His Job Is To Shed Light, And Not To Master (Jerry Garcia & Robert Hunter - "Lady With The Fan")

Last Friday night after dinner was finished, the table was cleared and Birkat HaMazon was recited, we adjourned to the family room. A fire that had been lit just prior to Shabbat, burned warmly. My wife lying on one sofa with a magazine and I sat on the other sofa studying. Our kids sat by the fire and took out our son’s Leggo set. This was  not the big Leggos but the small sized Leggo set that comes with an instruction guide for building all types of objects: garages, airplanes, cars, and homes to name a few. I was amazed that all three kids concentrated intently on  working together to build this stuff. At one point our son asked me if I ever used Leggos as a kid. “I was not a Leggo type of kid – I did not have the patience nor did I particularly enjoy building things”. All three children exclaimed that I had no idea what I was missing. I smiled and said “my idea of Leggos would be to pull the Leggos out of the box already built into those amazing designs!”

This week’s Parshah is Terumah. Terumah means “a portion”. In the context of this week’s Parsha, the portion in question is the portion of wealth that B’nai Yisroel would dedicate to the construction of the  Aron, the ark that would hold the Luchot Habrit (the stone tablets upon which the Ten Commandments were written), the lamp, the table, and the material for the Ohel Moed (the tent of the meeting). All of which comprised the Mishkan or the Tabernacle. If you are in construction, interior design, or architecture, the details in Parsha Terumah are fascinating. If you’re not in any of those occupations then all the details might seem, shall we say, a bit dry. Whether a fan or not, whether an architect or not, there are certain objects, the construction of which is nothing less than miraculous and perhaps more allegorical than literal in meaning.

Perhaps the most surreal and “miraculous” sets of instructions concern the Menorah, the Lamp that stood outside the Holy of Holies and next to the Table. For three psukim (Ex. 25:31-34), the Torah tells us the Menorah, the Candlestick, is to be made of pure gold that is a “beaten work”. This means that the candelabrum is made from one huge hunk of gold as oppose to separate parts that become attached or fused together. Emanating from the base is the main shaft with three branches on either side, decorated with cups, knops and flowers. The cups should be in the shape of almond blossoms and almond flowers from an almond tree.  According to commentary, the Menorah would ultimately stand about 18 handbreadths, roughly the same height of a medium sized man. For the first time in the Torah, there is a distinct line of thought that believes that these verses should not be taken literally but rather allegorically. The 15^th century Portuguese commentator Abarvanel explains the table, the Menorah and the altar of incense: Though a man worships God without thought of reward, he will not begrudge him the reward for his actions. There are two types of reward: material –wealth and honor corresponding to the table and showbread and the reward of wisdom and attaining greater spiritual heights.  The Menorah symbolizes this. The lamp of the Lord is the soul of man. The seven branches symbolize the seven degrees of wisdom to be found in the Divine law. All six branches turn inwards toward the middle one, towards the Holy of Holies. This symbolizes that true wisdom must harmonize with the fundamentals of Torah, housed in the ark. The candlestick was made of pure gold implying that wisdom must not be tainted by alien ideas…It was “beaten work” out of one piece, symbolizing that all the various types of sciences have one common source.

Mankind’s intellect is a gift from the “one true source”, God. As such, there are limits to our knowledge. Perhaps in some disciplines we have not yet reached those limits, but ultimately there is a limit whether it is our own mortality, the frailty of the human condition, or the man made threats to human existence including weapons of mass destruction religious fundamentalism, terrorism and dictators. Yet, despite these limitations, Abarvanel reminds us that the text uses terms like HaGeD (tell) or “HoDAh (make known) rather than HaReH “show”. “Telling” and “making known” or informing; the transmission of knowledge is substantially different then showing the next generation how to make the item. Wisdom and knowledge, or the inner meaning of things; is transmitted through teaching and learning. The superficial is transmitted through the instruction manual. Make no  mistake, there is a value in the superficial instruction manual is valuable. It allows my kids to sit quietly and built beautiful Leggo objects. But in a few days they will have no emotional attachment to their Leggo construction. Instead they will pull it apart and build something else. Where our children learn the deeper symbolic meaning of moments, of experiences and objects –they carry that meaning with them all their lives.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

Please Help Them To Learn As Well As To See (John Barlow & Bob Weir- "Black Throated Wind")

