You've All Been Asleep, You Would Not Believe Me (John Barlow & Bob Weir- "Estimated Prophet")

           Perhaps it’s nature or maybe it is nurture, but I grew up with an incredibly low threshold for listening to people whine. I recall as a boy hearing my younger sister whine, it drove me crazy. My wife knows I have a low threshold for listening to and tolerating whining. My children always understood that whining about or for something was never a good strategy to illicit my empathy and understanding. As I have grown older, I have very little patience for adults who whine. Rabbi Levi, in the Midrash Tanchuma also talks about a 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, Beshalach, is also known as Shabbat Shira (Shabbat of Song). Bnai Yisroel leaves Egypt. Pharaoh, realizing what he has done, gives chase with the Egyptian army in hot pursuit. Trapped by the Sea, Bnai Yisroel looks to Moshe for an answer. Moshe prays and God tells Moshe to take Israel and start walking through the Yam Suf.  So as they begin walking into the Yam Suf; it splits and Bnai Yisroel arrives safely on the other side. Meanwhile, the Egyptian army is trapped in the water as the sea closes upon them.  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 discontent and complaint, which always sounded to me 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 provides 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. So God gave it “now”. The complaining and the lack of patience seem to indicate B’nai Yisroel’s lack of patience. Although liberated from slavery, B’nai Yisroel still has the mentality of slaves. After generations of slavery, B’nai Yisroel has grown used to living passively. As slaves, 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. The 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 on 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 Parshah where we read that B’nai Yisroel acted first. God helped them when they helped themselves.

         Emunah (Faith) in God depends upon faith in ourselves. Before we seek God’s help, 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 we remain slaves. We are enslaved by our fears, enslaved by our anxieties, and enslaved by our own passivity. At first, it may always seem easier to be passive, do nothing, be uninvolved, and not improve the world around us. The first step in freedom is conquering our own passivity, and doing for ourselves. Only when we take that first step will we feel the support and strength that God offers us. Then we can conquer Amalek. Then we conquer our own fears. Then improvement is possible for both the individual and the community.  Most importantly, we eventually stop whining.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

Close The Gap Of The Dark Years In Between (John Barlow & Bob Weir - "Cassidy")

     One of my lasting childhood memories recurs every four years. I remember watching Presidential Inaugurations with my parents. The experience was an all-day civics lesson with my father reminding me of the miracle that we witness with the peaceful transfer of power. He and my mother would remind me and my sister that history has consistently demonstrated the extremely rare and miraculous nature of the peaceful transfer of power.  They explained this miracle as simultaneously "fragile" and "powerful", like a flame being passed from candle to candle bringing light to the darkness.  

    This week's Parsha is Bo.  The ten plagues culminate with locusts, darkness, and finally the killing of the firstborn. On the night of the last plague, God instructs Moshe to tell B'nai Yisroel to slaughter a lamb for each family. The blood should be painted onto the doorpost. The sacrificed lamb must be completely eaten that night with no leftovers.  The command continues with God instructing Moshe to reiterate this story to the children of each family. The Parsha concludes with the command to sanctify the firstborn, remember this night, remember what God did for B'nai Yisroel, and how B'nai Yisroel eventually returned to the land. 

