They're A Band Beyond Description Like Jehovah's Favourite Choir (John Barlow & Bob Weir - "Playing In The Band")

Our 11th-grade daughter plays on her high school’s volleyball team. This week,   her volleyball postseason tournament which culminated in the championship game took place this week. Forgetting the outcome of the team’s tournament performance; our daughter has grown and matured in a manner that can only occur as a result of participating in a team sport or group activity. I played basketball for my High School and I played two years of college basketball. That experience continues to be an importance influence in how I view my family, my friends, my job, my community and functioning as an observant Jew. We noticed similar changes in each of our children as they participated in a team or in a long term group project. Our volleyball playing daughter has taken greater initiative at home, and at school. Playing volleyball has taught her the importance of teamwork, doing one’s job, putting aside individual accolades for the good of the team, and working hard towards a common goal. I was particularly fascinated when she expressed frustration when a teammate seemed to be a bit lax in their effort in practice, and I was just as fascinated as she expressed frustration when she sensed that some of her teammates didn’t appear to understand that the team was more important than the individual.                

This week’s Parsha is Vayakahel. Following the sin of the Golden Calf and Teshuvah (repentance), B’nai Yisroel begins executing God’s instructions for the Mishkan, the Ark, and the Tent of the Meeting. We recall that when God gave these instructions to Moshe, God started from the middle of the structure (the holiest point of the structure) and worked out towards the outer walls of the structure. God gave instructions beginning with the building of the Aron (the Ark), and concluding with the walls of the Tent of the Meeting. When B’nai Yisroel begins the building process, they begin with walls of the Tent, and then conclude with the altar and finally the Ark. 

After the destructive behavior of worshipping the Golden Calf, B’nai Yisroel comes together and shares a common constructive experience bound by a common goal. Their goal is to complete the construction of the Mishkan. The common experience is their contributions of raw materials. V’Yavo’u  Kol Ish Asher Nasahu Libo V’chol Asher Nadvah Rucho- Every man whose heart inspired him came; and everyone whose spirit motivated him brought the portion of God for the work of the Tent of the Meeting, for all its labor and for the sacred clothing (Ex.35:21). By participating in this constructive process, everyone had an opportunity to repent for the sin of the Golden Calf and for its lack of faith. If viewed as a process, B’nai Yisroel began on the fringes, idolatry, and after repentance, began moving towards the Holy of Holies. First, they built the walls of the Tent of the Meeting, the altar, then the Holy of Holies. For the vast majority, we approach God in a similar way. As we become inspired, we are drawn towards Judaism. As we become motivated, we dedicate a greater portion to God, both in terms of Tzedakah and time. It is very rare when our motivation or dedication comes as a result of a “bolt of lightning” or some existential metaphysical sign or wonder. No, our motivation and dedication is a result of our recognition that there is something missing in our lives. We miss meaning in our lives. We miss contentment in our lives. We miss peace in our lives. Certainly, we can be happy without meaning. Certainly, we can be happy without contentment. Certainly, we can be happy without peace. Why? Happiness is rather fleeting and quite often it is the result of some external factor. Meaning, contentment, and peace are ultimately internally influenced and far less fleeting.  Our movement towards God, our movement towards greater observance, is a series of steps. We don’t begin as a Tzaddik observing all mitzvoth.  Rather, one mitzvah leads to another, learning leads to more learning which eventually leads to doing.

We learn several vital lessons from this Parsha. First, we learn that Judaism requires two parties, God and B’nai Yisroel. Both must exist together in a balanced relationship. When God and Torah become so far out of reach, B’nai Yisroel will become alienated and turn to idolatry, such as the Golden Calf, crass materialism, money or some other type of “God”. When B’nai Yisroel fails to elevate itself in Kedusha, in holiness, then we fail in our dual mission: make our lives more meaningful and spiritual; “be a light among the nations”. However, when we enter into a highly participatory and shared communal experience, such as building the Mishkan, or any project or program that we build, we must sacrifice some of our personal needs for the well-being of the community. Second, we learn that when the community shares a commons sense of purpose, something wonderful happens. We achieve that balance between God and ourselves. The result, of course, is that God will dwell among us. God’s dwelling among us makes our community a little warmer, a little kinder, and more significant. Third, we also learn that the actual construction process requires hard work. B’nai Yisroel, like any team, shared in the task’s difficulty. Greater participation made the experience that much more meaningful. When the experience is more meaningful, then the reward will be greater. What is the reward? The reward is a community that shares simchas (joyous occasions) and tsuris (sad occasions), victories as well as defeats. The reward is that no individual member of the community should ever feel alienated and alone. The reward is a community that strives for growth and improvement. This brings more meaning to the life of the individual, the family, and the community.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

