Hearts Of Summer Held In Trust, Still Tender Young And Green (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia "Days Between")

           The Jewish world is a small world, so we were not surprised that our daughter and my wife’s cousin s who live in Teaneck knew the 19-year-old Teaneck,  New Jersey boy who died on LaG B’OMer at Mt. Meron, Israel.  Along with our daughter, we were among the 70,000 people that watched the Livestream of the funeral.  I saw two parents, broken, and shattered. I listened as the mother of the 19-year-old boy began to speak. It was completely heartbreaking and I could only watch for a few minutes. Through her sobs and heavy breathing, I listened to the mother say words like “gratitude”,  and “thanks”. I heard her invoke God. I listened as she told us about her son. There was no anger in her voice;  instead just a profound sense of grief and loss. Her words didn’t reflect a crisis of faith nor a lack of “trust in God’s Plan”.    

          Parsha Behar and Parsha Bechukotai. These are the last two Parshiot in Sefer Vayikrah (Book of Leviticus). Throughout the entire book, we have read how to elevate our lives with holiness. We elevate our lives by thanking God and atoning to God, through a variety of Korbonot. We elevate our lives by avoiding behavior that defiles us; we don’t marry our sisters. We elevate our lives in every day physical behaviors; we only eat certain types of food. We elevate our lives by consciously setting aside holy times throughout the day, week, and season. In Parsha Behar, we elevate our lives and our land with holiness by setting aside another type of sacred time, Shmita (the seventh year.) Just like the seventh day (Shabbat) is a day of rest. Shmita is a year of rest. Every seventh year, all outstanding debts are canceled. The land lies fallow. Slaves and servants are set free. Agriculturally speaking, there is a benefit. Resting the soil for a year allows for replenishment of nutrients. Rabbinically speaking, less time devoted to agricultural concerns meant more time devoted to Torah study! Parsha Bechukotai, being the end of Leviticus, tells us the ramifications for behavior. “If you’ll keep the commandments… then I’ll send the rains in their time, the earth and trees will give forth their produce, you’ll settle securely in the land…I will multiply you…I will walk with you” (Lev. 25:3-10). If we don’t live up to these standards, if we neglect to add Kedushah (holiness) to our lives, if we “don’t perform these commandments, if we consider these decrees loathsome, if we reject these ordinances, if we annul the covenant, then I will do the same to you…. (Lev. 26:14:17) God will annul us. All blessings will become curses.

          While the curses in the Torah portion don’t paint a very pleasant picture, both parshiot reflect the vital importance of Bitachon, trust in God. In Behar, this idea of Bitachon is evident in the commandments of Shmitta (the 7-year agricultural cycle) and Yovel (Jubilee). In the Jubilee year, all debts are canceled, and there is a quasi-national “reboot”. While it may sound nice for those of us with credit card debt, consider the turmoil. The economy would grind to a halt in the months or perhaps in a year or two before the 50th year. What lender would lend knowing that the loan would be canceled within  6 -12 months.  In the Shmitta year, the land lies fallow. We all agree that the field needs a rest, a Shabbat, just like we do. If the field lies fallow, what would people eat? We are urged to trust God. “I will command my blessing upon the sixth year and it will bring forth (enough) produce for three years (Lev. 25:20-21). Just like God provided a double portion of Manna on Friday and thereby guarantee enough food for Shabbat, so too God will “guarantee enough produce in the sixth year. B’nai Yisroel won’t starve in the seventh (Shmita) year.

          Our sixteen-year-old asked me about the mother's words. I explained that I would be far too angry to speak as the mother spoke.  I would have needed more time without thousands of people, to move from anger to grief. Our son then asked me about whether my trust and faith in God would have been affected. Maybe it is easier to have Bitachon, to have trust and faith in God when it comes to large “macro” issues such as rain in the rainy season and dry in the season. Maybe it's easier to have Bitachon -trust, to have trust and faith that a 50-year “reboot” or “re-do” won’t turn people's lives and an economy upside down. Maybe it's easier to have faith and trust in something that is more emotionally distant in an “idea” or in the metaphysical. When my son asked me whether I would have questioned my faith and trust in God. I answered immediately and without hesitation. Yes, a tragedy like this would test my faith, and my trust in God would have waned. I think that it would be a long time before I could trust in God again and have my faith restored. Yes, I could understand the parents speak about the wonderful qualities of their 19-year-old son. I understood why they focused on his “living”, and the things he did over the course of his short 19 years of life. Yes, I could understand it, but I don’t think that I would be able to speak of it nor share it, not yet, not until the shock and anger subsided.

