Like the other parshiot in the Book of Deuteronomy, the parshah of Eikev consists entirely of Moses' final address to the people of Israel, which started on the 1st of Shevat 2488 (1273 BCE), and concluded 37 days later on the 7th of Adar, the day of Moses' passing.

In this week’s parshah Moses reminded the Jewish people how G-d cared for them during their journey through the desert providing both mannah from heaven and water from a supernatural well. ‘Who led you through that great and terrible desert... [a place of] thirst where there is no water.’

G-d refers to the desert as a place of ‘thirst where is no water.’ G-d chose Mount Sinai, in the middle of this inhospitable place to give the Jewish people the Torah. The Torah is called the ‘Torat Chaim’ - a living Torah – as it imbues those who learn it and keep its’ commandments with life. A desolate desert can become a flourishing oasis through adherence to the Torah.

The "Holy Ari" (Kabbalist Rabbi Isaac Luria, 1534-1572) writes that the last generation of the galut (exile) is the reincarnation of Moses' generation - the ‘generation of the desert’ that he took out of Egypt but did not cross into the Promised Land. It is our responsibility to finish the task that they never managed to complete and bring the Moshiach, the final redemption.

Our generation is a generation of ‘thirst without water.’ It is a generation that thirsts for the truth, thirsts for meaning and purpose in life. But the water to quench this thirst, the knowledge to address the why and how of existence, is elusive, sealed behind barriers of ignorance and alienation.

It is common theme for me, but the Torah-true Jewish education of our youth is key to addressing this thirst and ensuring, from a young age, that our children’s thirst is directed in the right way.

As I’ve written before, during the year children are educated in a variety of ways, concentrating mainly on their secular studies, often in a non-Jewish environment. The summer holidays are a chance to spend time in educating our children in Jewish values. Camp Gan Israel Leeds provides an opportunity for children to enjoy a variety of leisure activities while immersed in a Jewish atmosphere.

Rabbi Sholom Dovber of Lubavitch once said: "Just as it is incumbent on every Jew to put on tefillin every day, so too it is an unequivocal duty on every individual, from the greatest scholar to the simplest of folk, to set aside a half-hour each day in which to think about the education of their children."

The thirst is there, awaiting satisfaction. Ours is a generation prepared to drink, if only they would be provided with the water they know not where to seek. It is our responsibility to make sure that we provide them with plentiful opportunities to quench their thirst.