Hear Israel

The Lord is our God

The Lord is one

And you shall love the Lord your God

With all your heart       

With all your soul

And with all your strength

 

Recently I made a sunrise climb up the cliffs of Mt Arbel on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.  From the top of Arbel, one has a magnificent view of the lake and of the villages where Jesus lived and taught.  It is not hard to imagine Jesus and his disciples proclaiming the Kingdom of God along the shore below.  This particular morning I was met at the top by a group of Orthodox Jews praying the morning service as the sun came over the hills of the Golan.  The ancient words of the Shema were being sung with devotion and heart as they had been in the Galilee for centuries.

 

Sometime after the Israelites returned from captivity, the Shema became a central part of daily Jewish life.  During the second temple period, these verses were recited every morning and evening fulfilling the words, ?and you shall talk about them when you lie down and when you get up.? (Deut. 6:7)  

 

In the Mishnah, the oral teachings of the sages, the rabbi?s referred to the recitation of the Shema as ?receiving the Kingdom of heaven.?  The Shema was a daily way of acknowledging God?s personal rule in your life, a way of making a personal reconfirmation of the covenant with God¹.

 

In addition to rabbinic opinion, the Qumran community on the shores of the Dead Sea probably said the Shema as part of their daily commitment to God.  The Manual of Discipline reads; ?with the coming of the day and the night I would enter in the covenant of God.? (The Rule of the Community 10.10)

 

The rabbis made it clear that one could not carry out the teachings of God as an obedient follower without first accepting that God?s Kingdom was above all others.  Recitation of the Shema brought the Kingdom of God to earth.  The ancient sages, including Jesus himself, agreed that turning one?s heart to God everyday was a prerequisite for obedience.

 

During Jesus? day, it seems that the observant Jewish community spoke the ancient words of the Shema with passion and devotion.  It is in this context, that Jesus responds to the question of what is the greatest commandment with these words from Deuteronomy. 

 

?Of all the commandments, which is the most important??  ?The most important one,? answered Jesus, ?is this: ?Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.? 

 

Jesus speaks about obedience to God as first an issue personal devotion of the heart and soul to God.  As followers of Jesus, it is important that our hearts are in tune with the Shema.  To memorize the Shema, to have these words upon our hearts, is to be a part of an ancient tradition of placing God?s Kingdom first every day.  The Shema helps to orient our being to God?s rule; our thoughts, our will and our actions.    

 

Jesus, the disciples, the apostle Paul, and likely most of the early church all spoke these words every morning and evening².  By God?s design, his sacred text lives upon the lips of His people.  The text becomes a living text.  Memorizing the Shema and beginning your day with these ancient words is to be a part of a long history of daily devotion.  The Shema reminds us of whose Kingdom we are really in and opens the door to fulfilling what Jesus calls the ?greatest commandment.?