And now, O Israel what does God ask of you? Only this: to have awe for God, to walk in all of God's ways, to love God, and to serve God with all your heart and soul, keeping God's mitzvot and laws. All the heavens and earth belong to God... Yet it was to your ancestors that God was drawn in love for them, so that God chose you, their descendants. -- Deuteronomy 10:12-15
This statement comes towards the beginning of a 37-day pep talk and recap of the Torah that Moses delivers to the Israelites, before his death at the end of the 40th year of their desert wanderings. This concise passage is a kind of mission statement for the Jewish people; I've always loved it because it says, plain and simple, "This is what I want you to do."
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