Parts of the Parsha are read on Pesach. Those parts dealing with the Paschal sacrifice, as well as the Mitzvah of "Telling" the child about the impending redemption, are read. However, there is one phrase that is particularly interesting and revealing. The second to last plague is Choshech, darkness. Vayomer Adonai el Moshe  N'Teih Yadchah al Hashamayim - And God said to Moshe "Stretch forth your hand toward the heavens,  Va'Yehi Choshech al Eretz Mitzrayim- "And there will be darkness upon the land of Egypt, Vayameish Choshech - and the darkness will depart. (Ex. 10:21). What does it mean that the darkness will depart? If darkness departs doesn’t that mean light arrives? Typical darkness is merely the absence of light. According to Sforno, the great Italian Rennaissance commentator, typical darkness is an atmosphere prepared to receive light. After all, the moon reflects light into the night, and the stars shine a light as well. Sforno explains that the word VaYameish comes from the three-letter root Mem Vav Shin - to feel or touch. The plague of darkness conjures up the image of a person trying to feel their way in the darkness, lost and unable to see immediately in front as if they have their hands outstretched and feeling their way around.  This plague is perhaps the most perfectly designed plague, and, ironically, it can only affect the Egyptians precisely because they were free. This type of darkness could not affect the Hebrew slaves. Prior to the darkness, the free Egyptians could come and go as they pleased, they were not confined.  They had freedom of movement. Obviously, slaves do not enjoy the freedom of movement. Like prisoners, slaves are captive and bound by very physical limits. The slave lives in darkness and has learned how to “see” within the darkness, not so the master who is unconstrained by physical limits.  As a result of being unable to “see” in this type of darkness, the “master” cannot move for fear that the next step will constitute a “last step”, into an abyss. In a sense, the free person has become paralyzed.  

    The plague of darkness didn’t spread to the homes of the Hebrew slaves, darkness was confined to Egypt and to the Egyptians. B’nai Yisroel had light, they had a covenant with God. Moshe would remind them of that covenant and remind them to teach their children of that covenant and engage in rituals to remind them of and continue to participate in that covenant. Yes, I have grown older, our family gathers together every four years and watches the same miracle that I watched with my parents, and our children receive the same civics lesson that I received. I realized that the lessons we learn as children and transmit to our children, the rituals that we engage in as children, and the same rituals we teach to and do with our children bring light to a darkened world. If those values are integrated and deeply internalized, that light still combats darkness. 

Things Went Down That We Don't Understand, But I Think In Time We Will (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "New Speedway Boogie")

           As we receive more information about the terrorist attack in Washington D.C, the more troubling and disturbing the information becomes.  Besides seeing swastikas, Nazi paraphernalia, and white supremacist symbols, one of the more disturbing bits of information was the identity of a 34-year-old Jewish man from Brooklyn, NY. His father is a judge and former president of a Brooklyn Shul.  When my children saw the story about this particular individual and his recent arrest, they were troubled.  How does a  Brooklyn Jew whose father is a judge, align himself with anti-Semites, White supremacists, and their Nazi symbols my children wondered? He clearly had become radicalized by swimming in a parallel universe, a universe built upon propaganda and dystopian lies, or otherwise known as “alternative facts”.  This young man’s participation in the attack upon the Capitol served as a powerful example of what can happen when a person begins to sink into the quagmire of all those conspiracy theories and dystopian white supremacist alternative realities.  Alternative facts justify chaos.  Alternative facts, conspiracies, and ignorance replace science, empirical evidence, and thought. Alternative facts and conspiracies lead to a cult of personality.

          This week we read from Parsha Va’Eira. In this Parshah, God reassures Moshe after Pharaoh mocked and dismissed both he and Aharon. God explains that he will cause Pharaoh’s heart to harden after each plague, but eventually, Pharaoh will capitulate and free the Hebrew slaves. God explains the various stages of redemption to Moshe. The plagues begin. We are supposed to understand that each of these first seven plagues is more severe than the previous plague: Blood, Frogs, Lice, Wild Beasts, Animal plague, Boils, Hail. Moshe requests that Pharaoh permit B’nai Yisroel to worship God for three days. At times, Pharaoh acquiesces and there are moments he changes his mind. Sometimes he asks Moshe to pray on his behalf and sometimes he doesn’t. One thing is clear,  whenever Pharaoh gets his way with the cessation of a plague, ordinarily an indicator of God’s presence and power, Pharaoh behaves like a petulant child. He returns to his arrogant self-centered nature. It seems that Pharaoh is operating under an alternative set of facts regarding Hashem’s authority and power. By the Parsha’s conclusion, the plague of Hail has devastated the land and killed anything that was outside, Pharaoh expresses the evolution of his belief system based upon facts, not alternative facts nor upon an incorrect interpretation of facts.

