And Forget About The Darkness You Have Seen (Jerry Garcia, Dave Parker & The Grateful Dead- "The Only Time Is Now")

Immediately after the Pesach Festival and Shabbat concluded and after we completed the Havdalah service, my wife saw that there were several WhatsApp messages from our daughter Hannah. Hannah has been studying in Israel during this current school year. She told us that there had been a synagogue shooting at a Shul in Poway, California, a suburb of San Diego. Having lived in San Diego for two years, she was worried.  She was worried for a number of reasons. Did any of us know any of the victims or their families?  Was it the one shul or were other San Diego synagogues targeted?  Then of course there were the larger questions of a genuine concern about a rising tide of anti-Semitic incidents and near incidents throughout the U.S. Two days after the tragedy, my wife and I watched the funeral for the woman who was murdered during that Poway Synagogue terrorist attack. At the cemetery, there was another Hannah, the daughter of the deceased, who knelt by the grave as people performed a final act of kindness and placed dirt upon the casket. Hannah remained knelt as the hole was filled. Hannah remained knelt when they place a marker and she remained knelt and weeping for her mother as they pleaded with her to stand up. Eventually, Hannah was helped to her feet, she returned home and has been sitting Shiva. I spoke to my Hannah, and she explained that she hadn’t slept well as she  feels increased anxiety and concern for the myriad of friends that she has throughout Canada and the United States. As she explained to me, “It seems that we are all targets because we are Jewish”. I wished I could have  disagreed; I couldn’t. Yes, to a degree, we Jews are targets. It seems that we always have been and sadly it appears that we always will be targets, but that doesn’t mean we need to perceive ourselves as victims.  I have thought about my Hannah in Israel who is scheduled to return home and begin University in the fall. I have thought about another Hannah who is only a few years older, a victim of Anti-Semitism, who just buried her mother and will spend this Shabbat in the midst of Shiva. I have thouight about the Jewish people who had just observed Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day.  

Dear Hannah:

Hashem Yikom Damah. I cannot imagine that there are any words that could bring you consolation during this tragic moment in life. Perhaps someday these words may prove to be a source of consolation after the intensity of shiva has concluded, and shloshim has waned, and you, your father, and extended family are left with the task of living. Yes, you will be living a very different type of life than the one that you were familiar with while you sat at your family’s seder celebrating Pesach. What I am saying to you Hannah, are words that I would say to my Hannah. There will be a someday when I won’t be able to say these words to her but they are words that she will need to hear as well. They are words that embody the way we raised our Hannah, and they are words that I know embody the way your mother raised her Hannah, you. While you may not be ready to read these words, I hope they might provide you with a source of strength when you feel darkness and emptiness encroaching upon your soul.  I hope these words will offer you a source of light for your eyes when the darkness of others souls encroach upon you. I hope these words will offer warmth and security when darkness, hatred, and vitriol abound. These words of light are inspired by this week’s Torah portion: Acharei Mot. The Torah portion that resumes Aharon’s HaKohen’s preparations for his role in society immediately following the tragic deaths of his two sons.

The Torah portion discusses the Yom Kippur Avodah Service and the Kohen Gadol’s Vidui (The High Priest’s confession). Instructions are given regarding the drawing of lots and sending one goat into the wilderness and making an offering of the other goat on behalf of the community. The Parsha concludes with a reminder about the prohibition of consuming blood and then a list of forbidden relationships.  Throughout the Parsha, Hashem speaks to Moshe who is supposed to speak to his brother Aaron regarding the Yom Kippur laws. This makes sense since Aaron is the Kohen Gadol and must know every detail concerning the offerings, blood sprinkling and bringing about atonement on his behalf as well as the B’nai Yisroel’s behalf. However, I have always wondered why Acharei Mot continues with a list of human relationships forbidden to B'nai Yisroel. The second half seems to belong to next week’s Torah portion. How is the first half of Acharei Mot connected to the second half Acharei Mot? How are Moshe’s instruction for his brother Aaron connected to his instructions for the rest of B’nai Yisroel?
 I have struggled to find the words of consolation and light for you, Hannah, and for my Hannah. I watched your mother’s funeral and listened to Rabbi Goldstein. I know the community and I know people who knew your mother. I had a moment of clarity and an answer to my question. Indeed, the answer has everything to do with how your mother lived her life, and how my wife and I have raised our Hannah as well as her siblings. Acharei Mot, after death, after the death of a loved one, when we are bereft, inconsolable, feeling empty and perhaps very much alone, when we are left feeling as if there is “no point” to any of this; while our soul and our faith is in turmoil; we are left with Mourner’s Kaddish. We are left with life and all the mundane attributes of living that life. Aaron HaKohen had to continue living life, which is not to say he didn’t mourn every day of his life for his two sons. I am sure he mourned every day. However, he got on with the job of living life. The question is what is the job of living life? Your mother answered that question in the way she lived her life. Rabbi Goldstein answered thata question in his recent letter to the editor. This week was Yom HaShoah, and every Jew who died for Kiddush HaShem, and every kind and decent person who has ever lived, provided an answer to those of us who must continue living and to those of us who try to bring light to the darkest places. It is the answer  as to why the second part of Acharei Mot and its list of forbidden relationships appears in this weeks Parsha and continues into next week’s Torah Portion, Kedoshim. The job of living life is to live it with Kedushah, Holiness. No matter how mundane, no matter how we may feel, if we are indeed, created in God’s image, then we have the capacity to always strive for and achieve a level of holiness that is beyond “human nature”.  The capacity to strive for and achieve holiness is evident in our personal relationships, our relationship to God, our relationship to strangers and our relationship with our communities. Your mother embodied Chesed, kindness, and decency; she was a light of holiness for the community in which she lived and the lives she touched.  As a parent, I hope that my Hannah has been imbued with the propensity to live a life of Kedushah and Chesed, a life of holiness and kindness as your mother and father have taught you.  Because Acharei Mot, after death, those who remain alive have an opportunity to live lives with greater holiness and kindness and in doing so, reflext their loved one’s light  and shine it upon the darkness.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

