Contact Summer 1999

The Torah is very clear: it is a Jewish mandate to “serve” (la’avod) God. But what exactly does “service” mean? Throughout the centuries, it has meant a wide variety of things, from offering pigeons and goats for sacrifice, to praying alone or with others in community, to building up the land of Israel. With no firm historical consensus as to what the concept of Jewish service actually means, its implementation and practice have changed and evolved with the Jewish people over time.