Torah Study
The Torah is God’s instruction or teaching to mankind. It means that unlike other sciences or intellectual systems that can remain separate from performance, Torah knowledge must be translated into action.
An ignorant person cannot be pious. In order to keep the commandments by any definition, one must first learn the principles. In fact, it is incumbent upon every believer to learn about the commandments (Old Testament and New Testament) and their practical applications.
The Torah is our instruction manual for how to lead an ethical and moral life on Earth. It is not a manual filled with abstract information written by human beings, but rather is a gift from God that allows us to lead meaningful and holy lives. Since the Torah emanates from the Eternal Being, it contains eternal truths.
Torah may be defined as God’s Wisdom. Just as God existed before the world was created, so, too, did His Wisdom. In fact, Kabbalistically speaking, “when man studies the Torah, he maintains the world.” This means that Torah is the blueprint for creation – the architect’s plans. God looked into His Wisdom and created the world.
It is stated in the Zohar. “Torah and the Holy One, blessed be He, are truly One.” Because Torah is the wisdom and will of God, it is one with His glory and essence. Just as God is unfathomable, so is His wisdom. Yet God compressed and lowered His wisdom, and clothing it in commandments pertaining to this physical and material world (as John refers to the incarnate word becoming flesh in Jesus), so that it might be accessible to human intelligence, enabling mankind to connect with their Creator. Torah descended through ‘worlds’ to get to this level of existence and represents a supernal knowledge contained with the Old and New Testaments.
From this perspective, Torah study takes on a totally different and fresh meaning. When we study the scriptures, exerting mental and spiritual energies to understand it, we become totally united with it, which is the will and wisdom of God, although in concealed form. Despite being vastly disproportionate, the human intellect and God’s intellect actually merge at these moments.
Let’s now go to the passage in the New Testament that refers to The Church as the body of Christ. God, Torah, and the Body of Christ are One. When Christians study the Torah, their minds grasp the subject and become one with it. This is why Torah learning and learning in general must have a predominate and pre-eminent place in Black Southern Christianity.
Every Christian is a part of the Body of Christ, and part of the divine spark of God. That essential love therefore transcends religious observance and even extends to those who are distant from the faith and Torah. We can apply this idea to the command to love one’s fellow Christian, whereupon the essence of that love is directed to the soul as it stands in its original state, united with all other souls, in the divine spark. When one studies Torah at this level, it is for no other motive than that of being bound to God and his people the Body of Christ.
In summary, The Old and New Testament’s are Divine wisdom, and a Christian can connect with God on the most profound level through Torah study. We should strive to fill our minds and thoughts with Torah so that we are united with the Divine at all times. In Deuteronomy 6:7 it states that “One should speak world of Torah when sitting at home, on a journey, when one lies down, and upon awakening”. Each of us is mandated to set aside time for Torah study, and there is a punishment prescribed for those who wantonly waste precious study time.
We may now understand why the words “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and might” are immediately followed by the command to study Torah. If we wish to quench our spiritual thirst by reaching out to God, the key is to immerse ourselves in Torah study, for Torah and God are One. In the words of the prophet Isaiah 55:11. “Let the thirsty one go to water” – spiritually thirst quenching and life-supporting, and indeed this is why Jesus told the woman at the well he had that ‘living water’ for which she’d never thirst again.
We should not study Torah as a means to broaden our intellect, nor should we pore over its pages in the hope that we will be honored and admired as a result. Rather, Torah must be studied with immense selflessness and a humble awareness that we are studying God’s Torah and wisdom. It is for this reason that we recite a blessing before study in which we thank God for choosing us out of all the nations and giving us His Torah. The Jewish Sages state that when we say words of Torah, the Almighty repeats the words after us. One should imagine that the Torah is given anew every day as a gift from God.
The Torah was given in its entirety to Moses at Sinai. However, at different stages in history, different levels of interpretation were revealed by different historical people’s and personalities. This may be compared to a principle and its details. The principles were revealed at Sinai, and the details were revealed at different stages later by great scholars and individuals who received ongoing revelation through the Holy Spirit. This evolutionary process is evident in the historical development of the Abrahamic Bible based religions.
When studying Torah today, one must taste from the Tree of Life, in order to illuminate all other aspects of Torah study and to fill the mind with the knowledge of God. In order to have a healthy body and soul, it is necessary today to study Torah.
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