          Two men, Moshe and Pharaoh, two groups, Hebrew slaves and Egyptian task masters, experience a type of revelation. Moshe is told by God, Ani Adoshem VaEira el Avraham El Yitzchak v’ El Yaakov B’Eil Shaddai U’Shmi Adoshem Lo Nodati LaHem – I am Hashem, I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as El Shaddai, but with My Name Hashem, I did not make Myself known to them (Ex. 6:2) With Signs and Wonders, God wanted Moshe and B’nai Yisroel to know exactly who God is.  V’Yadu Mitzrayim Ki Ani Adoshem, BinToti et Yadi Al Mitzrayim V’Hotzeiti et Bnai Yisroel MiTocham – And Egypt Shall know that I am Hashem when I stretch out My hand over Egypt; and I shall take the Children of Israel out from among them (Ex. 7:5). With each ensuing plague, God wanted Pharaoh and Egypt to know and accept God’s existence and God’s authority as a fact.  What is being transmitted? Ani Adoshem – I am Hashem, the fact that Hashem exists and has a covenantal relationship with his people.  How is this fact transmitted? Va’Eira – I appeared through signs and wonders or as a harbinger of plagues. It depends on who is experiencing the appearance and how that experience is perceived. For the Egyptians, God displays God’s presence through plagues. For Bnai Yisroel, God displays God’s presence through signs and wonders. That is to say, each interprets God’s presence according to their values, their perceptions, their world view, and their place within the world. However, there is one fact, one truth, one God, everything else, is perception and interpretation. This is the lesson that Moshe and B’nai Yisroel will be reminded of and this is the lesson that Pharaoh, a man who thought himself to be God, will eventually learn and accept.

We have seen that alternative facts can be very dangerous and even deadly.  Alternative facts are the tools of dictators and kings. When society accepts alternative facts, it ultimately accepts moral relativism and becomes corrupt.  There are plenty of historical reminders of the dangers of “alternative facts” with the rise and fall of dictatorships and totalitarian regimes. As the participants in this recent terrorist attack are arrested, placed on “no-fly” lists, and treated as threats to the welfare and safety of democratic institutions,  maybe they will begin to understand the dangers of listening to those who espouse conspiracy theories and alternative facts for their own self-aggrandizement.

Peace,
Rav Yitz

Peace,

Rav Yitz 

You, Who Choose To Lead, Must Follow (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Ripple")

           Sixty-five years ago, a book was co-authored by a young U.S. Senator and an attorney who would later become a Presidential advisor. The book’s title soon became part of the canon for any academic course "Leadership". The book, written in 1956 by then-Senator John F. Kennedy and Ted Sorenson is entitled Profiles in Courage. I first read the book while I was attending business school in Toronto. I read the book again while in Rabbinical School. I’ll never forget what my Rebbe, my spiritual mentor to whom I went with questions about observance or existential angst, said about leadership. He explained that sometimes leadership requires the courage and integrity to make difficult unpopular decisions even if it comes at the expense of losing one’s job. However, underlying courage is empathy, and the ability to express empathy allows that leader to face his/her congregants with a pure heart.

          In this week’s Parshah, Shmot, we encounter a man who is born a Jew, but he grows up in the Pharaoh’s Palace. He is a totally assimilated Jew. Pharoah’s daughter gives him an Egyptian name, “Moshe” (Ex 2:10). After fleeing Egypt, this well-bred, noble Egyptian, is befriended by a non-Jewish (Midian) priest and marries his non-Jewish daughter (Ex 2:21). While shepherding his father-in-law’s flocks (Ex. 3:1), he experiences a revelation. Through a burning thorn bush, he sees an angel and then God (Ex.3:1-3). God tells Moshe of the ancestral covenant and chooses Moshe to lead B’nai Yisroel out of Egypt. Moshe humbly explains that he is the wrong person for the job. “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh…” (Ex.3:11). He doesn’t believe he has enough credibility to lead. “They will not believe me and they will not heed my voice…” (Ex 4:1). He doesn’t speak well. “I am not a man of words…heavy of mouth and heavy of speech” (Ex. 4:10). Several times he explains that he doesn’t feel worthy to lead  B’nai Yisroel out of Egypt. Finally, Moshe returns to Egypt and now he begins to challenge Pharoah’s authority which will culminate in the tenth plague and the exodus.

