G-d's Love

Question: It is that time of year again. We will be beginning the Book of Numbers, and during this week’s Torah reading in the synagogue we will hear verse after verse of numbers: 46,500 for the tribe of Reuben, 59,300 for the tribe of Simeon, and so on. ...

In the eyes of G-d, counting Jews is far more than keeping score; it is, rather, His way of telling each and every one of His children: “You matter to Me. You’re not just a number. You’re on My speed-dial.”

Why did G-d instruct Moshe to take a census of the Jewish people?

To us on earth, looking with the unaided eye and perhaps not thinking too much about the matter, the stars seem tiny and insignificant. Yet each is a powerful and unique force.

A census achieves two contrary aims. By focusing on the total sum, it asks the individual to suspend his individuality; at the same time, it compels him to ask himself if he is worthy of contributing to the total...

Our Sidra opens with G‑d’s command that a census be taken of the Israelites. In fact, there were three such counts taken in the first thirteen months following the exodus from Egypt. What is the spiritual significance of the counting ordained by G‑d? Why ...