The People Might Know, But The People Don't Care ( Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Black Peter")

It has been an exciting week in Toronto. For a while, the city was buzzing about its baseball team. The Blue Jays reeled off 12 straight victories before losing three games in a row to the N. Y. Mets. The Women’s World Cup began and Canada and the United States are winning the matches they are supposed to in order to get to the next round. Hockey enthusiasts were rewarded with 6 close and exciting even if another year has come and gone without Lord Stanley’s cup residing with Toronto’s beloved Maple Leafs. Yet for all that excitement, our home experienced some very real turmoil. My wife comes from San Francisco, and while she is not at all a sports enthusiast, when her home team is playing for a championship, well we all get kind of excited. My wife love all things Israel. She loves the food, loves the music, loves the cities, and loves the people. Yes, if it was up to her, we would have made Aliyah the day after we were married. For the past week, my wife’s hometown basketball team, the Golden State Warriors have been vying for the NBA championship against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Normally, this should not have caused any turmoil for my wife as she should have been completely supportive of her hometown team. Always the one to stir the proverbial pot, I shared some vital information about the Cleveland coach: David Blatt. First I told her that he went to Princeton University (I remember him in college). That bit of information certainly did not impress her. Then I revealed that he is Jewish. My wife’s interest was piqued. Yet she still could not be swayed about rooting for her Golden State Warriors. Then I shared the last bits of information. First, he played professional ball in Israel for several years. Second he coached Maccabi Tel Aviv for many years. Third he married an Israeli girl and made Aliyah.  Well my wife still cheered for her hometown team but she also was cheering for the “Israeli” coach. The series was fascinating to watch. One team had the best player on the planet LeBron James, and otherwise played undermanned as two of their starters were injured. The other team, Golden State, played as a team and didn’t rely only upon one player to do everything even though it had the league MVP in Stephen Curry.  Needless to say the better team beat the better individual. As heroic as the individual was in his efforts to carry the team, he understood that a championship is a collective success and losing the championship is a collective defeat.

This week's Parsha is Korach. Korach was a relative of Moshe's. They both came from the tribe of Levi. Korach questioned Moshe's authority. He did not do this during a private meeting between individuals. Rather, Korach gathered 250 supporters, and then publicly challenged Moshe. Moshe tried to keep peace within the community, but to no avail. A divine test is administered, and Korach and his supporters fail. The earth swallows them up. However God is angry and a plague falls upon the people. God speaks to Aaron and binds Aaron's line even closer to the rest of the tribe of Levi, and Korach's family. In a sense, they now have greater reliance upon one another. "Also your brethren the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, shall you draw near with you, and they shall be joined to you….. (Num. 18:2-7). 

Normally, as part of our modern perspective, we disapprove of communal punishment. Even B’nai Yisroel considered it unfair as they raise their concern to God. "Ha'Ish Echad Yechtah v'Al Kol Ha'Edah Tiktzof- shall one man's sin, and you be angry with the entire assembly?" (Num. 16:22). The answer is yes, there are times when communal punishment is most effective.  Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai explained this verse with the following analogy. "A man on a ship took a drill and began to drill a hole under his own seat. When his companion asked him 'Why are you doing this?' he replied, 'Why should it bother you? Am I not drilling only under my own seat?' His companions look at him incredulously:  'But the water will rise up and flood the ship for all of us!' (Leviticus Rabbah 4:6). A community is a combination of symbiotic relationships. For B'nai Israel that symbiotic relationship was manifest in the role that each tribe played within the community. That symbiotic relationship was also manifest in Amcha's (the nation's) desire for God to dwell among it. If anything threatened God's dwelling among the nation, then the threat must be removed. Such a threat was removed from the camp in the previous Parsha when the man was corporally punished for violating the Sabbath when he was picking up sticks during the Sabbath Day. During that episode the community was not punished because the community did not follow the individual’s behavior, in fact the “community” was offended by the behavior and brought the issue to Moshe. However here in the rebellion of Korach, and even in the narrative of the Twelve Spies, the community stayed silent and passive. Their silence was condoning the behavior.

