Question
Why do we eat pomegranates on Rosh Hashanah? I've seen it explained that "we should be full of mitzvos and good deeds like the pomegranate is full of seeds." But there are other fruits that are full of seeds. Couldn't we eat something a little tastier than a pomegranate?

Answer
Many people tell me that they are not involved with Judaism because they don't want to be a hypocrite. Why go to shul for Rosh Hashanah if I don't go the rest of the year? How can I fast on Yom Kippur if I don't keep Shabbos?
Why go to shul for Rosh Hashanah if I don't go the rest of the year?
What's the point of putting on Tefillin in the morning if I then eat a non-kosher breakfast? You can't pick and choose, they say.

This is wrong. While it is true that we can't pick and choose, nevertheless the non-observance of one mitzvah does not cancel the observance of another. Because mitzvos are like the seeds of a pomegranate.

Most fruits have a little cluster of seeds somewhere in their centre. But the pomegranate is full of seeds and every one of those seeds is self-contained. Each seed is encrusted in its own little bulb of fruit. It has its own distinct place, separate from all the other seeds.

A mitzvah is the same. Every mitzvah is a universe unto itself, with its own spiritual power and its own unique blessing that it brings. Just because you don't keep some mitzvos does not mean you shouldn't keep others. Each mitzvah you do plugs you in to eternity, connects you with the Divine, and takes you higher. Every mitzvah is a unique opportunity for your soul to touch Heaven. The mitzvos that you don't do shouldn't allow you to miss this opportunity.

This is why the Talmud says, "Even the most disconnected soul is full of mitzvos like a pomegranate." A good deed has eternal worth, no matter who does it. So if you find yourself doing one mitzvah when you still don't do others, you are not a hypocrite. You are a holy pomegranate.