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We talk about them all the time, but what is a Mitzvah? Mitzvah (pronounced MITZ-vah) is a Hebrew word which means “commandment” and “connection.” A Mitzvah is a commandment. If I command you to serve me lunch, that’s a Mitzvah from me to you. The Mitzvahs are G‑d’s commandments to the Jewish people in the Torah. There are two types of Mitzvahs mentioned in the Torah: Positive Mitzvahs and Negative Mitzvahs. Positive Mitzvahs tell you, “Do this!”: give charity, eat Matzah, return a lost object. Negative Mitzvahs tell you, “Don’t do this!”: don’t kill, don’t steal, don’t eat on Yom Kippur. There are 248 Positive Mitzvahs and 365 Negative Mitzvahs, for a total of 613. Mitzvahs also divvy up in Ethical and Ritual categories: Ethical Mitzvahs lay down how to interact with fellow humans, such as not taking revenge or hurting orphans, and Ritual Mitzvahs lay down how to interact with G‑d, such as keeping Shabbat or building a Sukkah. In addition, The Sages added seven Mitzvahs, bringing the total to 620. A Mitzvah is the ultimate expression of how Judaism views religion. It’s not a specific time, place, or with a specific thing, when or where or with which one has a relationship with G‑d. Judaism says you can, you should, have a relationship with G‑d over the morning coffee—by drinking Kosher—as much as you do over the awe-inspiring day of Yom Kippur. There’s no set place and time that’s just for G‑d, to the exclusion of all other places and times—every place and time can shout out “G‑d!” And that’s just the idea of the Mitzvah. For “Mitzvah” doesn’t just mean “commandment”: it means “connection” too. You are connected to G‑d. When you do a Mitzvah, you’re expressing that connection. Whatever, whenever, you’re always connected to G‑d, and you can express that connection by doing a Mitzvah. |