"Bigdei Kahuna" Parsha page by Rabbi Yehuda Katz

HAZINU

"Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; and may the earth hear the words of my mouth." (32:1)

Moses is calling upon the heavens and the earth to bear witness. A question can be asked, why the heavens and earth ? What is it about the heavens and earth that make them ideal witnesses ? I would like to propose , Bezrat Hashem, the following original answer: In Rosh Hashanah 1:8, it states that a dice-player (gambler) is ineligible to bear witness. (Please refer there for further details.) A person that gambles conditions himself to believe in chance and luck relying solely on the outcome of the next role of the dice. Its all about haphazard occurrences, purpose almost becomes nonexistent in the psyche of the gambler. Yet, when one examines the heavens and earth, purpose and meaning become readily apparent. There is an underlying logic to the world and how it functions. Just open a physics book, and logic is readily observed. The heavens and earth are definitely not a function of haphazard chance. They declare to the universe that there is purpose and meaning to our lives. This is ,perhaps, the first step to achieving a higher level of spirituality, realizing that there is purpose and meaning to life. The heavens and earth are ,thereby, worthy witnesses , and definitely not disqualified as" gamblers". Can we discover the meaning and purpose to our existence? Have a good Shabbos