Holiness is the ability to be involved yet remain aloof
“Atah Kadosh,” the final bircas shevach of the Shemoneh Esreh, presents a distinct challenge to kavanah. Praising Hashem for His eternal giving and goodness, for extending the privileges due the Avos to our generation, or for His promise to revive the dead, feels relevant and relatable. But Hashem’s kedushah is elusive and difficult to define, which makes kavanah in this brachah challenging.
How do we understand Hashem’s kedushah? Is there an equivalent paradigm for kedushah in humans?
We find a prototype for the word kadosh in Sefer Vayikra (19:2): “Kedoshim tiheyu ki kadosh ani Hashem Elokeichem.” Here, Hashem exhorts us to be kadosh because He Himself is kadosh. The Ramban (ibid), drawing from the Toras Kohanim, offers a classic explanation for kedushah: “Perushim tiheyu — be separate.” He continues, “Just as I am kadosh, so too shall you be kadosh, just as I am parush, so too shall you be parush (ibid).”
Hashem exists in a realm entirely inaccessible to humans. It follows that His attribute of kedushah is equally remote. How does His kedushah obligate me, a mere mortal?
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