Thu, May 28

Shavuot, which begins the evening of May 28, celebrates the giving of the Torah to Moses and the Israelites at Mt. Sinai. Fifty days after leaving the pain of slavery in Egypt, the Israelites stood shoulder to shoulder as a free people at the foot of the mountain. They witnessed a pivotal, perhaps the most pivotal, event in history, an act of revelation: the giving of the Torah. It shaped us then and forever.

Elie Wiesel once reflected: “When I am in a pessimistic mood, I feel … that those in power have more power than we, that we have no power. But when I am in a good mood, … if I manage to remain true to myself, then somehow it works on others, somehow it reverberates, and somehow other people, whether they want it or not, whether they know it or not, benefit from my loyalty to our common principles.”

The common principles to which Elie Wiesel was loyal are embedded in and born out of the Torah. It is the heartbeat and soul of the Jewish people. It is also a cornerstone of Christianity and Islam.

The festival of Shavuot focuses on the gift of revelation that has been given to us. In the book of Proverbs, it is implied that the Torah is a “tree of life to those who hold fast to it.” Elie Wiesel held fast to it. As do we. In celebrating the Festival of Shavuot, we acknowledge the Torah as the centerpiece of Jewish life.

* * *

The book of Ruth read during the Festival of Shavuot is the story of a courageous and principled Moabite woman who, rather than return to her own people after the death of her husband, chooses to stay with her Israelite mother-in-law, Naomi. Ruth’s commitment to Naomi resounds through history with these words: “Where you go, I will go, wherever you lodge, I will lodge, your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”

Listening to Elie Wiesel speak about the Book of Ruth gives it meaning and purpose.