Peace
Rav Yitz 

Some Folks Trust To Reason, Others Trust To Might (Robert Hunter, Bob Weir, Mickey Hart - "Playing In The Band")

As my children,  wife, and I continue to watch the news, two people have earned our trust. Two people are worth our attention and trust. They are Governor Cuomo from New York State and Dr. Anthony Fauci.  Apparently, we are not alone. In a recent poll, 62% of Americans trust Dr. Fauci, and roughly 36% trust the President.  Needless to say, whenever the President speaks, we assume that he lies. We assume that there is no truth, no plan, no idea of how to respond to the ongoing crisis of Covid19.  There is no leadership; there is only the bluster of a self-serving carnival barker. As this self-serving carnival barker continues to espouse conspiracy theories and dismiss science, and lie, my children ask why I shake my head in disgust. I explain that when the  Leader of the Free World is so untrustworthy,  he diminishes the office of the Presidency as well as America. A diminished America is not good for any country based upon democracy,   

This week, we again read a double portion, Parsha Behar and Parsha Bechukotai. These are the last two Parshiot of Sefer Vayikrah (Book of Leviticus). Throughout the entire book, we have read how to elevate our lives with holiness. We elevate our lives by thanking God and atoning to God, through a variety of Korbonot. We elevate our lives by avoiding behavior that defiles us; we don’t marry our sisters. We elevate our lives in every day physical behaviors; we only eat certain types of food. We elevate our lives by consciously setting aside holy times throughout the day, week, and season. In Parsha Behar, we elevate our lives and our land with holiness by setting aside another type of sacred time, Shmita (the seventh year.) Just like the seventh day (Shabbat) is a day of rest. Shmita is a year of rest. Every seventh year, all outstanding debts are canceled. The land lies fallow. Slaves and servants are set free. Agriculturally speaking, there is a benefit. Resting the soil for a year allows for the replenishment of nutrients. Rabbinically speaking, less time devoted to agricultural concerns meant more time devoted to Torah study! Parsha Bechukotai, being the end of Leviticus, tells us the ramifications for behavior. “If you’ll keep the commandments… then I’ll send the rains in their time, the earth and trees will give forth their produce, you’ll settle securely in the land…I will multiply you…I will walk with you” (Lev. 25:3-10). If we don’t live up to these standards, if we neglect to add Kedushah (holiness) to our lives, if we “don’t perform these commandments, if we consider these decrees loathsome, if we reject these ordinances, if we annul the covenant, then I will do the same to you…. (Lev. 26:14:17) God will annul us. All blessings will become curses. 

While the Torah does not paint a very pleasant picture, both parshiot reflect the vital importance of Bitachon, trust in God. In Behar, we may consider this notion of Shmita to be quite nice. All debts are canceled. On the other hand, if the land is to lie fallow, what would people eat? We are urged to trust God. “I will command my blessing upon the sixth year and it will bring forth (enough) produce for three years (Lev. 25:20-21).  The Chatam Sofer, (Rabbi Moshe Shreiber from Frankfort on the Main, Germany 1762-1839) explained the importance of reminding us that the Mitzvah of Shmita originated from Sinai just like the Mitzvah of gathering the Manna while B’nai Yisroel wandered and traveled to Eretz Yisroel.  God provided a double portion of Manna on Friday thereby guaranteeing enough food for Shabbat during their time of wandering; so too God will “guarantee” enough produce in the sixth year when they are living in the land. B’nai Yisroel won’t starve in the seventh (Shmita) year nor will they starve in the first year of the next cycle while they are waiting for that year’s harvest.  

So what does the Torah teach us? We learn that every rung climbed towards Kedushah, confirms our trust in God. Rather than diminishing ourselves out of ignorance and arrogance, we remind ourselves of God’s presence in all aspects of our lives including the harvest, the Jubilee year, and helping those most vulnerable. Because of this constant reminder, we trust that God is Holy, otherwise, we would have no need to be holy. We trust that everything pure and good is attributable to God. Otherwise, we would constantly defile ourselves. We trust that we are created in God’s image. Otherwise, there is no reason to treat people with kindness first. Trust in God, in a sense, is a spiritually individualized Mishkan. The Mishkan was built so that God would dwell among us. Similarly, if our purpose is to attain higher and higher levels of Kedusha, we trust that the end result is God’s dwelling within us. Leviticus teaches us that God is involved in our daily routine. Our struggle for Kedusha is our way of reminding ourselves of this fact. Failure to remind ourselves means we fall away from God and our faith diminishes. When we lack in faith and trust in God, it diminishes the Jewish people. When the Leader of the Free World cannot be trusted, well, my son will watch me continue shaking my head in disappointment as the diminished of the United States and in concern all societies that cherish freedom and democracy. 

