Do You Remember Hearts Were Too Cold; Season Had Frozen Us Into Our Souls (Peter Monk & Phil Lesh - "Passenger")

           In the Haggadah we read, B’chol Dor V’Dor Chayev Adam Lirot Et Atsmo K’Ilu  Hoo Yatzah M’Mitzrayim-“In every generation on is obliged to see himself as though he himself had actually gone forth from Egypt." Implied in the Haggadah is the notion that “the Telling” of the Pesach story will be much more meaningful if we put ourselves there. As much as we complain about the Pesach preparations, the cleaning, the cooking, the washing, and the shopping; we prepare ourselves. In a sense, we began the process of putting ourselves back in Egypt at the time of the Exodus over the past few weeks. As we celebrate the final days of Pesach, we are reminded that Yetziat Mitzrayim did not end when B’nai Yisroel marched out of Egypt. Yetziat Mitzrayim continued for weeks, marked Kriyat Yam Suf (the crossing of the Reed Sea). Yetziat Mitzrayim continued for months, marked by Matan Torah (The Giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai) nearly two months later (50 days). Yetziat Mitzrayim continued for a year, marked by the completion of the Mishkan and the beginning of the journey to Eretz Canaan. Yetziat Mitzrayim continue for 40 years until an entire generation passed away replaced by children and grandchildren born as free souls.

          This Shabbat is the last day of the Pesach Festival, it is a Yom Tov similar to the first two days of the Pesach Festival. The only difference is that we do not participate in a Seder. Also, the final day of Pesach is marked by Yizkor. The Torah portion for the 7th Day of Pesach is that excerpt from Parsha Beshallach, which includes the narrative of Bnai Yisroel being sent out of Egypt and one week later arriving at the shores and then successfully crossing the Yam Suf. The Torah reading for the 8th day of Pesach is an excerpt from  Devarim, Parsha Re’eh (14:22-16:17). Moshe is speaking to the generation born in freedom, invoking the memories of their parents and grandparents' experiences as slaves as he re-iterates the laws necessary for a community to function: The laws of Second Tithes (think social safety net), remission of loans, being charitable to the less fortunate and finally, the re-iteration of the sanctity of the Shalosh Regalim - the Three Festival: Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot. 

          How are we supposed to fulfill the Haggadah’s obligation of Lirot Et Atsmo K’Ilu  Hoo Yatzah M’Mitzrayim - see yourself as if you left Egypt if the narrative of Yetziat Mitzrayim is at least a 40-year experience? Perhaps the answer is playing out in Ukraine. A people fights for its freedom against the tyranny of Putin’s Russia. A small group of Ukrainian soldiers in a Mariupol steel factory holds out against the Russian army. The symbol is powerful and unmistakable. Some analysts invoke the image of the Alamo. When a small band of Texans fought off the Mexican Army for a while only to be overwhelmed and killed. That event served as an inspiring reminder as Texas fought to break away from the Mexican Empire. A more Jewish symbol that is certainly more geographically and Pesach relevant occurred 80 years ago this week. The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was a small group of starving Jews who resisted the Nazi war machine for three weeks. The symbol of a small band of starving Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto filled with courage faith, a few guns and Molotov cocktails would inspire not only other WWII partisans but also those Jews who fought for the birth of Israel and continues to provide meaning today. 

          Whatever happens to those soldiers in the battle for Mariupol, we are witnessing the creation of a symbolic national moment. For any people that have been forced to struggle for their freedom, any community that has had to struggle to throw off the shackles of slavery and tyranny, symbols of that struggle are vital. Symbols of those events unite those who experienced the event and participated in that particular national moment and narrative.  Symbols of those events also bind future generations to their past by giving those future generations a meaningful present. Perhaps seeing ourselves as having left Egypt reminds us that freedom and liberty should never be taken for granted but instead is something that requires faith, and courage to fight for when necessary.

