Yeshiva Rav Herschel Reichman Shlitta, teaches a powerful lesson. According to the Shem Meshmuel the monument being made of one stone teaches us that as Jews we cannot get through this world as just ourselves, living a life as one stone but need to do so as a group with the other Jews around us.

This past summer, starting with the kidnapping of the three boys and the war has been filled with many examples of Jews taking the more than one stone approach to connect to the greater group of the rest of the Jewish people.

Elul has just begun and Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur are right around the corner. May we use these days of repentance to unite ourselves with our fellow Jews through prayer to GOD, and whatever we can to help our fellow Jews out leading us up to the days of Moschiach may he come speedily in our days.

Good Shabbos, Shabbat Shalom, Gut Shabbes