          So, what qualities did Moshe possess that warranted his becoming the leader of B'nai Yisroel and the prototypical leader in the TaNaCh? Moshe grew up in the halls of power, he understood power, he knew how to use power, and he was raised to use it judiciously. Moshe learned and understood the balance between leadership and authoritarianism. Unlike his Egyptian family, however, Moshe also embodied one other vital quality. Moshe possessed the ability to empathize. “Moshe grew up and went out to his brethren and observed their burdens…” (Ex.2:11). Regarding this verse, Rashi comments Natan Einav V’Libo LiHeyot Matzar Aleihem- He focused his eyes and heart to be distressed over them. He looked closely at their burdens. He saw individual suffering and understood individual pain suffering to the point where he could personalize and identify with it. He could just as easily have stayed in the palace or not concerned himself with the plight of the “underclass”. Moshe chose to get involved, he chose to make a difference, and he chose to make an improvement. All that was left for God to do was convince, and then command Moshe to lead.

          The Torah’s version of Profiles in Courage is just a little older than the 1956 John F. Kennedy/ Ted Sorenson edition. In a sense, the Torah offers the prototype for Profile in Courage and it is Moshe. From the second chapter in Shmot until the end of the Torah, Moshe provides the first and foremost profile in courageous leadership and it is displayed in Parsha Shmot. First, we learn that a profile in courageous leadership is grounded in empathy for the less fortunate, the alienated, those that are enslaved. Second, we learn that a profile in courageous leadership means dealing with problems and issues, and not ignoring a problem or hope that it will magically disappear. Third, a profile in courageous leadership means willing to risk a job or social standing for the benefit of those less fortunate. Fourth, a profile in courageous leadership is never based upon a cynical assessment of a situation, or self-aggrandizement but rather a desire to make a difference in the lives of those who need help. Fifth, a profile in courageous leadership requires speaking “truth to power”. Finally, a profile in courageous leadership begins with the acknowledgment that no person is above God.

Peace,
Rav Yitz

Promises Made In The Dark Dissolve By Light Of Day (Robert Hunter & Bob Weir - "Easy Answers")

           Well, we are in the final days of 2020 and the first days of 2021. I have never heard so many people express joy for a year to conclude. Personally, I wish 2020  happy good riddance. Likewise, I have never seen more people express the hope that a new year will be better, not even necessarily “happy”, “good” or as Jews say at Rosh HaShanah, “sweet”. We would just settle for “better” or “improved”.  At this time of year, the biggest resolutions are to eat healthily, lose weight, and exercise.  There are numerous commercials for exercise equipment, weight loss programs, and pre-measured meals that only require cooking at-home preparation.  Psychologists generally agree that the number one cause for people’s failure to fulfill their resolution is that the resolution itself was unrealistic and too big. Instead of setting a goal of losing 60 pounds over the course of a year, maybe a more realistic goal would be 25-30 pounds.  Instead of setting a goal of running a marathon by the end of January, perhaps start with a kilometer or two and gradually and safely build up stamina. Or, instead of looking at the resolution and becoming daunted by its enormity; break down that resolution into manageable parts. Losing 5 pounds each month (60/12) is much more manageable than focusing upon 60 pounds. While trying to fulfill my resolution of more exercise, I worked out on our elliptical machine and I  thought about the value and importance of making Resolutions.  Resolutions seem to be directed inward, towards one’s self, as opposed to a promise or a vow which tends to be directed outwards towards someone else. Also, there seems to be a difference between breaking a resolution and breaking a vow. Breaking a resolution disappoints and affects one’s self, breaking a vow or a promise disappoints and affects the other person. 

