Be Proud To Be Jewish

Moshe Rabbeinu’s parting address to the Jewish people, reveals the special role of the Jew in the world. He must never forget this role, and must always be proud of his Jewishness.

Moshe tells the the people that if they live according to the Torah, they will gain great admiration among the nations. When they observe the various practices of Judaism, they will see us as “a wise understanding nation.” Only an intelligent people like Israel, are capable of observing such laws.

We must realize that we gain such admiration of the nations, when we proudly show that we love Hashem and the Torah. History has taught us that we are looked at with disdain, by our non-Jewish neighbors, when we take our Judaism lightly.

We see this phenomenon of genuine admiration for the Jew, among the growing Noachide movement.

They will even speak to Jewish groups, telling them how lucky they are to be born Jewish. They might say, “Our job is to be righteous. Your job is to be holy.”

We have suffered a great deal at the hands of anti-semites over the generations. Those days are over. A new Jew has emerged, who is genuinely proud and willing to fight for his Jewish beliefs.

This feeling must spread to all Jews everywhere. Moshe told them this before his death. And today we must re-state the idea of how fortunate we are to be Jewish. Such pride is essential for our spiritual growth and happiness.