My Favorite Verses

There is nothing more precious to me than Torah, as life-giving as water and air, and without it a day is still a holy gift but still perhaps an unfulfilled day. So while I totally agree with the Rambam's assertion that the lineage of the Edomite kings should be as mystical to us as the Shema, I do still think it's okay to have favorites. Imagine my delight, therefore, when, after a long day of travel and having only my two-year old's tablet available, I opened up the Torah to find that today's parasha is indeed my favorite in all of Torah (from Devarim chapter 30): 11For this commandment which I command you this day, is not concealed from you, nor is it far away. 12It is not in heaven, that you should say, "Who will go up to heaven for us and fetch it for us, to tell [it] to us, so that we can fulfill it?" 13Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, "Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us and fetch it for us, to tell [it] to us, so that we can fulfill it?" 14Rather, [this] thing is very close to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can fulfill it.

How awesome are these verses.  I've privately expressed my frustrations with rabbinic Judaism to my closest spiritual allies, in that while the Sages were undoubtedly holy and mystical and wise and extremely close to H', their decision to codify practice under a semi-authoritarian guise - well, it added a layer of authority to what seemed to once be a much freer practice. (To be clear, the laws of Torah are immutable and perfect - my issue is with the perceived disconnect between the holy law and the practical application.) And I fully understand that they did so in a successful effort to save Jewish practice in the face of an impending diaspora - but, still. The magic has been taken away and placed in the hands of the rabbis.  But here we are reading the exact opposite: it's not somewhere else - it's in my heart and my mouth. Not over there, in his and hers, but in mine. And that if I - building on the lesson from yesterday - return to the place, hear the Voice of H', and act on that - well, then I'm all set and living lockstep with the Holy Presence of H'.  Let me study and gain the wisdom of all those before me but yet always know that the answer is always - as, in fact, commanded by Holy Torah - always and ever-present within me as well.