Shabbat Shalom & Chag Sameach,
Rav Yitz

Sorry That You Feel That Way, The Only Thing There Is To Say Every Silver Lining's Got A Touch Of Grey (John Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Touch of Grey"

         Well, by the time the Shabbat begins; Passover will have passed. At Passover\s conclusion, we return our kitchen back to normal, back to Chametz. Pesach dishes, pots, pans, and utensils are wrapped, boxed, and stored away for another year. Hopefully, everything will return to normal by the time Shabbat begins. As my wife and I get just a little bit older, and our home is now filled with three teen-agers who quite capable young people, we expect them to help us prepare for Pesach and to clean up after Pesach. I am willing to bet that our son will disappear into his room, claiming he is tired. What’s so amazing about that idea is that he hasn’t had school all week. He sleeps until 11 every morning. How can he be tired? He could have stayed up but he opted for bed. Ironically, he always asks to stay up. However, if cleaning up, and schlepping boxes are involved, he will discover the idea of fatigue. As for our teenage daughters, well for about 15 minutes the 19-year-old helped and then she will get sidetracked with speaking to her friend. The 17-year-old will be unable to find the motivation to help unless she eats Chametz…a sandwich, a bowl of cereal, anything really. She will probably complain for an hour about the lack of anything to eat. Eventually, she will eat. When she was finally ready to help, she provided a whopping ten minutes before she lost interest and grew tired. I will get very frustrated with my three helpful teenagers.. So, my poor wife and I will wrap, pack, and clean, and they will do next to nothing. I am sure I will say something expressing my anger and frustration then step outside before anything worse came out of my mouth, When I go back inside, I will have a calmer conversation with our kids and everyone will apologize. Hopefully, everyone will understand the importance of offering of humility. Without it, it can be very difficult to apologize.
         This Shabbat, we resume the weekly Torah Readings with Parsha Shemini. Divided into three chapters, Parsha Shemini begins the narrative aspects of the book of Leviticus. Until now, we have read God’s speaking to Moshe about all the various Korbonot (offerings) and Moshe speaking to B’nai Yisroel and the Kohanim about all the Korbonot (offerings). Now, Aaron, the Kohen Gadol, begins his preparations for and then engages in the actual slaughtering of the Ram as part of his own Sin Offering. First, the Kohen Gadol must be without blemish, without sin, and ritually pure before he begins serving as the conduit between the individual/community and God. When the Kohen is ritually impure and attempts to approach God inappropriately we learn the results, as does Aaron (Lev. 10:1-2). Finally, we learn how the individual/the community can aspire to be holy without Kohen Gadol’s involvement. We learn this by the Torah’s enumeration of all the animals that are prohibited for consumption.
          The Parsha begins with the word VaYehi: It was on the eighth day; Moses summoned Aaron and his sons, and the elders of Israel (Lev. 9:1). In the Talmudic tractate of Megillah (10b) we are taught that the word VaYehi often serves as foreshadow for troubling events. The Midrash teaches that this Parsha occurred on the first of Nissan, an incredibly happy time since it serves as an indicator of Zman Cheiruteinu – the Time of our Freedom and the Pesach holiday. However, this is a bittersweet moment. The sweetness is the fact that the community is gathering together for the dedication of the Mishkan. The bitterness lay in the fact that a Mishkan is even necessary. Prior to the sin of the Eigel Zahav (Golden Calf), there was no need for a place for Bnai Yisroel to gather and engage in communal and individual Tshuva. Following the sin of the Eigel Zahav, we as individuals and as a community required a central gathering place to atone for our sins, and engage in Tshuvah. Next, we read Vayomer El Aharon Kach Lecha Eigel ben Bakar L’Chatat – [Moshe] said to Aaron: Take for yourself a young bull for a sin offering…(Lev. 9:3).What sin offering? What did Aaron do wrong that a Sin-offering was required? Precisely because of Aaron’s involvement in the Golden Calf debacle, he needs to atone. So Aaron must bring a Chatat offering, a sin offering. Aaron must admit his sin, atone for it, and seek a spiritual return to God (Tshuvah) prior to serving on the behalf of the people. Even more powerful than Aaron’s fulfilling this obligation is the fact that Aaron’s two remaining sons, the Elders, and the entire assembly will bear witness to Aaron’s humbling of himself. Not only will Aaron know that he is worthy to serve on behalf of the people, but the people will know as well.
          Our sages hold Aaron in very high esteem. While the Rabbinic Sages are troubled with the way he handled himself during the incident of the Golden Calf; it is here in Parsha Shemini, when Aaron publicly humbles himself, we understand Aaron’s meritorious conduct. Aaron’s behavior provides a powerful lesson for any individual in a position of authority or leadership. Our ability to engage in heartfelt Tshuva does not diminish our authority but rather enhances it. Ironically, we will be so quick to return to Chametz, to our kitchen and too our lives. We will forget all about Matzah, the Lechem Oni, We will forget that Chametz is symbolic of arrogance and Matzah is symbolic of humility. So even though Passover will have passed over, we will have one more lesson about Chametz and Matzah, about the Lechem Oni and humility as we return our kitchen back to normal.