As an American living in Toronto, it is not often that I feel like a minority. With the Winter Olympics about to begin and all the Canadian Olympic Team merchandise on sale; I am reminded that I am an American living in Canada. When Rob Ford drinks too much and makes a fool of himself, I am reminded that I didn’t vote for him because I am not a Canadian citizen.  When I turn on the cable sports channels and find curling, hockey and darts and no college basketball games, I am reminded that I am an American living in Toronto.  Recently I had the opportunity to spend some time Indigo bookstore at the Yorkdale mall. I walked around the store and again, I was reminded that I am an American living in Toronto. The American History section was so small. The Politics section had two shelves dedicated to U.S. politics. In the sports section, there were numerous shelves dedicated to hockey and numerous Canadian teams. As an American, I am used to seeing shelves of baseball, and teams such as the New York Yankees, the Green Bay Packers or major college athletics. Despite feeling like left out of Canadian society while at the bookstore; I was reassured that something remain constant both in an American bookstore and a Canadian bookstore. The largest and most frequented section of the store was the self-help section, exactly like in America. Like the bookstores in the States, this particular bookstore had a variety of self-help topics such as: weight/obesity, divorce, parenting, spirituality, dysfunctional families, addiction, and happiness.  Frankly, I found it very re-assuring that at least from a merchandise perspective, Canadians obsess on the same stuff as Americans. I felt right at home.  Yet, I wondered why Self-Help section was this most frequented section of the store? Maybe it is because we are concerned and even obsessed about relationships. Self-help books are all about relationships: relationships with ourselves, our families of origin, our children, our mates, our bosses, and even God. All these books essentially deal with the same two issues: solving problems in relationships or adding meaning to one’s life and one’s relationships.

             Parshah Mishpatim is all about relationships, solving relationship problems, and adding meaning to one’s life and to those relationships. Following last week’s revelation, and receiving the Aseret Dibrot (Ten Commandments), Moshe and B’nai Israel receive the original self-help manual. It includes how to behave towards slaves, how to behave towards parents, fellow community members and newcomers, how to resolve conflicts, how to make legal decisions, how to take care of the land, and how to thank God for the harvest of the land. Upon hearing all this self-help advice, Bnai Yisroel responds in unison: Na’Aseh V’Nishmah - we will do and we will obey (Ex. 24:7). This is the perfect response for former slaves. Slaves were trained to obey. Free people however, were not trained to obey. Free people need to think and understand. Perhaps, B’nai Yisroel should have responded differently precisely because they were free. As a free people, perhaps B’nai Yisroel should have answered, “We’ll raise our consciousness about it, and then attempt to integrate it into our lives.”

            We can understand B’nai Yisroel’s response in another manner. The issue is the meaning of the word V’Nishmah-(and we will obey). V’Nishmah also means we will listen or we will learn.  We will do and we will listen, or we will do and we will learn is not the typical response for recently released slaves. This is a response of free people seeking self-help. To listen or to learn assumes a greater emphasis on the “self” rather than the help. “To obey” assumes greater emphasis upon the “help” rather than the “self”. To obey is an action that slaves or a king’s subjects engage in. Free people listen and free people learn. If we understand Nishmah as “listen” or “learn”, then B’nai Yisroel seems to have accepted God’s laws on their own accord. As a result, B’nai Yisroel accepts its responsibility as “a kingdom of Priests and a holy nation (Ex. 19:6).  As a designated nation of priests, as a designated holy nation, B’nai Yisroel would lead by example. B’nai Yisroel would integrate behavior into their daily life. Then they could learn it and teach it. After we begin the action, then we can delve into the deeper philosophical meaning of the action. B’nai Yisroel effectively serves as a living example of self-help.

            Parsha Mishpatim’s self help section,  reminds us that “self help” is not only about big ideas and platitudes. The real self help material and information is required for the nitty gritty and details of life. That holds true in our relationships with our husbands and wives, our children and even God. Self help is not confined to the “once in a while” or “the three times a year”. Rather it requires us to work at it every day. So it is no wonder that  Parshah Mishpatim concentrates on the mundane everyday aspects of human relationships. Unlike the numerous self help manuals that encourage us to buy the next installment of the manual or the next book in the series.  Bnai Yisroel’s response in Parsha Mishpatim reminds us that at some point one needs to stop talking and actually do the work, engage in the activity, or refrain from the activity as the case may be. Not until we Na’Aseh, until we “Do”, will the “self-help” ever really help us.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

I Swear To It On My Very Soul: If I Lie May I Fall Down Cold (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Reuben and Cerise")

