The real meaning of ‘Naaseh V’Nishma’ after October 7

Every year around Shavuot, people start talking about cheesecake, all-night learning and staying awake until sunrise.

And honestly, I love all of it.

There is something powerful about walking into a synagogue late at night and seeing Jews still learning Torah together. In a world that moves so fast, there is something beautiful about traditions that have lasted thousands of years.

But this year, I keep thinking about a more basic part of Shavuot. I keep thinking about Mount Sinai, not only as the moment when the Torah was given, but as the moment the Jewish people accepted responsibility for one another. That feels very real right now.

Since the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023, I have watched something shift inside the Jewish community, especially among teenagers. For many Jewish students in public schools, the world suddenly feels different.

Students who once wore Stars of David without thinking twice now wonder whether they should tuck them into their shirts before class. Teenagers who never thought deeply about being Jewish are suddenly asking big questions about identity, belonging and what Judaism actually means to them.

At the same time, I have seen something else. I have seen students searching.

Not searching for arguments. Not searching for headlines. Searching for something deeper.

Teenagers often stay after JSU clubs just to ask questions they were nervous to ask before. How do I pray? What does Shabbat actually mean? Why have Jews survived this long? What does Judaism expect from me?

For years, many Jewish teenagers felt Judaism was mostly something inherited: family, holidays, culture and traditions. Many are now starting to realise that Judaism is also something you choose to carry.

That is what I think “Naaseh V’Nishma”, “We will do and we will listen”, really means.

When the Jewish people stood at Sinai, they famously said, “We will do, and we will understand.”

That has always struck me as one of the most countercultural ideas in Judaism. Most people want the opposite. We want every answer before commitment. We want certainty before responsibility.

But Jewish life rarely works that way. Meaning often comes through action. You show up to a Shabbat dinner, you walk into a Jewish space, you learn a little more Torah. You say yes to being part of something bigger than yourself.

And slowly, something begins to feel real. I think that is what many Jews are craving right now.

We live in a culture that tells people to avoid obligation, avoid discomfort and build identity entirely around the self. But eventually, people start to feel how empty that can become.

Judaism offers something different. It says responsibility matters. Community matters. Showing up for other Jews matters.

At Sinai, the Jewish people were not bound only by belief. They were bound by shared purpose. Every generation has to decide whether it will carry that purpose forward. That decision does not belong only to rabbis or educators. It belongs to every Jew.

For some people, reconnecting may mean deeper Torah learning or greater religious observance. For others, it may begin much smaller: walking into a Shavuot program, going to a JSU club, asking questions, or having one honest conversation about Judaism without cynicism or embarrassment. The important thing is that we keep showing up.

The Jewish future will not be built by fear alone. It will be built by Jews who feel connected enough, proud enough and responsible enough to carry Judaism forward to the next generation. To me, that is the real message of Shavuot this year.

Not only that the Torah was given once at Sinai, but that every generation must decide whether it is willing to receive it again.