{"id":66407,"date":"2019-12-01T18:00:58","date_gmt":"2019-12-01T16:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=66407"},"modified":"2023-06-26T16:53:25","modified_gmt":"2023-06-26T13:53:25","slug":"introducing-intentionality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/introducing-intentionality\/","title":{"rendered":"Introducing Intentionality"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[652,447,677],"acf":{"old_id":"66407","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":42746,"related_cahpter":"363","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"Don\u2019t just do it - do it, and feel it, body and soul","content":"

While there are many verses in the Book of Isaiah that are between challenging and impossible to comprehend, some have been incorporated into the Modern Hebrew language, by religious and secular people alike.<\/span><\/p>\n

The term <\/span>mitzvat anashim melumadah<\/span><\/em> \u2013 A people\u2019s commandment, learned by rote \u2013 in this chapter (vs. 13) is one of them. I remember our teachers using it with passion, warning us not to do things thoughtlessly. I must admit that we didn\u2019t, and I don\u2019t know if even they knew where this idiom is from. How good was it to discover it in Isaiah\u2019s words!<\/span><\/p>\n

In this chapter, we find the prophet reproving the People of Israel, that because of\u00a0 \u201cthis\u201d, wisdom and understanding will be taken away from them (13-14): <\/span><\/p>\n

My Lord said: Because that people has approached [Me] with its mouth, and honored Me with its lips, but has kept its heart far from Me, and its worship of Me has been A commandment of men, learned by rote. Truly, I shall further baffle that people\u2026 so the wisdom of its wise shall fail, and the insight of its insightful shall vanish.<\/span><\/p>\n

To do things by rote refers to acts done through habit, without thought or intent. The term \u201clearned\u201d repeats the words of the prophet in chapter 10:11. There, Malbim explains: <\/span><\/p>\n

…some do the commandments only because that\u2019s what they have done through routine from a young age, without any thought and mindfulness, though knowing these are God\u2019s commandments, but not because God commanded them at all, only because this is what their parents and forefathers told them to do, and without rhyme or reason\u2026 this might lead them to deny that God gives human-beings any laws and commandments, and that it\u2019s possible to learn what their meaning and rightful essence might be\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

How do we know that mitzvot need intention? After all, my intention when fulfilling most other laws is almost irrelevant: it doesn\u2019t matter what my \u201cintention\u201d is when I\u2019m driving or paying taxes or responding to an army order; it only matters that I do it. But the Torah introduces something new.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the Book of Deuteronomy we find: \u201c\u2026 observe [these laws and rules] faithfully with all your heart and soul\u201d (26:16). Midrash Tanchuma says that the text emphasizes \u201cwith all your heart\u201d implying not to be of \u201ctwo hearts\u201d, or what we would call today, \u201ctwo-faced.\u201d And Abarbanel uses exactly our verse from Isaiah to explain: do not act in the way of \u201ca commandment of men, learned by rote\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Often, one can disconnect their actions from their intentions, i.e. \u201cbody\u201d from \u201cheart\u201d and soul. But the Torah doesn\u2019t want us to \u201cjust do it\u201d or \u201cjust feel\u201d. It wants both. This is a unique and forever challenging idea: we\u2019re made of both body and soul. How will those two interact? There is no quick recipe, but for starters, Isaiah reminds us not to give up on either one.<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":66408,"id":66408,"title":"is29-sbird","filename":"is29-sbird.png","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird.png","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/introducing-intentionality\/is29-sbird\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"is29-sbird","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":66407,"date":"2019-12-01 16:00:36","modified":"2022-06-08 19:19:41","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":960,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird-300x150.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":150,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird-768x384.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":384,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird-1024x512.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":512,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":768,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird.png","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":960,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird-1200x600.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":600,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is29-sbird-840x420.png","home_baner-width":840,"home_baner-height":420}},"embedded_video":"","video_duration":"","show_fb_comments":true,"credit_media":""},"tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"Introducing Intentionality","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"Don\u2019t just do it - 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