This Shabbat, we read from Parsha Vayechi. This is the final Parshah in the book of Breishit. The Parsha begins with Yaakov calling Yosef and making him swear an oath that he will not be buried in Egypt. He also blesses his grandsons Ephraim and Menashe. He gathers his sons together and offers each son a blessing or a prophecy. Yaakov dies and his sons take him out of Egypt and fulfill their vow. They bury their father in Hebron alongside Avraham and Yitzchak and Sarah Rebecca and Leah. Afterward, the brothers fear that Yosef will finally take vengeance for their mistreatment of him. Yosef doesn’t, and the brothers and their families continue to grow and prosper in Goshen. As Yosef prepares for his death, he requests that his brothers promise to bring take his bones out of Egypt and bury them in Eretz Canaan. 

When Yaakov beckons Yosef, it is not enough for Yaakov to share his dying wish with Yosef. Yaakov needs Yosef to swear an oath that he will fulfill his father’s final dying wish. To demonstrate one’s “swearing a vow,” Yaakov tells Yosef: Im Nah Matzati Chein M’Einecha If now I have found grace in your eyes Sim Nah Yadcha Tachat Yereichi put, I pray of you, your hand beneath my thigh v’Asita Imadi Chesed v’Emet –,and deal kindly and truthfully with me. However, Yosef does not do as his father asks; Yosef does not put his hand beneath his father’s thigh as an indication of swearing an oath. Rather, Vayomer [Yosef] said, Anochi Eseh Chidvarecha – I personally will do as you said. The text clearly conveys that Yosef did not make a “vow” to Yaakov. Yosef did not put his hand beneath his father’s thigh as an indication of making a vow. Rather he said that he would take care of the matter personally.  Rabeinu Chananel, a tenth-century Egyptian Talmudic commentator, briefly and succinctly explains that Anochi Eseh M’Atzmi – I will take care of it myself hence there is no need for swearing an oath. Rav Ovadia Sforno – the 16th Italian Renaissance Torah Commentator adds a more in-depth comment over the fac t that Yosef did not at first swear an oath to Yaakov’s final request. Anochi Metzad Atzmi Eseh Kidvarecha B’Chol Chai – As far as I am concerned, I will do as you say with all my power. Yosef’s response suggests a possible excuse in case he cannot fulfill the dying wish. “I will do everything in my power” acknowledges that  Yosef is only second in command and requires Pharoah’s permission. In case Pharaoh refused the request; then Yosef still fulfilled his father’s final wish.  Yosef did everything did “everything in his power”, but Pharaoh denied permission.  Yaakov senses the hesitation and tells Yosef: Hishava Li – Swear to me, Vayishava Lo – and He [Yosef] swore to him [Yaakov]. Yaakov does not want any excuses nor does he want Yosef relying solely upon his own relationship with Pharaoh. Pharaoh will understand a son swearing an oath to his dying father and would never refuse a request of that nature. However Yosef is not a servant, he is the second most powerful person in Egypt, and he remains Yaakov’s favorite son. As a free individual, Yosef is only bound by his conscience. He is free to question. The servant, on the other hand, has no such ability. He is bound to fulfill his obligations whether forced or unforced. The Malbim, the 17th-century commentator, explains that Yosef was acting as a son should. Yosef was trying to act out of filial responsibility, based upon his own free will rather than a servant who is bound by oaths. 

It appears that there are moments where one’s own volition is not enough in fulfilling a final wish.  Yaakov makes Yosef swear the oath to prove that Yosef’s actions are those of a servant to his father and not as a son. Under normal circumstances, according to our ChaZaL – our Talmudic sages, we are already bound by Torah; there is no need to accept artificial/external bonds. The bonds of Torah and mitzvot should be enough.  The bonds of Torah and mitzvot are designed to be reachable goals, objectives that require a little effort but are all within the realm of the possible.  There is no need to pile on and make observance more difficult and more taxing. So I finished my final workout on our elliptical machine for 2020 feeling a bit better about myself. 

Peace,

Rav Yitz