Peace, 

Rav Yitz 

Hearts Of Summer Held In Trust, Still Tender Young And Green (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Days Between"

The other night our kids asked me a question that I felt utterly embarrassed to answer.  What question could my kids ask that answering it would be a source of shame and embarrassment? No, it was not answering any questions about my younger years and my youthful indiscretions. I had to offer an appropriate answer for the U.S. governments shut-down from last Shabbat until Monday. I was so embarrassed at having to explain to my children how a system of government established by wise and brilliant leaders of their generation had become broken by leaders of their generation who are not so brilliant, not so wise and don’t seem to have the needs of their country at heart. Even worse, as we discussed recent government shut down, as we watched the news, all three of our children pointed to the fact that it appears that shut-down was caused by a lack of trust, a lack of trust in the President, and a lack of trust in the Senate Majority leader and the Senate Minority leader. When the government shut down ended, my children astutely noted that the three-week solution cobbled together by the Senate is predicated entirely on Trust.  I reminded them that trust is a foundation to a civilized society, trust is a foundation to democracy and trust is a foundation to a strong Jewish community.  

This Shabbat is known as Shabbat Shira (Shabbat of Songs) because of the "songs" or poetry in both the Parsha, Beshallach, and in the Haftarah. In Parsha Beshallach, B'nai Yisroel finally leaves Egypt. Pharaoh sends them out and they hurriedly leave. Three days later, B'nai Yisroel arrives at the Yam Suf, the Reed Sea, which is along the Mediterranean coast. With Pharaoh's army behind them and the Sea in front, B'nai Yisroel is trapped. Then the sea opens up, B'nai Yisroel crosses through and arrives safely on the other side. The Egyptian army gets caught in the seabed as the waters come crashing down. Out of joy and relief, B'nai Yisroel composes Shirat HaYam, the Song of the Sea. No sooner are they finished celebrating, then they begin complaining about the lack of water and food. God provides water and Manna. However, B'nai Yisroel is still not safe. Now they are attacked by the indigenous tribe, the Amalekites. B'nai Yisroel must put aside its hunger and thirst and fight for their lives. They do, and they are victorious. The Parsha ends with God commanding Moshe to blot out the very existence of the Amalekites.

From the time B’nai Yisroel complains to Moshe about the oncoming Egyptian army and Yam Suf that lies before them, to the lack of water, lack of food and lack of meat, one could understand the entire Parsha as B’nai Yisroel’s lack of trust and God testing B’nai Yisroel’s faith. With all the complaining, with the refrain of the people cynically asking Moshe if God brought them out of Egypt to have them die in the wilderness, or die on the banks of the Yam Suf; it is very easy to view these newly released slaves as not at all ready to engage in a covenantal relationship with God since they do not trust God to help them, provide for them and fulfill his side of the covenant. However, the Midrash in Shmot Rabbah teaches us that Nachshon ben Aminadov from the tribe of Judah went first into the Reed Sea even before it split open. In fact, the waters didn’t open up until he was completely submerged. Only then did the waters open due to his faith and the rest of B’nai Yisroel followed.  The sea didn’t part because of Moshe’s praying on behalf of the people; it split because of one man’s trust in God, one man’s  Emunah, one man’s faith that taking the next step forward would ultimately prove to be the step that saved a nation.  As a result of Nachshon’s faith and his trust in God, the tribe of Judah would have dominion over Israel.

If my children learned anything this past week, they began to understand just the fragile nature of institutions that we take for granted. When the electorate doesn’t trust the government, we have problems. When people don’t trust the press or science or facts, we have problems. When we can’t trust religious institutions because of corrupt behavior, we have problems. Trust seems to be a cornerstone of any free society upon which a covenant exists. Governments are supposed to protect and care for its citizens, and the citizens pay taxes. In the Jewish world, the idea of Kashrut is predicated entirely on trust, trust that the Rabbi or Kosher organization is following and interpreting the rules Kashrut. In the world of human relationships, this past week demonstrated what happens when people do not trust others and when they do trust others. Solutions are found and agreements are followed when there is trust. Problems are intractable and never ending when there is no trust.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

So I Give You My Eyes, And All Of Their Lies (John Barlow & Bob Weir -"Black Throated Wind")

