“Choices To Make,” Rabbi Elaine Zecher’s Shabbat Awakenings
August 21, 2026 | 8 Elul 5786
Welcome to Shabbat Awakenings, a weekly reflection as we make our way toward Shabbat. You can also listen to it as a podcast.
Which way do we go? What way should we choose?
In Genesis (4:7), God admonished Cain regarding his brother:
Surely, if you do right,
There is uplift.
But if you do not do right
Sin couches at the door;
Its urge is toward you,
Yet you can be its master.
This week’s portion, Ki Teitzei, provides the most ways to conduct our lives. According to Maimonides, it has more mitzvot, more sacred obligations, than any other section. It isn’t meant to overwhelm us or set us up to fail. To the contrary, our study of Torah allows us to dig deeper concerning our behavior regarding ourselves, our families, neighbors and everyone else.
This is the exact time of the year when we consider our way in the world. Jewish tradition recognizes that to be human is not only to have a good inclination but also a bad one, too. Which urge will we master? Our texts teach us that although both are part of our existence, we are not passive to the choices we have. Instead of doing the wrong thing, in this week’s portion, the Torah describes how to do the right thing.
Here’s an example from our Torah portion. Deuteronomy 22:1-3
If you see your neighbor’s ox or sheep gone astray, do not ignore it; you must take it back to your peer.
If your neighbor does not live near you or you do not know who [the owner] is, you shall bring it home and it shall remain with you until your peer claims it; then you shall give it back.
You shall do the same with that person’s ass; you shall do the same with that person’s garment; and so too shall you do with anything that your neighbor loses, and you find: you must not remain indifferent. Lo tuchal lehitaleim לֹ֥א תוּכַ֖ל לְהִתְעַלֵּֽם
It is the clear directive in the third verse, “do not remain indifferent,” that summarizes the whole Torah, maybe even more than “love your neighbor as yourself.” It speaks of a proactive attitude that demands intentional attention and therefore action. As Elie Weisel emphasized, “the opposite of love is indifference.” Indifference leads to silence and inaction.
In contrast, we enter the High Holy Days and hear the powerful words from Deuteronomy 30:19 which commands us to choose our good inclination:
“I have put before you life and death, blessing and curse; choose life – so that you and your offspring will live”
This is the way. Let’s start practicing right now.
Shabbat Shalom! שבת שלום
Let me know what you think. Connect with me here.
Rabbi Elaine Zecher