One of the resource books used by Bible students is a Concordance. It lists every word found in the Bible, in every form it occurs and tells you where it can be found. Naturally there are some words that occur very few times, some even but one time and there are words that occur over and over.

The word from which mitzvah derives is one of those recurring words. In its various forms it occurs hundreds of times, which reveals how important the concept is.

That is the spirit in which Congregation Emanu El undertakes Mitzvah Day every year: it is an important concept that we derive directly from the Bible. The word tells us that God has expectations of us. Doing mitzvot is our way of meeting the expectations God has of us.

While it is true for us individually, it is also true for us as a community. Our gathering on Mitzvah Day is our opportunity as a congregation to multiply geometrically the good each of us is capable of achieving alone.

In addition it makes an important statement to the City of Houston about who we are and what our values are. The name Emanu El means something special in the city and Mitzvah Day is one of those reasons.

There are actually two mitzvot you need to do:

First, of course, is the mitzvah of volunteering to participate in any one of the many opportunities the Mitzvah Day Project Committee has offered us. We have scores of them, and every mitzvah counts. Every mitzvah is needed. No matter how small a task you are able to take on, our cumulative efforts are also the task. So please, fill out your form and send it in. If you don't have one, call the Temple and we'll get one to you.

Second, is the mitzvah of helping support the cost of Mitzvah Day. Buying the supplies that feed people and repair homes and pay for buses for field trips is quite significant. And the costs go up each year. So please, fill out your form and send it in or register on the website: www.mitzvahday.org.