Said to Myself

In  Va’Etchanan, this week’s Torah portion we read the first paragraph of the Sh’ma -the Jewish credo. There we read:

Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words, which I command you this day, shall be upon your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up. And you shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them upon the door-posts of your house, and upon your gates. (Deuteronomy 6: 4- 9)

These words are familiar to many of us. We rarely stop to think about what they mean. I am interested how this statement of creed is simultaneously the most private and intimate aspect of faith happening in our hearts as well as being the most public expression of identity being the Mezuzah on the door posts of our homes. While we are obligated to place this testament to our faith in every door-post in your house, today most Jews who still have a Mezuzah in their homes limit this practice to their front door. This makes this  juxtaposition even more interesting.

As a religious person I realize it is challenging to speak of our faith in public. As a Jewish person it is noteworthy that at this moment in history living where I live it is very easy to express my cultural identity. This point came clear to me when I was watching the video for Wait, a new song by Maroon 5. I know that Adam Levine the lead singer is Jewish, but this image from the video still caught my eye:

And this Mezuzah was from the doorway next to his kitchen, not even the front door. Wow, so frum? It seems to be that we have made it.

Even if we are not ready to have a conversion about the faith in our heart of hearts in public, maybe this is an invitation into a the conversation of faith. What would it mean to not be on the outside of our faith just looking at the Mezuzah? What would it look like to come on in and explore how our tradition might impact how we go about our day?