Are You talking to me?
Are You talking to me?iStock

The first two sedras of the Torah - B'reishit and No'ach...

That's how last week's Lead Tidbit began. Before we get to this week's sedra, let's contrast it with the first two sedras.

The title of this article is based on a very famous line from the movie Taxi Driver (1976) starring Robert DeNiro. He said, You talkin' to me? I added the 'Are' to the beginning because I wanted the word You to be capitalized on it's own - not as the beginning of a sentence.

The idea for this Lead came first; the title came later. Popped into my hear David Walk-style, so I used it. The quote actually made #4 on a list of 100 Top Movie Moments.

When we read / listen to / study the Torah, we should be hearing HaShem talking to us. When we read B'REISHIT BARA ELOKIM, we hear HIM. Who is He talking to? Everyone. Every single Jew and every single human being who ever existed, who exists, or ever will exist. This doesn't mean that everyone hears or listens. But He is speaking to us all.

Throughout B'reishit and No'ach G-d is telling us about His Creation of the wolrd and the two sets of declining generations.

When G-d says ANOCHI HASHEM ELOKECHA at Sinai, we answer the question differently, based on the earlier pasuk of VAYICHAN SHAM YISRAEL. He is speaking to B'nei Yisrael, all of Israel, but specifically as one person with one heart.

Thoughout most of the Torah, HaShem talks to us through Moshe Rabeinu. The 'us', again, is Bnei Yisrael and each of us hears (or not) the words as part of Klal Yisrael.

But something about Lech L'cha is different. True, HaShem is talking to Avraham Avinu. And the Avot have a specioal place in the Jewish Heart. But it's more than that.

G-d is speaking to each Torah person - not only One-to-one, but more. It's as if each of us is the only one He is speaking to.

Avraham was the only one. And so are each of us. After Avraham, we started to be a family. And then a larger family. And before we get into Sh'mot, we are a huge mass of people. So even when the Torah uses the singular form of verbs, each of us is the object of the statement or command. But there are a lot of us.

Lech L'cha is directed at each of us as if we were the only one. So too, HIT-HALEICH L'FANAI... walk before Me and be complete. We each should develop a personal relationship with G-d. His covenant is between Him and me. And my children and grandchildren. When we have a strong relationship with G-d, we can them transmit our Torah way of life further.