Tefillin: Our Roles As Teachers
In honor of the Yahrtzeit (18th of Cheshvan) of Rav Raphael Baruch Toledano of Morocco, author of Sephardic Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (1970)
Generations of people fell into the trap of idol worship, until Abraham came and taught the world about God, One, Unified and All-Powerful. God wanted Abraham to know that his teachings, which fixed the world, empowered his descendants to do the same: To teach the world about God and His Power.
This was the essence of the Brit Bein Habitarim – The Covenant Between The Pieces – when Abraham learned that no matter where his children would be, and no matter under what circumstances, they will succeed at teaching as Abraham taught.
This is also the message of Tefillin, which speak of the Exodus and its miracles, and Israel’s eternal commitment to teach the world about God.
This is the awareness we must have when wearing our Tefillin: We are accepting the responsibility to act as teachers and inspirers. We must constantly live with that awareness of our responsibility to teach and inspire. (Introduction to Toledano Kitzur Shulchan Aruch)