           For the past few weeks, our son, who is big New York Yankee fan and an even bigger Derek Jeter fan (much like his father), has been asking me about A-Rod’s 211 game suspension from baseball. Both of us have been waiting to see if an arbitrator would uphold Major League Baseball’s punishment. The other evening, the arbitrator lowered the suspension to 162 games plus the post season, effectively keeping A-Rod out of baseball for an entire year. When I told our son about it, his response was simple but thoughtful. “Good. I hope he doesn’t play baseball again. I hope the Yankees get rid of him.” Then the questions began. “Why did he feel the need to cheat? Derek Jeter doesn’t cheat and Derek Jeter could never have hit the number of home runs that A-Rod could hit if A-Rod didn’t cheat. There must be something wrong with A-Rod that he felt he needed to cheat.” Wow, I was stunned. I agreed with him. Indeed there must be something wrong with him. I asked my son what he felt was wrong with A-Rod that he felt the need to cheat and Derek Jeter didn’t. Again, he amazed me with his simple but incisive answer. “I don’t know what is wrong with him and why he cheated but it probably because there is something wrong with him inside and not his body, like with his soul.”

This week's Parsha is Yitro, named after Moshe’s father in-law and Midianite priest. The Parsha begins with Moshe leading B'nai Yisroel toward the wilderness of Midian where he meets up with his father in-law, his wife and his two sons. Yitro suggests that Moshe should create a bureaucracy whereby others administer the small everyday rulings required of a judge. Difficult legal issues would be administered by Moshe. Moshe is then commanded by God to bring B'nai Yisroel to Har Sinai. For three days they will purify themselves, clean their clothes, not have marital relations, and purify their souls for a revelation. There with the mountain smoking and thunder billowing from the heavens, God begins to speak. B'nai Yisroel is absolutely petrified and fearing death, they beg Moshe to go up the mountain as their Shaliach (appointed messenger). Moshe ascends the mountain and receives the Aseret HaDibrot (the Ten Commandments), then descends. Upon his descent he tells B'nai Yisroel the Aseret HaDibrot. The Parsha concludes with B'nai Yisroel readily accepting the Ten Commandments, Moshe re-assures the people not to fear the thunder and the flames, God attests to the fact that B'nai Yisroel has accepted these commandments and then commands Moshe to build and altar of earth.

            The Ten Commandments are bound by several themes. The first five commandments are God oriented. The second five commandments are people oriented. Violation of The Aseret HaDibrot is punishable by death. Because of our modern perspective, we may not agree with the punishment for violating the Aseret Dibrot. However we can understand the concept of capital punishment in terms of murder, testifying falsely, (in which false testimony leads to death), or even kidnapping.  How do we explain capital punishment as a punishment for not honoring your parents, keeping the Shabbat or committing Avodah Zarah (Idolatry)? Certainly violating Shabbat or violating the first five commandments that are all God oriented does not necessarily hurt someone else. Even not honoring ones parents might not warrant capital punishment in today's day and age. So how do we understand that each commandment is punishable by death?

            We know that if we do not take care of our bodies, there is a chance our bodies will be hurt. If we don't eat right, get enough sleep, and exercise then our resistance is low and there is a chance we will get sick. If we don't fasten our seat belts then there is a chance that we won't be able to walk away from an accident. If we drink too much and too often or if we smoke, we know that we are doing damage to our body. As human beings, we also have a soul. Just like we know to do things that help our physical existence, there are things that we do to help our spiritual existence. Failure to take care of our souls is also detrimental to our existence. Failure to take care of our souls leads to emptiness, purposelessness and a misguided existence. The first five commandments are about the welfare of our souls.  The first five commandments give us a sense of purpose for own existence. The first five commandments fill our lives with meaning even when overwhelmed with the onslaught of the humdrum of everyday life. The first five commandments give us a sense of where we fit in the universe. The first five commandments are for each individual's soul and the soul's relationship to God.

            In a sense, our own ignorance, our own anxieties, our own insecurities, our lack of purpose, our incompleteness, and our inability to respect boundaries imprison us. The Aseret HaDibrot offers us a means to transcend that which imprisons us. We are provided a blueprint to live a life that is part of a community (the second five commandments) and accounts for our own sense of self worth and purpose (the first five commandments). The Aseret HaDibrot teaches us, and commands to transcend time and space by adding meaning and holiness to our lives. The Aseret HaDibrot teaches us that our spiritual well being is just as important as our physical well being. When our soul is complete, filled with a sense of purpose, filled with love, and filled with the acknowledgment that there is God, we are able to transcend the physical.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

Current Fashions Set The Pace; Lose Your Step, Fall Out Of Grace (John Barlow & Bob Weir - "Throwing Stones")