What do we learn from Korach's rebellion, and the ensuing communal punishment? First, we learn that a community cannot be polarized and hope to survive. That was the reason Korach was punished in the first place. Second, we learn that a community and its leadership must share in a common vision. Third, there must be room for disagreements to take place. There must be room to ask questions. Questions must be asked, and disagreements must arise and be dealt with in a way that focuses upon the welfare of the community, the welfare of the team and not the glory of the individual. Korach's demise demonstrates that questions and disagreements can never occur under false pretenses, arrogance, or in a self-serving manner.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rav Yitz 

You're Lost Sailor You've Been Too Long At Sea (John Barlow & Bob Weir - "Lost Sailor")

           The Winter Olympics have been all the talk in our house. The Olympics have also been about the only thing on our television as well. Among the most fascinating aspects of the Olympics has been watching my children watch the various events. Certainly they have been exposed to a myriad of sports. My son cannot wait to start doing the snow board half-pike course. Seriously though, our children were amazed when they heard the story about the Canadian Men’s speed skater give up his place in a particular event and gave his spot to a teammate that had a better chance of winning a medal. That speed skater’s sacrifice proved prophetic as the teammate earned a medal. Our children were in awe of this selfless act, they were in awe of placing the team before the individual. They were in awe of all those hours of practice and the opportunity to shine replaced by the opportunity for the team to earn a medal. We talked about the importance of placing the team before the individual as well as the joy of being part of something greater than just individual goals.

This week’s Pasha is Vayakahel. Following the sin of the Golden Calf and Teshuvah (repentance), B’nai Yisroel begins executing God’s instructions for the Mishkan, the Ark, and the Tent of the Meeting. We recall that when God gave these instructions to Moshe, God started from the middle of the structure (the holiest point of the structure) and worked out towards the outer walls of the structure. God gave instructions beginning with the building of the Aron (the Ark), and concluding with the walls of the Tent of the Meeting. When B’nai Yisroel begins the building process, they begin with walls of the Tent, and then conclude with the altar and finally the Ark. 

After the destructive behavior of worshipping the Golden Calf, B’nai Yisroel comes together, and shares a common constructive experience bound by a common goal. Their goal is to complete the construction of the Mishkan. The common experience is their contributions to of raw materials. V’Yavo’u  kol Ish Asher Nasahu Libo V’chol Asher Nadvah Rucho- Every man whose heart inspired him came; and everyone whose spirit motivated him brought the portion of God for the work of the Tent of the Meeting, for all its labor and for the sacred clothing (Ex.35:21). By participating in this constructive process, everyone had an opportunity to repent for the sin of the Golden Calf and for its lack of faith. First, B’nai Yisroel began on the fringes with its idolatrous activity. Then, and after Bnai Yisroel repented, it began moving towards the Holy of Holies. First they built the walls of the Tent of the Meeting; then the altar, and, finally, the Holy of Holies.

When the community shares a commons sense of purpose, something wonderful happens. We achieve that balance between God and ourselves. The result, of course, is that God will dwell among us. God’s dwelling among us makes our community a little warmer, a little kinder, and more significant. Third, we also learn that the actual process of building requires hard work. B’nai Yisroel, like any team, shared in the task’s difficulty. Greater participation made the experience that much more meaningful. When the experience is more meaningful, then the reward will be greater. What is the reward? The reward is a community that shares simchas and tsuris, victories as well as defeats. The reward is that no individual member of the community should ever feel alienated and alone. The reward is a community that strives for growth and improvement. This brings more meaning to the life of the individual, the family, and the community.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

