“I’m a Jew and I’m proud and I’ll sing it out loud ‘cuz forever that’s what I’ll be” goes the song taught and sung at many a Chabad Hebrew School
As adults as well we are asked to be a proud Jew. Even the Nazerite, an individual who chooses to dedicate himself to G-d, by vowing to abstain (usually for a limited period of time) from wine or any grape products, from cutting his hair, and from defiling himself with the ritual impurity.
This separation is more than abstinence it’s a pledge of holiness. It’s a pledge of I am Holy, therefore I will act in a more refined manner.
In general, the Torah demands that we conduct ourselves in a manner that far exceeds society’s ethical and moral standards. Additionally, we are encouraged to distance ourselves from even a faint brush with the Torah’s prohibitions. The ideal approach, is to approach these mitzvot not as a precaution because of human weakness but as one of pride.
Like the nazir who is “holy, therefore abstains,” a Jew’s approach to the Torah’s high standards and expectations is one of “I have been set apart by G-d to be distinguished and sanctified; would it be fitting me to behave otherwise? Considering my illustrious lineage—I am descendant of Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, Sarah, Rivkah, Rochel and Leah—how can I act like the rest of society? G-d selected me to receive the Torah. It therefore behooves me to be different, and take the high road in all areas of sanctity and morality.”
Have a good Shabbos,
Rabbi Kushi Schusterman