[Avodah] Love your God in such a way that you cause others to love the Name of God

[Prof. Levine]

The following is from Chochmo U"Mussar by Rabbi Dr. Salomon Breuer, 
who succeeded his father-in-law, RSRH, as rov of Frankfurt.  It is 
from his commentary on Parshas Naso.

In the word beha'alosicha  the Sages find an additional 
challenge:  In front of the Menorah was an elevation consisting of 
three steps which the priest had to climb when he turned to the task 
of caring for the Menorah. This seems to signify the following 
thought: if the priest wishes the wick to receive its light from the 
Menorah-flame and then to burn on by itself - i.e. if he desires his 
Torah to inspire the hearts and minds of his people and to help it 
attain the strength which will protect it from sin and weakness - he 
must succeed in climbing with his flame "an elevation of three steps!"

V'ahavta eis HaShem  Elokecha, B'chol l'vav'cha, uv'chawl nafsh'cha, 
u-v'chol m'odecha. Love your God; "love Him in such a way (Yoma 86) 
that you cause others to love the Name of God". When is this the 
case?  He who has studied, absorbed God's teaching from the mouths of 
the Sages, talks pleasantly with his fellow-man, proves honest and 
straight in his business dealings and social relationships, of him it 
will be said: hail to him who has studied the Torah, hail to his 
father, his teacher, who has taught him the Torah; look at him who 
has studied the Torah, how fine are his manners, how good are his 
deeds! - But he who has sat at the feet of the Sages and studied the 
Torah, but proves unreliable and irresponsible in word and deed, in 
business and social dealings - what is then the judgment of his 
fellow-men? Woe to him who has studied the Torah, woe to his father, 
his teacher, who has taught him the Torah! Fortunate are those who 
have not studied the Torah  - just look at this Torah-scholar, how 
ugly are his manners, how perverted his deeds!

It is not his mere scholarship which enables the teacher to win over 
the hearts of his disciples for God's Torah. The secret of his 
success lies in his character qualities, in his mode of living: 
V'ahavta eis HaShem ..., love your God in such a way that you cause 
others to love the Name of God. If your own learning has not 
motivated you sufficiently to love God, how should others learn it 
from you. He whose Torah knowledge fails to inspire him towards 
wholehearted devotion to the Will of God "with all his heart, all his 
soul and all his resources"; he who fails to demonstrate in his own 
life that the Divine Will rules and hallows every beat of his heart, 
every breath of his life, every particle of his possessions; he whose 
life is a denial of the Torah precepts which he praises with his lips 
- he will never be able to inspire others to draw their light from 
his Torah-flame which leaves his own life in wretched darkness .
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