The Torah is the holiest object that exists in our world, infusing our world with hope, promise, morality, and goodness. Most of all, it infuses the world with spiritual light and G-dliness.

The Torah is the holiest object that exists in our world, infusing our world with hope, promise, morality, and goodness. Most of all, it infuses the world with spiritual light and G-dliness.
The theme of the Torah and all it represents is on my mind these days, since Chabad Naples is inaugurating the writing of a new, very special Unity Torah aimed to uplift and inspire on Sunday afternoon, February 4, 2018, from 1-3 pm at the Chabad of Naples Jewish Community Center.
We eagerly look forward to welcoming you to this very special event.
The joy of the Torah as a guide book for every generation is renewed each time a new scroll is written. Every scroll is composed of 304,805 Hebrew letters and each letter in the scroll must stand on its own, unbroken. If it does not, the scroll is not fit to be read publicly until it is corrected. This fact symbolizes the preciousness of each individual in our midst and the unique power and importance of unity within the entire community.
As a matter of fact, at its very inception, the Torah begins with the word Breishit which starts with the letter Bet, the second letter in the Hebrew Alphabet.
Why not start with an Alef, letter number one? Even the Ten Commandments begin with the word Anochi, and the letter Alef?
This is to highlight this message to us, that as we embrace the Torah, before we begin to learn its words and be inspired by its timeless message, we must realize that we are incomplete on our own, we are the second to our fellow.
This concept of the value of each individual is inspiring, but sometimes feels unrealistic. In the vast world around us, with millions coming and going at their own pace, does my little contribution really make a difference, can I really be a part of this global Torah?
The answer is yes. The smallest person and smallest deed can make a difference. The Torah teaches that each of us was created as an entirely unique being, with our own personality, abilities, talents, and resources, and given an important, profound purpose to accomplish in this life.
An elderly man was walking on the beach when he noticed a young boy picking up starfish stranded by the retreating tide, and throwing them back into the sea one by one. He approached him and questioned his actions. The young man replied that the starfish would die if left exposed to the morning sun.
“But the beach goes on for miles,” said the older man, “and there are thousands of starfish. You will not be able to save them all. How can your effort make a difference?”
The young man looked at the starfish in his hand and then threw it to safety in the waves.
“To this one,” he said, “it makes a world of a difference.”
We cannot let the size of the endeavor or the extent of the effort overwhelm us into inactivity. As soon as we recognize the value of our input, we can take our baby steps towards the fulfillment of the Jewish dream of making the world a better place, a happier and more peaceful place, a more G-dly place.
Like this favorite story I like to tell of my mentor, the Rebbe of righteous memory. The Rebbe once presented a sheaf of papers to one of his secretaries, each page covered with copious corrections. The secretary was disheartened by the prospect of completing so much complex work. Seeing the man’s reaction, the Rebbe responded with a message which the secretary posted on his wall and shows to visitors to this day:
Letter by letter,
Word by word,
Line by line,
It’ll work out fine.
I wish you every blessing for accomplishing your own personal acts of goodness and kindness – step by step and mitzvah by mitzvah, a little at a time.
Wishing you a beautiful Shabbat!
Rabbi Fishel & Ettie Zaklos