Seems a Common Way To Go (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Row Jimmy)

Well, it finally looks like spring in Toronto. For the past nine years, springtime in Toronto usually meant that people emerged from hibernation, began yard work projects, and sports fans  followed the Toronto Blue Jays. Well, so far, this spring has been a bit different. For the first time in nine years,  Toronto's secular religion, playoff hockey, has returned to Toronto. As an American,  hockey is not the same type of secular religion as baseball. However, our son has been listening to the kids in school and has actually come home talking about the hockey playoffs. Honestly, I don’t gave know the difference between a blue line and a red line except the color, but I am always intrigued by professional sports teams and playoffs. I like the intensity, I like the buzz that a city has when their team is in the playoffs, and I enjoy watching individuals sacrificing their individual glory for one common objective: winning.  When I watch the Hockey playoffs, or what is more personally more appealing to me, the New York Knicks actually in the Basketball playoffs, I am reminded of the  powerful, age-old, sports adage: “There is no ‘I’ in TEAM”. The adage means that the individual must forsake his/her ego for the good of the team. Everyone on the team has a role. If that role is not executed with efficiency and excellence, then the team’s effectiveness is compromised and the risk of losing games increases.

This week’s Parshah is Bemidbar. Bemidbar marks the start of the fourth Book of the Torah, Sefer Bemidbar (the Book of Numbers).  If the Book of Leviticus focused upon all the ritual and ethical behavior a community must observe in order for “God to dwell among it”, The Book of Numbers focuses upon something quite different. Sefer Bamidbar consists of lists, lists of names, numbers and places. The Book begins and ends with a census. The Book begins with B’nai Yisroel still wandering from place to place as they completed their first year free from captivity. As they begin their second year, there will be more narrative, and more events. The Book of Numbers concludes with B’nai Yisroel’s temporarily dwelling in one spot for the next 38 years, overlooking the Promised Land.

Parshah Bemidbar begins with God commanding Moshe to count the people. Then God commands Moshe to organize the people according to tribal formation around the Mishkan. Three tribes are in each of the four directions: three in the North, three in the South, three in the East and three in the West.  The tribe of Levi, (the priest) was not counted in this census because it occupied the center of the camp. Instead of the first born from other tribes serving in the Mishkan, the Levites became the designated tribe to serve God in the Mishkan. Counting the Levites was the second census. In Parshah Bamidbar, we also read a list of names. These are the designated leaders of each tribe. Every tribe has a place within the camp, every tribe has a flag, and every tribe has a leader. The Parshah concludes with another census, this time it is limited to a particular family within the tribe of Levi.

Every tribe had a role. Every tribe had a place. Every tribe had a function. The Midrash explains that when God suggested the arrangements and roles for the tribes, Moshe questioned the idea. “ Now there will be disputes between the tribes.” Moshe reasoned that by assigning certain tribes to certain places, other tribes would become envious and grow disenchanted with their place within the camp, relative to the Mishkan. God explained that there was no need to worry. Each tribe’s designated spot was based upon Jacob’s sons’ positioning around Jacob’s coffin. Each tribe had a clear and proper place within the greater community. There was neither fighting, bickering, nor disenchantment. VaYa’Asu B’nai Yisroel kChol Asher Tzivah Adonai et Moshe, Kein Asu – “The Children of Israel did everything  that God commanded Moshe, so did they do”  (Num.1:54). Knowing their role or their place had a positive effect. Each tribe had a defined space and specific function that insured the welfare of the community.

            So, what can we learn from Parsha Bemidbar? First we learn that every individual counts, and every individual has value. We only count that which has a perceived value, such as: money, cd’s, cars, and whatever we have collected over the years. God ordered two censuses. B’nai Yisroel mattered to God; each individual must have had value. Otherwise, God would not have counted. From this we learn that a community’s strength is only as great as the individuals that comprise that community. Second, we learn that everyone must have a role, or a function within that community. Each individual must have a means to contribute to the community. By reaching out to the individual, recognizing how each contributes to the whole, and each individual’s contribution, a family can achieve holiness, community can achieve holiness, and a nation can achieve holiness.

Peace,

Rav Yitz