The other night, as our family sat down for dinner, we engaged in our unwritten routine. Everyone sat in the seats that they had assigned themselves, their Makom Kavuah. My Wife served dinner to the children first and then she served us. I turned on the weeknight NBC newscast. As our children ate, they all noticed something was slightly askew. The food tasted like mommy’s cooking. Everyone looked the same. No one seemed to be acting differently, yet for a moment our children couldn’t quite figure out what was different. Then our daughter look up at the TV as we were listening to the newscast and asked about the person who usually reports the news. She had noticed, quite correctly, that the normal anchorman, Brian Williams, was not reporting the news. There was a different anchorman. “Is he sick?” they asked. “Is he on vacation?” they wondered aloud. I told them that he removed himself from being the anchorman because he and had come under pressure at the network for embellishing the truth. While some say he lied, which seems to suggest something pre-meditated, at the very least he stretched the truth and embellished his experience from 10-12 years ago while reporting during the Iraq War and during Hurricane Katrina. They asked what the connection was between his embellishing and removing himself as Anchorman.  We had a fascinating discussion about assumptions that we make about people who transmit information to us. It was a teachable moment about trust, and questioning sources of information. Interestingly enough it also turned into a teachable moment of Torah.

This week’s Parsha is Mishpatim. Moshe is still at Har Sinai. However the revelation that occurred with the giving of the Aseret Dibrot (Ten Commandments) is long gone. Instead, God has now started giving Moshe numerous laws that affect the day to day issues raised by human interaction. There is no shofar blowing, there is no anticipation of meeting God at the mountain. Rather there is only God telling Moshe how to decide various legal matters including the damages to be paid if my ox gores your ox; two men are fighting near a pregnant woman and she gets hurt,   and how to treat to a Jewish servant, observing festivals, the issues of liability for those who are asked to safeguard another’s property as well as manslaughter, to name just a few of the fifty three commandments (according to the Sefer HaChinuch).  Moshe tells these laws to Bnai Yisroel and they respond with the words Naaseh v’Nishmah – we will do and learn.  The Parsha concludes with glowing fire upon the Mountain that Moshe ascends once again.

In the midst of the more than fifty Mitzvot and within the midst civil law appears a commandment that seems more like a warning than a commandment.  Midvar Sheker Tirchak V’Naki V”Tzadik Al Taharog–Distance yourself from a false word; (Ex. 23:7).Usually a commandment uses language such as “do” or “don’t”. In fact the commandments that immediately appear before and after uses the commandment language of “do” or “don’t”. This is the only commandment that tells us to Tirchak – distance ourselves and as a result creates inherent subjectivity. One person’s distancing from falsehood might not necessarily be another person’s distancing from falsehood. So why the relativism as compared to the absolutism of the all these other commandments? Perhaps the ability to discern falsehood carries with it a degree of subjectivity. Perhaps the Torah and later the sages understand that falsehoods are relative, relative to severity, relative to intent and even relative to harm. In Breishit Rabbah, the Talmudic Sages commentary upon the Torah, we learn: “When the Holy One Blessed be He was about to create mankind, the ministering angels divided into two parties. Mercy said: ‘Create him!’ Truth said: ‘Do not create him since he is all falsehood’ “.  However the same Talmudic Sages teach in the Masechet Chullin (the Talmudic Tractate that deals with all the laws of Kosher ritual slaughter) HitRacheik Min HaKiOr U’Min HaDomah Lo V’Min HaDomah L’Doma – Keep far (distance yourself) from ugly dealings and that which smells of them, or even remotely resembles them (Chullin 44b). One statement acknowledges that a world only built upon absolute truth might very well be a harsh world that is not particularly forgiving. The other statement, like the Torah’s warning, reminds us that if we spend too much time near falsehood, then the world might become corrupt and no one would trust systems and institutions. We need to have enough judgment as to determine when we are too close to falsehood that it leads to mistrust.

Brian Williams’ absence from the NBC anchor desk exemplifies the failures to distance oneself from falsehood. If unchecked, the failure to create distance ultimately causes mistrust.  For most institutions, including the press, success or failure is directly related to whether the public perceives trustworthiness. For years, Walter Cronkite, the legendary CBS anchorman was considered to be the most trusted man in America. If he has embellished or exaggerated the truth, then the perception of mistrust will hamper his ability to connect to the public and the public would not believe what was being reported.  As our children watched the news, and then ask their mother and me to clarify certain statements, or offer background, context or even judgment they are now aware of the correlation between the transmitter of information and the information itself.

Peace.

Rav Yitz