Peace,
Rav Yitz

But I Would Slave To Learn the Way To Sink Your Ship Of Fools ( Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Ship of Fools")

For the past couple of weeks, I have watched my wife, like many Jewish women who clean for Pesach, who make a Seder (or two) act as if they are not only slaves in Egypt but slaves in their respective homes. Because of the COVID 19 pandemic, we haven’t had the luxury of a cleaning lady help us. This has only added to the amount of aggravation and the extra work for all of us. As time slowly ticked away towards the First Night of Pesach, my wife would look up from what she was cutting, mixing, cooking or cleaning and wonder aloud, “How will this ever get done?” In other moments of anxiety, she would exclaim, “I am so far behind my schedule!”. Yet my wife managed to get everything done.  Granted, if we were really enslaved in Egypt, like so many Jewish Women,  I think she would have been too exhausted to leave! Indeed, the first two days of Pesach focus upon our bondage in Egypt, our preparations for Yetzitat Mitzrayim, and eventual freedom as symbolized by the Sedarim. However, Pesach is an eight festival. Certainly, it makes the beginning of the festival should focus upon our national experience of slavery and the immediate moments that led to our ancestors’ freedom. Once B’nai Yisroel left Egypt and began making their way toward The Reed Sea (The Yam Suf), they were free. They were free to travel, free to worship, and free to serve God. Yet, the process of becoming a free people was still in its nascent stages.  

Now we have entered into the intermediate days of Pesach, commonly referred to as Chol Moed. On this Shabbat, Shabbat Chol HaMoed Pesach, our focus begins to shift from the Yetziat Mitzrayim, the Exodus from Egypt, to B’nai Yisroel’s return to the land that God promised to our Patriarchs. The language has subtly shifted from leaving slavery and entering into freedom. The language has shifted from completing our exile and returning to our covenantal home. We see this in our reading of Shir HaSHirim the Song of Songs. While the text is clearly about the Springtime love of a young man and woman; ChaZaL, our Sages of Blessed Memory, explains that Shir HaSHirim is a Metaphor for this mutually very new and loving relationship between God and B’nai Yisroel. This is a love that has been renewed and this is a love in which both return to each other. Likewise, the Haftorah, from the Prophet Ezekiel (37:1-14), also focus upon B’nai Yisroel’s return from the Babylonian exile to its covenantal land. 

