In this week's parshah, we read about the most important event in the history of the Jewish people - Mattan Torah. When the Jews reached Mount Sinai, the Torah tells us: "And Israel camped there, opposite the mountain." The Torah uses the word vayichan which means "and he camped." Shouldn't it have said vayachanu, "and they camped," as it says many times when describing the Jewish people's journeys in the desert?

But camping at Mount Sinai was different, because there the Jewish people would receive the Torah. The Torah teaches us how the world was created by the one and only Creator, and that everything in it exists for one purpose: to reveal HaShem's holiness. The Torah shows us how to fulfill this purpose, and when we do so, we bring Achdus, unity, into our world.

Since the Torah brings Achdus in the world, before they could receive the Torah, the Jewish people had to feel Achdus among themselves. This is why the Torah says "vayichan" - "and he camped." Our Sages teach that the entire people camped "as one person, with one heart." Every one of us has a neshamah which is "a part of HaShem," and this makes us one nation. At Mount Sinai, the Jews felt this Achdus more powerfully. When HaShem saw that our people felt this Achdus, He knew the time had come to give the Torah.

But wait; let's take a closer look. The Torah tells us that at Mount Sinai, Moshe climbed high on the mountain, Aharon and his sons were stationed lower, and the zekainim stood further away, while the rest of the people stood even farther off. Is this Achdus?

Yes, it is. Achdus does not mean that we are all the same, but rather that we all feel close and are joining our efforts to do the same thing. We are all part of one united nation with a single purpose: to follow the Torah's guidelines and reveal HaShem's holiness in the world.

We can see how this works in our own bodies. We all have one body, but it is made up of many parts. Each part is different and has a job of its own. But they are all part of one body, and when all these parts work together, our bodies are healthy and strong.

So though there may be different levels, positions and roles among our people, we are each part of one whole. And living according to the Torah will help us realize that the entire world is really one.

(Adapted from Likkutei Sichos, Vol. IV, Parshas Nitzavim;

Vol. XXI, Parshas Yisro)