Full Of Hope, Full Of Grace Is The Human Face - (John Barlow & Bob Weir- "Throwing Stones")

One of the joys of parenthood as well as the inconveniences of parenting occurs when I have to help my children with homework or a school project. It’s a joyous exercise because, hopefully, I will see our children intellectually stimulated and engaged. Watching our children think and arrive at the answer or a possible answer; might very well be one of the top activities I get to witness. However the inconvenience lies in the fact that sometimes they are intellectually lazy, they aren’t interested in learning but only desire the answer. Very few things leave me more frustrated than my children exhibiting intellectual laziness. The other day I had a difficult but joyous moment with our ten year old son.  Earlier in the week, we all watched the news out of the Middle East; the growing evil known as ISIS and the recent be-headings of more than 20 Egyptian Christians on the shores of Libya. We all watched; we were all repulsed; and we all wondered when this evil will be vanquished.  Later that night I was helping our son with a book report. He needed me to help him find pictures that focused upon the Ukrainian and Polish partisans that fought against the Nazis. Needless to say we found some pictures of partisans taken by partisans and we found many pictures of Partisans taken by Nazis. Needless to say the pictures taken by Nazis always featured the Partisan corpses, either hanging on a gallows or, piled in an open grave. Some showed partisans in Nazi custody.  Only pictures taken by partisans or the press featured partisans alive and free. As our son continued to scan the pictures looking for something appropriated for his book report, he began to well up and he found it more and more difficult to look.  Finally he said that he couldn’t look anymore and asked why there was and continues to be so much evil. “The world is such an ugly place.” Then he hugged me.  For a moment I had no words. For what seemed like an interminable amount of time, I couldn’t think of what to say, I couldn’t find words of comfort; words that my son needed to hear.

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; and if you’re not then all those details might seem 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. However what is not allegorical but rather spiritually re-assuring given the myriad of laws that we have read from Yitro and Mishpatim is the goodness and kindness in the human soul.

There are two moment in the Parsha that stand in stark contrast to assumptions about human nature from Parsha Mishpatim. In the previous Parsha, when we read about the prohibition of accepting bribes, perverting justice, selling servants to third parties rather than returning to them to their original owner;  we understand that there is an assumption that human nature is not so wonderful. In fact one could argue that we are supposed to rise above human nature, rise above our animal like inclination, Yetzer HaRah (the evil inclination), and be better. So when we read that God wants to live among Bnai Yisroel: V’Asu Li Mikdash  V’Shachanti B’Tocham; a Godly aspect would only do so if the dwelling, if the people’s behavior merited God’s presence.  Certainly the physical qualities of the structure would be impressive but more important is the fact that Shechinah would dwell among Bnai Yisroel as long as they did not succumb to human nature. Not succumbing to human nature became evident immediately. Before the construction, before the blueprints, Bnai Yisroel already operated above human nature. They contributed materials Kol Ish Asher Yidvenu Libo – ‘every man whose heart motivates him’ (Ex.25:1). Contributions were based upon the most divine aspect of their souls. Every aspect of the process focused upon that part of the human soul that was beyond human nature. That divine aspect merited God’s presence in the camp. That divine aspect galvanized a community, and figured out how to serve God in a way that appealed to the best of humanity.

I finally figured out the words that might bring comfort to our son as he could only see darkness, evil, and awful way in which people have been treating each other for centuries. Like the Aron would be a beautiful gold arc carrying the Ten Commandments, like people contributed selflessly rather than selfishly; I was reminded that the world has a lot of beauty. I told our son that despite what he had seen on the news and the pictures he saw while putting together his book report; the world had lots of beauty. Maybe we have to look a bit harder to find the beauty rather than ugliness, but it is there and when we find it we appreciate that much more. I reminded him that he should always work hard and search for the beauty in spite of the all the ugly he will encounter.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

The A B C's, We All Must Face, And Try To Keep A Little Grace (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Touch of Grey")