Ezekiel does not focus on the intensely loving relationship between God and the B’nai Yisroel. However, he does focus on slavery as another form of exile and redemption from exile as the ultimate form of liberation from slavery. Ezekiel lived before and after the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash HaRishon, the First Holy Temple. It is here in this Haftorah, that Ezekiel shares with the people his prophecy of the “Dried Bones” that are in the land. Ko Amar Adoshem Elokim L’Atzamot HaEilah  Hinei Ani Mavi Vachem Ruach Vichyitem – Thus says the Eternal God to those bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live (Ez.37:5). From a literal perspective, Ezekiel is prophesying that God will bring these bones, the thousands of Jews that perished in the destruction of Jerusalem and the First Temple, back to life. These bones will experience the ultimate return from exile; they will return from death to life. However, Judaism doesn’t generally subscribe to re-incarnation or physical life after physical death. Rather Ezekiel’s prophecy invokes a very powerful symbol. Slavery, in its ultimate and most devastating form, is spiritual slavery. Spiritual slavery is a function of being exiled from God, exiled from that fundamentally loving relationship based upon a covenant. When we are exiled from God, when we are spiritually afar from God, we are spiritually lifeless. We are only bones. We are not human. To be human means to be close to God for we are created B’Tzelem Elokim – in the image of God.  

We all experience spiritual slavery yet our own personal redemption; our moving closer to God’s presence is a direct function of God breathing Ruach HaKodesh – his Holy Spirit into our Neshama. This occurs through the Study of Torah. This occurs through prayer. This occurs by engaging in Gemilut Chasadim, by giving Tzedakah, and by Bikur Cholim – visiting the sick. In today’s troubling times, perhaps this means connecting through the numerous platforms available such as WhatsApp, or Zoom to name a few.   By making the Jewish community a more learned, and a more caring community we become less enslaved by greed, selfishness, and arrogance. 

Peace, 

Rav Yitz

Steal Your Face Right Off Your Head (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia- "He's Gone"

          My wife and I are very different. She gets very emotional about every milestone our children reach. Normally with the arrival at a milestone, my wife will think that our child in question has grown older which of course means that she has grown older. I don’t necessarily see our children’s’ milestones as a reflection of my aging. I’m older and I feel that way. No, I can’t believe that we at the milestone, I can’t believe that the child in question is really old enough to achieve this milestone, and I wonder if reaching the milestone will give them a sense of maturity and becoming a person. Three of our four children reached milestones this week. Our 12^th grader had to make a decision about college/university. So she will spend a year in Israel and with the intention of going university in the U.S. Our 10^th grader just turned 16 and she will be taking her G1 test (permit test in America) before the end of the May. Since we had already sent a daughter to college and we have had two daughters turn 16; I wasn’t too emotional about either milestone. However, I was happy for both daughters who reached their respective milestone. However, it was the milestone of our son, our youngest child, which I found most meaningful. Since the second night of Pesach, as is the custom associated with Sefirat Ha’Omer (The Counting of the Omer); I haven’t shaved until this week which was the 33 day of the Omer (L’AG B’Omer). So I prepared to shave. However for 13 years 8 months and 23 days, our son has never shaved. So on L’AG B’Omer, he and I bonded in a way that he could never bond with his mother. I gave him his first shaving lesson. He shaved his upper lip. I shaved my face.

This Shabbat we read from Parsha Emor. In the four chapters that comprise Emor, the first deals with the Kohanim and their very different way of striving for holiness as compared to the rest of the nation. For example, because of the Kohen’s function within society, he must remain in a perpetual state of purity. He is restricted in terms of who he can marry. He is restricted in terms of for whom he mourns. He cannot go to a cemetery. He cannot make sacrificial offerings if he has physical abnormalities. The second chapter reminds B’nai Yisroel that all animal offerings must be blemish free. These offerings must come directly from the individual making them and not from “the hand of a stranger” (Lev.22:25). Both chapters deal with the holiness of certain people, the Kohen and his family, and certain animals, those designated for sacrificial offering. The third chapter of the Parsha deals with the designation of holiness in regards to seasons and the calendar including Shabbat, Pesach, Shavuot, Sukkot, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The fourth chapter offers a narrative in which the son of an Israelite woman and Egyptian man, and another Israelite man get into a fight. The son pronounced the forbidden name of God and was charged with blasphemy. The Torah tells us the punishment for blasphemy is death. This is the same punishment for an individual who commits murder. 

