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Numbers 28:2-3
The people of Israel provide nourishment
for their Father in Heaven
Zohar, part III, 26b
The Talmud points to the relationship between the soul and
the body as a model for the nature of G-d's relationship with
the world. The soul cannot be perceived by the senses, yet
its presence and effect is keenly felt in every part of the
body; so too, G-d, though He transcends our reality and is
utterly beyond its perception, vitalizes the entirety of creation
and is fully present in its every nook and cranny.
Chassidic teaching employs this analogy to explain the amazing
statement by our sages that "The people of Israel provide
nourishment for their Father in Heaven."[1] Food is the glue that keeps soul
and body together, sustaining the embodiment of the spirit
within its material shell. By the same token, our service
of G-d is what sustains G-d's involvement with His creation,
feeding His desire to continue to infuse it with existence
and life.
Thus G-d refers to the korbanot - the animal and meal
offerings brought in the Holy Temple - as "My bread."
The korbanot (and their present-day substitute, prayer)
are the highest expression of our striving to serve G-d and
come close to Him; as such, they are the "food"
which sustains the life of the universe, the fuel that keeps
the divine soul alight within the body of creation.[2]
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[1] Zohar, part III, 26b; Midrash Rabbah, Shir HaShirim
1:9.
[2] Based on Likkutei Sichot, vol. XII, p. 18; ibid.,
vol. VII, p. 137, note 16.
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