From Heaven to Earth

By Hazzan Jenna Greenberg.

A couple of years ago, a colleague saw a beautiful Torah cover with Hebrew text with which she was unfamiliar. Upon asking me, I knew exactly where it came from, as I sang this verse years ago in a beautiful choral piece with the Zamir Chorale back in New York. The verse comes from our weekly parasha, Ki Tavo, Deuteronomy 26:15, “Look down from Your holy abode, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the soil You have given us, a land flowing with milk and honey, as You swore to our fathers.”

When I think of this verse in the Hebrew, I cannot help but be reminded of the choral setting of this text, which, musically speaking, spanned a wide range of notes, from low to high, from high to low. This is a musical example of word painting, a graphic and vivid description, either in music or writing, that creates a strong image or feeling for its audience. This verse from Ki Tavo spans the spaces from heaven, where God dwells, to earth, the land from which our milk and honey flows. Music aside, the poetic word painting within this verse is quite powerful on its own.

This text reminds us of many things, in particular, the location of the Divine in our lives. God surrounds us, Bashamayim, in heaven. God also dwells among us, in all of our holy places and life experiences. And God dwells within us, as we are all created B’tzelem Elohim, in God’s image.

On this 24th anniversary of 9/11/01, I can’t help but count my blessings. God’s presence in my life on that otherwise sunny Tuesday morning while studying at JTS in New York, was one that brought me great support in a very scary and challenging time. The power of the Divine in our lives can be very palpable, especially at the most difficult of life’s moments. 

Let us all remember the lives tragically lost on that fateful Tuesday morning. May we not forget the blessings in our lives 24 years later. I wish for all of us that the evil of this world will be erased by the good, and that we can continue to find meaningful relationships with God beyond us, around us, and within ourselves.

Shabbat Shalom.