The Binding Contract You Never Signed Can a contract you never signed be binding? On the last day of his life, Moses talks to the Jewish people and introduces the covenant with G-d. Thinking of the future, Moses says that the covenant the Jewish people would accept that day would be binding not only upon them, but also upon the future, still unborn, generations: But not only with you am I making this covenant and this oath, but with those standing here with us today before the Lord, our God, and [also] with those who are not here with us, this day. (Deuteronomy 29:13-14) Rashi explains that the words “those who are not here with us this day”, refer to ”also with future generations”. The idea that future generations would be bound by a covenant they did not accept seems perplexing. How can future generations of Jews be obligated by an agreement they did not sign? One way of explaining the binding obligation is to think of the covenant as an inheritance of an estate with what is legally referred to as a “condition subsequent”, a 'keep-this-rule' clause that binds future generations. Ownership passes down, but every successive heir must continue fulfilling this requirement to hold onto the property. The same is true for the covenant that Moses put forth as the Jewish people were about to enter the Land of Israel as a condition of receiving the land from G-d. Since the subsequent generations would benefit from the “estate”, the Land of Israel, they would be bound by the terms of the covenant. Rabbi Yitzchok Arama, the great 15th-century commentator and philosopher, offers a deeper interpretation. The covenant is not an agreement that can be upheld or broken. The covenant expresses the nature of the Jewish people. Moses tells the Jewish people that the connection to G-d is their inherent nature. The natural state of the Jew is to affirm his inborn, natural, essential connection to G-d. Yes, an individual can choose to act in a way that diverges from his inner core. Ultimately, however, the covenant between G-d and the Jewish people will endure because it is not a contractual obligation. A contract binds a person because he agreed to it. A covenant binds the Jew because it expresses who he is. These words of Moses are read every year on the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah. The Jewish New Year is a time for introspection and resolution. Yet the true service of Rosh Hashanah is to reconnect to our inner core. To return to our essence, which is naturally and eternally connected to G-d.
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