We finished celebrating Pesach and our home will soon return to normal. For a week, our kids lived on Matzah Pizza. For a week they managed to get by without a bowl of cereal for breakfast. As Pesach departed and our family did Havdalah, our children quickly screamed “Bring on the Chametz” and desperately wanted us to order Pizza. Too bad the wait time for Pizza was nearly two hours which was way past everyone’s bedtime.  The disappointment was palpable and they asked what could be done to solve the problem. From their perspective, a solution would have been to run to the store, buy pizza dough, and make pizza for everybody.  However Mommy and Daddy’s solution was a bit different.  “You can have Chametz in the morning! Now go to bed.” Their request as absurd as it was revealed so much about human nature.  When a restriction is lifted, or permission granted, it is human nature to want to be first in line. When a new I Phone is released, a group of people are always in line to be first. When tickets go on sale for Beyonce, apparently people stand in line. I remember when I was in college near Philadelphia and the tickets for the Grateful Dead Philadelphia shows went on sale, a group of us quickly organized ourselves to camp out for the few days so that we could get tickets. People want to be first in line to a premiere and some run to be first on the block to buy the newest car model or gadget.  Although it may be human nature to desire and strive to be first, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is smart or even cost effective to be first. Sometimes we need to be smart enough and mature enough to put aside human nature.

This week we read from Parsha Kedoshim, which literally means Holiness.  Hashem speaks to Moshe telling him that he should gather all of B'nai Yisroel and tell them that every aspect of life must be infused with Holiness. From the treatment of the stranger, the widow, the orphan, an employee and even our parents, there is a way to behave that is infused with Holiness and there is a way to behave that is less infused with holiness.  We are reminded that certain relationships are inherently unholy. We are reminded that certain types of worship are unholy as well. Throughout the Parsha the Mantra Ki Kadosh Ani Adonai Eloheichem – Because Holy am I the Lord your God is repeated. Of course the underlying message aimed at B’nai Yisroel was to remind them that they needed to strive beyond human nature. They needed to act differently than other people. Being involved in a covenantal relationship with Hashem means striving towards holiness; something that is beyond human nature.  

This idea of acting beyond human nature and striving for something more is emphasized at the very beginning of the Parsha. Imo V’Aviv Tira’u – Your mother and Father you shall fear.  This Commandment appears quite similar to the one of the Ten Commandments: Kabeid et Avicha v’ Et Imecha – Honor your father and mother. However there are a few differences. The first difference is that Parsha Kedoshim talks about “Tira’u” or Fear, while Ten Commandment version talks about “Kabeid” or Honor. The Second difference is the order of the parent. Regarding the commandment that invokes “fear”; “mother” appears before father. Regarding the commandment that invokes “honor”; “father” appears before “mother. At first glance we might think that the Torah is telling us that the Father is more important than the Mother hence the father should be honored first. Rashi, the 11^th Century French commentator and vintner, citing the Talmud Kiddushin 31a explained that “mother precedes father, because God knows that the father is feared more than the mother. In the Fifth commandment, which commands us to honor our parents, the mother, who generally comforts the child and is therefore honored more, is preceded by the father.” Generally speaking, children are more fearful of fathers therefore the Torah commands us to be fearful of mother. Generally speaking children honor their mothers more therefore the Torah commands us to honor fathers.  Striving towards Holiness means that we are supposed to transcend our human nature and instinct.  By doing so, we emulate God and are able to achieve holiness.

Our kids eventually had a pizza after Pesach. They eventually got their fill of Chametz. No it wasn’t the first thing they did after Pesach. By waiting, even for one extra night, there was a deeper appreciation of what they were doing, rather than the rush of being the first do it. Maybe the first bite of Pizza was not necessarily a holy act, but having them wait a few extra hours to begin ingesting Chametz added a little holiness to what is otherwise a rather mundane event known as cleaning up after Pesach.

Peace,

Rav Yitz