Just Like A Deaf Man Dancin'; Like A Blind Man Shootin' Pool; Heaven Help The Fool (John Barlow & Bob Weir "Heaven Help The Fool")

          This past Saturday night, and for the 48 hours that followed on into Monday, I had the same sickening feeling in my stomach that I a little over fifteen years ago with the 9/11 terrorist attacks and its immediate aftermath. While in the movie, my cellphone vibrated, a New York Times breaking news stated that a bomb had exploded in the Chelsea section of New York City. I watched and listened to the news all day on Sunday, and on Monday. No, thankfully this was not 9/11 all over again. Because this is an election year, as the investigation unfolded, the story became political and in a sense a political referendum on the Hilary Clinton’s candidacy and Donald Trump’s candidacy. Perhaps the most ridiculous, dangerous and saddest comment came from Donald Trump during a rally in Fort Meyers, Florida, “If you choose Donald Trump, these problems are going to go away, far far greater than anyone would think, believe me.”  Really? Is he serious or just speaking in Trump hyperbole? “If you choose Donald Trump, these problems are going away….” I get it. All I have to do is pull the lever for Trump and poof, no more threat of terrorism, no more fear of terrorism, no more anxiety caused by terrorism. Just pulling that little lever in the voting booth will make all the trouble in the world go away. As ridiculous as Trump’s comments were, something incredibly sad simultaneously took place there at that rally. It is something that takes place everywhere Trump speaks. Those in attendance clap, cheer, nod their heads and actually believe him and his words. They lap it up as someone who had been in a desert without water for days and days. They cheer and scream and look as if they have been shown some type of light even if that light is the darkness of hatred, fear and ignorance.

This week's Parsha, is Ki Tavoh. For the past several Parshiot, Moshe has been listing and explaining all the precepts and laws. Last week's Parsha, and the first part of Ki Tavoh explains the rewards. We will inherit the land; we will keep the land. Our enemies will be rendered weak. We will be fruitful and multiply. However the second half of the Parshah explains all the curses that would befall us if we neglect to observe these laws. Every curse, of course, is the diametric opposite the previous blessings. So if we were promised bountiful harvests and many children, then our curse will be drought, famine, and bareness. Traditionally, the Aliyot that contain the curses are read in a softer voice. However as horrible as these curses are, we must understand that it is up to us. We can either follow these laws or not, and as a result we will bear the consequences of our actions. This is not necessarily a bad lesson for us as well as our children to learn. We are responsible for our actions, and we must bear responsibility for the consequences of those actions.

            One of the curses is most poignant in light of listening to Trump.  Arur Mashgeh Iveir Ba'Derech, Va'Amar Kol Ha'Am Amen - Accursed is one who causes a blind person to go astray on the road. And the entire nation said 'Amen" (Deut 27:18). If we read this literally then we are talking about a guide or a seeing-eye dog that would lead the blind astray. However this curse is symbolic. We know that Torah is a light and the word Derech (way) is usually in combination with the Way of the Lord (God's Laws). On a metaphorical level, the curse is upon those leaders of a community that causes the less knowledgeable to go astray. If that knowledge causes those who are blind (re: those who are in the dark or without light) to go astray, then that leader should be cursed. Implicit to that statement is that the one who causes the blind to go astray sees the light, has knowledge and teaches or guides the community away from God.          

