Our parsha, Ki Tavo, begins, “And it shall be, when you come
into the land which Adonai your God gives you for an inheritance, and possess
it, and live in it; That you shall take of the first of all the fruit of the
earth, which you shall bring of your land that Adonai your God gives you, and
shall put it in a basket, and go to the place which Adonai your God shall
choose to place his name there.”
This is describing what is known as Bikkurim, Firstfruits.
It is the commandment for Israel to offer up the first fruits of their produce
when they enter the land. There was a debate amongst our sages about when these
offerings needed to be made, however. Sifre Devarim, a collection of halachic
midrashim (legal rulings) from Talmudic times, says that they were to offer
them immediately upon entering the Land. In the Talmud itself, however, the
Sages ruled that it was not required until the Land was fully conquered and
settled, some years later. This is possibly based on the fact that the text
says “…and possess it and live in it…”
Aside from this halachic discussion, though, our Sages agree
that this commandment speaks to a spiritual reality. Bikkurim teaches us about
gratitude. This command is tied to Exodus. If you read later on, the person
making the offering is say “My ancestor was a wandering Aramean…” Sound
familiar? These words are in our Passover Haggadah. We are to be thankful for
redemption and for being brought to a land flowing with milk and honey.
Our Sages have tied this to two places in our siddur
(prayerbook) which speaks to two different kinds of gratitude. One can argue
that our siddur is a primer on gratitude. Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote, “The
truth of being human is gratitude, the secret of existence is appreciation.”
The siddur breaks down the ego and reorients us to what is important. Rabbi
Samuel Raphael Hirsch wrote in his commentary on the siddur that we should
thank God for the very fact that He makes of aware of gratitude.
The first place that it is tied to is the prayer Modeh Ani
which is recited first thing in the morning before we even get out of bed. This
is like the Sifre’s opinion; it is something that we do immediately. It is an
instinctual response to the awareness that we have awoken alive to a new day
and we are thankful. It is not based on long thorough study or steeping
ourselves in prayer. We awake and thank Hashem.
The second place that it is tied to is the 6th
blessing of the Shabbat Amidah, called Hoda’ah. It starts out “Modim Anachnu
lach”, We thank(or acknowledge) You. This is a different type of gratitude. It
is based on steeping ourselves in prayer, reflection, and paying attention to
Hashem. It comes only much later in the prayer service after we have settled in
and are more focused. This is like the Talmud’s opinion of giving thanks only
after conquering and settling in the Land. It’s like them only making the
offering of firstfruits after they have had time to see that the Land really is
flowing with milk and honey and know that God is worthy of thanks.
I would take this a step further. There is a third
expression of gratitude that reflects yet a different kind of thankfulness. It
is in the Aleinu, recited at the end of the service. We say “We acknowledge (modim)
and bow before the Supreme King, the King of Kings, the Holy One, Blessed be
He.” We express our gratitude to God that He is our Creator and King, but then
the prayer moves on to pray that “all human beings will call upon Your Name,
and all the wicked will be turned to You…” This is eschatological thanksgiving!
We are expressing our gratitude to Hashem ahead of time for the wonders that He
will do in the future!
All three of these prayers use the term Modeh/Modim which
comes from the root word “yada”. It means to give thanks, acknowledge, praise, or
surrender to. As Jews one of our primary vocations is to give praise and thanks
to God. We are the ones to acknowledge, praise, and thank Him for his greatness
and love. It is our role as priests to do so and to lead others to the same.
And the Church joins us in this as they are grafted into Israel and joined to
this priestly vocation.
There is a great focus on Teshuvah, repentance, during the
High Holidays. As we enter these days, let us not also forget gratitude. We are
to be grateful that we have a God that wants us to repent; grateful that He is
eager to forgive; so eager that He sent His Son to die for us. Let us also keep
in mind that these days of awe are meant to be a foretaste of the End of Days.
When Messiah will return with a Great Trump, sit in judgment on the whole world
and the world will be ultimately redeemed and restored. During these days let
us thank Hashem in advance for bringing this to pass. May we fulfill our
mission as Jews and constantly live in an awareness of gratitude, and lead
others to do the same.
Shabbat Shalom.