As the Torah upon Holiness and perhaps even Perfection, we learn that striving for Holiness and striving for Perfection requires creating a distinct separation from the mundane, the ordinary, and the less than perfect. The Torah reminds the Kohen, “Lo Yikrechu Korcha B’Rosham U’Fa’at Z’Kanam Lo Y’Galeichu UVivsaram Lo Yisr’tu Saratet- They shall not make a bald spot on their heads, and they shall not shave an edge of their beard; and in their flesh, they shall not cut a gash (Lev21:5). Rashi, the great 11th-century French commentator, explains that certain tribes that lived in Biblical Canaan, as well as Ancient Egyptians, would engage in these types of behaviors while mourning the death of a loved one. Literally, the Torah reminds the Priestly class to be sure and NOT behave like other people, don’t mourn like other people, don’t worship like other people, don’t behave like these ancient tribes of idolaters. The Chatam Sofer, one of the great 19^th century Central European Rabbis, explained that the verse has a homiletical meaning as well. The Torah reminds us not to create a bald spot upon our head, we don’t create an emptiness on our head. The Chatam Sofer understands the emptiness as ignorance, a lack of learning. The head should be filled with Torah, with mitzvoth, with doing good things in the world, and making sound, thoughtful, and intelligent choices. Sometimes that requires the person to be just a bit separate, distinct and apart from those who create an emptiness in their own respective heads. We strive to fill our heads knowledge, with Torah. We avoid creating “empty spaces”, bald spot, in our heads, knowing that what our heads are filled with or not, will be expressed in our behavior, our attitudes our relationship with our loved ones and with God.

So there we stood in front of the mirror. As I looked into the mirror, for a brief moment through the steam of the hot water, and as the mirror began to fog over I saw my father standing with me all those years ago showing me to shave. I saw my grandfather telling me to grow a mustache like he has in order to avoid shaving. My son wiped the mirror clear in order to see and the images of my father much younger than I am now and the images of my grandfather healthy, vibrant, smiling at me was wiped away. As my son and I stood there, I thought about what I had learned from these two men and wondered I would transmit all that I learned from them to my son. One thing is for sure, I won’t wait until our son has to shave his upper lip for the next time to offer them the wisdom of his grandfather and great-grandfather.

Peace,

              Rav Yitz

Come Wash The Night-Time Clean; Come Grow The Scorched Ground Green (John Barlow & Bob Weir - "Cassidy")

I have always wondered about how the rich and powerful prepare for Pesach. Sure it is very easy for me to point to Jared and Ivanka as the epitome of rich and powerful Jews. Maybe they are very busy dealing with Iraq, the Chinese Premier, or reminding her father about the importance of women entrepreneurs to roll up the old shirtsleeves and start cleaning for Pesach. I suppose they are too busy and I hope they have someone at their home cleaning up for Pesach. However it probably would have been a really good idea if Ezra Cohen- Watnick, the senior director of intelligence at the National Security Council had spent more time cleaning up for Pesach and taking out the garbage and chometz from his house instead of showing Devin Nunes (chairman of the House Intellegence Committee) the White House’s reports that justify the President’s false claim of being the subject surveillance. On Pesach we celebrate the Exodus from Egypt, we celebrate The Jewish people’s freedom from Egyptian slavery. However before Pesach, we clean. We rid our homes of chometz since one is forbidden to “own chometz” during Pesach. So we vacuum cars. We vacuum and clean under beds, under sofas, behind the refrigerator. We use special dishes, special pots and pans and cutlery designated for Pesach. We throw out lots of trash. chometz, yeast, puffed up dough, is a symbol for arrogance. The message is clear. Cleaning up after oneself is humbling. Not having to clean up after one self can lead to arrogance. We hock and remind our children to clean their dishes rather than just live them in the sink for someone else to clean.  Maybe someone should have reminded Ezra that this is the season to clean up one’s own chometz, and rid oneself of arrogance.