            Our Talmudic Sages offer an Agadah about the teachers/Rabbis who were the leaders of their communities. "If there are two teachers, one who covers much ground but is not exact, and one who does not cover much ground but is exact, Rav Dimi b. Nehardea maintained that the one who is exact and does not cover much ground is to be appointed. The reason? A mistake once implanted (in the mind or in behavior) remains [a mistake]. (Talmud Baba Batrah 21a-b). The Talmudic sages essentially understood the first rule in education. It is terribly difficult to undo that which has already been incorrectly taught.  It appears that the Talmudic Sages also understood quite a bit about Presidential campaign politics as well.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

Don't Waste Your Breath To Save Your Face When You Have Done Your Best (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Built to Last")

           This week we watched as another terrorist attack rocked Europe, this time in Brussels. As our home had been preparing for Purim; I couldn’t help but acknowledge the commonly held view of the Talmudic Sages that there is Haman in every generation and there is Amalek in every generation. Part of our Purim preparations involve my wife organizing and making the Mishloach Manot, our kids loading the Mishloach Manot into cute boxes, and my delivering the Mishloach Manot. Amid the preparations, and our kitchen covered in Hamentashan dough, I was able to watch the various Presidential candidates speak at the AIPAC conference. In case the Jews who attended the conference, and those throughout the United States and Canada were unsure if Purim was actually scheduled for this week or not, several of the candidates were good enough to remind us. As I listened to the speeches and re-read their speeches, I can appreciate the reasons why many support Donald Trump. His rhetoric sounds very tough and very strong. We know that there are many who genuinely gravitated to people who appear strong, whose words are strong, who exude strength, and speak in a language that offers no apologies, takes no prisoners,  makes no excuses and “tells it like it is”. As a business man, Donald Trump’s political rhetoric is remarkably similar to his business negotiations. For the Donald, every deal is about demonstrating power absolute terms. This means that after he finishes negotiating, there is nothing left of the other side. For Trump, a negotiation is really about destroying the other side. This “Art of the Deal” was a very different negotiating style than the one I learned from my grandfather. For my grandfather, a negotiation was very rarely a demonstration in power. He knew he had plenty, rather it was to demonstrate the ability to withhold the use of power. For my grandfather, a negotiation was never about vanquishing the other side, instead he always made sure “leave something on the table” in order for the counterpart to “save face”. My grandfather made sure never to humiliate his counterpart because, as he explained to me, “you never knew when and if you might need a favor from him or if have the opportunity to do more business.” Many years ago, I once wrote my grandfather’s name as a write-in vote for a Presidential election. It’s pretty safe to say, I would never vote for Trump.

             This week we read from Parsha Tzav. In it we learn that the Kohanim are responsible for their own offerings as well as making offering on behalf of the people. God instructs Moshe to teach the Kohanim their responsibilities in slaughtering the offerings, cleaning up, what must be burnt, and what the Kohen may consume. After God completes the set of instructions specifically for the Kohanim, God then instructs Moshe as to B’nai Yisroel’s responsibilities as well. Finally God instructs Moshe to make the required preparations for the Kohen to assume his position among the people. This includes the bringing of sin offerings, achieving a certain spiritual mindset as well as learning how to make all the offerings.

            As the instructions are issued concerning each offering, there is a general patter. V’Zot Torat [name of offering] Hakreiv –And this is the law of the meal offering (the peace offering, the feast offering etc.) However the Sin Offering breaks with the Parsha’s formula.  Zot Torat Ha’Chatat Bimkom Asher Tishacheit Ha’Olah Tishacheit HaChatat Lifnei Kodesh Kodashim Hu – This is the law of the sin offering; in the place where the elevation offering is slaughtered shall the sin offering be slaughtered, before God, it is most Holy (Lev. 6:18). Why is this the only offering that designates a specific place that is exactly the same as another offering? If this offering to God is so important why wouldn’t the offering take place separate in its own time and in its own location? Precisely because it is so important, and this offering requires such sensitivity, we are extremely concerned. One makes the Sin Offering after an unintentional sin is committed. If someone points out a mistake that we make, our first response might be defensive, to make excuses. This is normal if we experience shame and embarrassment. However when we are not embarrassed, when we are not humiliated then it is much easier to admit to the sin, or the mistake and apologize in a humble manner. If the Sin Offering occurred in its own location, then everyone else would know that those people had sinned and were now making offering as a form of apology. People would talk and the individual bringing the offering would perhaps be too embarrassed to work on his/her relationship to God. This is tragic. So in order to preserve the individual’s dignity, the Torah provides anonymity. Someone looking on would never know if the individual making the offering is there with a sin offering or an elevation offering. Torah creates an environment to allow the individual be forthright, honest and still save face within the community.

            As we continue to listen to Trump’s rhetoric, as we continue to be told that “he loves Israel” and that he is great negotiator; I wonder how his rhetoric will play in  a part of the world that respects power as the well as the threat of power. I wonder how his rhetoric will play in a part of the world where tribes go to war when they feel as if they are humiliated and have lost face. I wonder if he can speak with the subtle nuance that is spoken between Israel, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, a language that allows Israel to actually get along with several of her neighbors.

           

Peace,

Rav Yitz