This week I found myself thinking about the Shema in four completely different settings.
On Sunday, I recorded this week's Connecting Jewish Grandparents podcast, exploring how the Shema is not only the cornerstone of our relationship with the Almighty, but also a blueprint for how grandparents nurture lasting relationships with their grandchildren.
On Monday evening, I attended a brit milah and watched an Israeli grandfather hold his first grandchild, radiant in his new role.
On Tuesday, I attended the funeral of a ninety-nine-year-old French patriarch as children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren lovingly said goodbye.
And on Wednesday and Thursday I join Jews around the world in observing Tisha b'Av, the saddest day on our calendar.
A podcast.
A brit.
A funeral.
Tisha b'Av.
At first, they seemed completely unrelated.
Different places.
Different languages.
Different emotions.
And then I realized they were all connected by the same words:
Shema Yisrael, Adoshem Elokeinu, Adoshem Echad.
Perhaps no words have shaped Jewish life more than these.
They appear in this week's Torah portion, Va'etchanan, where Moshe speaks to the Jewish people as he prepares them for a future he himself will never see. He does not simply command belief. He gives the Jewish people a plan for continuity.
First, know God.
Then love God.
Place these words on your heart.
Teach them to your children.
Speak about them throughout the ordinary moments of life.
Write them on your homes.
Wear them on your bodies.
Generation after generation, these words have become the heartbeat of Jewish life.
We whisper them over newborns.
We teach them to our children.
We recite them every morning and every evening.
We place them inside our mezuzot and tefillin so that our homes and even our bodies remind us of who we are.
And for many Jews, they are the final words spoken before leaving this world.
That is extraordinary.
One paragraph in the Torah has accompanied the Jewish people from birth to death, in times of celebration and in times of heartbreak, in Jerusalem and in exile, in Hebrew, English, French, Ladino, and countless other languages.
This week, as we sit on the floor remembering the destruction of the Temple and so many other tragedies that befell our people, we are reminded that not everything survived our long history.
But the Shema did.
Not because it was written in a book.
Because it was written on hearts.
Because parents taught it to children.
Because grandparents taught it to grandchildren.
Because every generation lovingly carried these words into the next.
As grandparents, perhaps that is our greatest privilege.
Not simply to preserve Judaism.
But to embody it so naturally, so joyfully, and so consistently that our grandchildren will one day carry it forward themselves.
How can I help carry it forward?
Joyful. Recite the Shema with a grandchild this week. Find a way to make it personal and memorable. In the podcast I shared how my grandmother taught me the words in English and how to use Shema as a reflective tool.
Intentional. Think about one Jewish practice or value that has quietly shaped your own life. Share with your grandchild why it has remained meaningful to you.
Connection. Ask your grandchild, "What is one Jewish tradition or family tradition you hope will always stay part of our family?" Listen carefully. Their answer may tell you what they are already beginning to carry forward.
Wishing you a meaningful Tisha b'Av and Shabbat of comfort,
Rabbanit Sharona Hassan
Founder of Grand Plan
Did you listen to the Connecting Jewish Grandparents: The Grand Plan Podcast this week? Please listen, rate, review and share.
You can sponsor a weekly connection email or Connecting Jewish Grandparents podcast episode. Use this learning in honor or memory of someone you love.
A parent. A grandparent. A child.
Whether celebrating a joyous life-cycle event or honoring the memory of those no longer with us, it is a meaningful way to connect the generations and mark a legacy.
