A short Meditation on Shema
Shema is more than just a declaration of faith. It is a meditative tutorial in connecting to the Oneness of Hashem.
Shema means to actively listen. But the root also means to gather as in “And Saul gathered the people” וַיְשַׁמַּ֤ע שָׁאוּל֙ אֶת־הָעָ֔ם (I Samuel 15:4)
When we recite the Shema we are supposed to gather together every aspect of our selves and personalities before God to try and reveal the underlying oneness.
Judaism does not believe in amputating aspects of ourselves.
Our job is to take the negative and sublimate it to God, transforming it into the service of Hashem.
For example a person has a desire for something forbidden, this is just a distortion of what the soul truly wants which is a relationship with Hashem.
When we truly face ourselves with sincerity and come humbly before Hashem in all our vulnerability then we are able to lift up every part of ourselves and reconnect it back to Hashem.
If Hashem is One then we are part of that Oneness which means if we search hard enough we can move past a life that is fragmented and compartmentalised to one that is wholesome and harmonised.
This is essence of Judaism and the purpose of creation.
Shabbat Shalom