There was a recent criminal case in the state of Texas during the month of December. A 16 year old boy from an extremely well to do Dallas family got behind the wheel of his pickup truck with three times the legal limit of alcohol in his bloodstream. He proceeded to get in a car accident killing four pedestrians and paralyzing one of the passengers in his pickup truck. The 16 year olds family lawyer claimed that the boy suffered from “affluenza” – a psychological condition that affects children of affluent parents who are not raised with any sense of accountability and responsibility. Incredible as it sounds, one can now legally justify being a “spoiled brat” by blaming one’s parents never take responsibility. Interestingly enough, the Talmudic sages have a unique way of dealing with Affluenza. Rabbi Levi, in the Midrash Tanchuma discusses the spoiled brat: “A child is riding on his father’s shoulders. When the child sees something he wants, he asks for it. His father gets it for him. This happens again and again. They encounter a person approaching from the opposite direction, and the child asks the stranger, ‘Have you seen my father?’ The father responds incredulously, “You ride on my shoulders and everything you want I get you, yet you ask, ‘Have you seen my father?’ The father then takes the child down from his shoulders and a dog comes and bites the child.”

This week’s Parshah, Beshallach, is also known as Shabbat Shira (Shabbat of Song). B’nai Yisroel sings throughout this Parshah. Upon successfully completing their crossing of the Yam Suf, the headline song begins (Ex. 15:1): Oz Yashir Moshe u’Vnai Yisroel et Ha Shira Ha’zot L’Adonai va’Yomru Leimor (Then Moses and the Children of Israel chose to sing this song to God and they said the following). In this song, B’nai Yisroel praises God as protector of his people. After the song, Miriam, Moshe’s sister, tells the women “Shiru L’Adonai Ki Ga’oh Ga’Ah Sus v’Rochvo Ramah Va’Yam (Sing to God for he is exalted above the arrogant, having hurled horse with its rider into the sea.Ex.15:21) When tradition referred to this Shabbat as Shabbat Shirah, clearly this is what was meant. However immediately following these songs of praise, B’nai Yisroel begins another kind of singing. Instead of songs of joy and praise, known as singing, there are songs of complaint, known as whining. No sooner does B’nai Yisroel cross the Yam Suf and sing Oz Yashir Moshe, then they complain about the lack of good water. Moshe puts a tree into the water and it becomes sweet (15:25-26). They whine about the lack of food. God provides the manna from Heaven (16:6-8,16-36). They complain about the lack of meat. God provided them with quail (16:13). They complained about the lack of water upon their arrival in Rephidim. Moshe strikes a rock as God instructs, and provides water for the people. They wanted it now. God gave it “now”.

B’nai Yisroel lacks faith. They are still slaves. They live passively. They ceased struggling for freedom They performed their tasks and returned to their slaves’ quarters and ate their slave food that the master provided. There is no sense of responsibility for the future. There is no sense that improvement is possible. They slave looked to the master to take care of everything. Upon leaving Egypt and crossing the Yam Suf, B’nai Yisroel looks to God to take care of everything. They have no sense of taking take care of themselves. So they sang or whined, “But Daddy we want the water and meat and we want it now!” God gave them another miracle. Like the impudent boy who asked the stranger if he had seen his father, while all the while sitting upon his father’s shoulders; B’nai Yisroel demonstrates the same impudence. Hayeish Adonai B’kirbeinu Im Ayin? “Is God among us or not?” The father put the boy upon the ground. God put B’nai Yisroel upon the ground. Just like the dog bit the boy, Amalek attacks B’nai Yisroel.  B’nai Yisroel stopped whining. They finally do for themselves.  “Moshe said to Joshua, ‘Choose people for us and go do battle with Amalek; tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand’. Joshua did as Moshe said to him, to do battle with Amalek” (Ex.17:9-10). B’nai Yisroel fought, God gave them strength. This is the first time in the Parsha where we read that B’nai Yisroel acted first. God helped them when they helped themselves.

Affluenza is a spiritual disease so it requires a spiritual solution. B’nai Yisroel’s behavior at the beginning of the Parshah is very different from their behavior at the Parsha’s conclusion. Faith in God is a function of taking responsibility for ones’ own actions and the faith that the results of those actions will be all right. Before we seek God’s help, or before we blame others; we must help ourselves. The spoiled brat is the child who won’t do for his/herself. The spoiled brat expects others to do for him. Instead of trusting in and doing for itself first, B’nai Yisroel relied upon God to do for them. Thank God, we are no longer slaves in Egypt.  Yet the condition of Affluenza suggests that  spiritual slavery still exists, as affluent young people are enslaved to consumerism, and keeping up with the Joneses. The first step in freedom is teaching our children responsibility and accountability. It might just save their lives.

Peace,

Rav Yitz