This week’s Parsha is Tzav. It is also Shabbat HaGadol, the Shabbat that immediately precedes Chag HaPesach, the Passover Holyday. Like last week’s Parsha, Parsha Tzav focuses upon Korbonot (offerings). While last week we read of God’s commanding Moshe to tell Aaron and his sons, this week we read of Moshe actually telling Aaron and his sons. This week we read about the actual sacrificing, the actual sprinkling, the actual burning and the actual donning of appropriate clothing. The Parshah concludes with instructions for Aaron and his sons to remain outside of the camp for seven days. These are the seven days required for spiritual and to some degree, physical preparation. The Priests must remain outside of the camp because they are in the process of purifying themselves for this extremely sacred and vital position, Kohen Gadol.

Besides Moshe, the Kohen Gadol was the most vital role within Israelite society. It was the Kohen Gadol that served as a vehicle for the common person to draw closer to God. When the common person or the king needed to atone, they would bring a sacrifice to God. However it was the Priest that had to check for blemishes. It was the priest that had to slaughter the animal in a very precise way. It was the priest that had to sprinkle the blood.  Later on it was the priest who became the “spiritual advisor” to the king. Unlike any other position, the priesthood was based upon lineage and was promised by God to Aaron for eternity (or as long as there was a Temple). Yet as important as this was for the welfare of B’nai Yisroel’s relationship to God, the Priest was eternally reminded of the importance of humility within a leader. V’hotzi et a Hadeshen el Michutz La’Machaneh el Makom Tahor-“and he shall bring the ashes to the outside of the camp, to a pure place (Lev 6:4).” Here is arguably the most important position within the community and he has to shlep the ashes out from the Mishkan. What’s even more amazing is what the Talmudic tractate Yoma teaches. The Talmud explains that the priests were so anxious to take out the ashes that a lottery system had to be introduced to pacify all those who wanted this “honor”. Anyone could have been commanded to take out the ashes. Why the Kohanim (the Priests)? Like all other aspects of the sacrificial process, the priests’ sole concern was the Temple and everything about the Temple. No task was below the priest. No aspect of the Temple remained untouched or unaffected by the Priest. The Sefer HaChinuch, a thirteenth century work enumerating and explaining all 613 Mitzvot explains that Terumat HaDeshen is a positive commandment. The priest removes these ashes daily, and in doing so, he is enhancing the Mizbeach (the altar) and beautifying it to the best of his ability. Rashi adds that the priest would wear old clothes and nice his daily Priestly Vestments or his Holiday Vestments to do this type of menial work. All agree that the Kohen was never thought to be too important for such a lowly task.

So what can we learn from Parsha Tzav, and the Priest’s most menial of tasks? First we learn just how vital it is for leadership, of any kind, to roll of its shirtsleeves and do some of the dirty work. After all, if leadership is unwilling to “to get dirty” for a greater purpose, then the purpose is not so great. Also if the leadership is unwilling “to get dirty”, why should anyone else “get dirty”? Effective leadership is not only about convincing others to act; it is about one’s observance of the same rule. No matter how important we think we are, we always should be reminded to take out the ashes. We need humility in order to remind us of where we fit in, and who we are. Possessing this humility gives us credibility when dealing with anyone. Possessing this humility reminds us of how we should treat others as well as how we wish to be treated. By participating in the preparations, by cleaning up and throwing out the garbage; we remind ourselves that Judaism is about the individual fitting into the community. Hopefully my kids will begin to appreciate the importance of throwing out the garbage.

Peace & Chag Kasher v’ Sameach,

Rav Yitz