אֵ֣ת כָּל־הַדָּבָ֗ר אֲשֶׁ֤ר אָנֹכִי֙ מְצַוֶּ֣ה אֶתְכֶ֔ם אֹת֥וֹ תִשְׁמְר֖וּ לַעֲשׂ֑וֹת לֹא־תֹסֵ֣ף עָלָ֔יו וְלֹ֥א תִגְרַ֖ע מִמֶּֽנּוּ׃ (פ)
Guardareis toda palavra que eu vos ordeno, para a cumprirdes; não acrescentareis sobre ela, nem diminuireis dela. {פ}
Kuntres Mattan Torah
The definition of the commandment to love one another
3. Before we plunge into the depth of the subject, we need to examine this commandment by itself. We were commanded to “love your neighbor as yourself.” The phrase “as yourself” tells us that you should love your neighbor to the same degree that you love yourself, not less on any account. This means that I am beholden to always be vigilant and fulfill the needs of each and every person in the entire Jewish people, not less than I am always vigilant to fulfill my own needs. This is utterly impossible since only a few could, throughout their workday, fulfill even their own needs. How can you task someone with working and fulfilling the wishes of an entire nation? Yet it is impossible to think that the Torah speaks in hyperboles, for the Torah warns us “You shall not add thereto, nor diminish from it” (Deuteronomy 13:1), to show you that words and laws were spoken with the utmost precision.
3. Before we plunge into the depth of the subject, we need to examine this commandment by itself. We were commanded to “love your neighbor as yourself.” The phrase “as yourself” tells us that you should love your neighbor to the same degree that you love yourself, not less on any account. This means that I am beholden to always be vigilant and fulfill the needs of each and every person in the entire Jewish people, not less than I am always vigilant to fulfill my own needs. This is utterly impossible since only a few could, throughout their workday, fulfill even their own needs. How can you task someone with working and fulfilling the wishes of an entire nation? Yet it is impossible to think that the Torah speaks in hyperboles, for the Torah warns us “You shall not add thereto, nor diminish from it” (Deuteronomy 13:1), to show you that words and laws were spoken with the utmost precision.