Nitzavim - Va Yelech
Deuteronomy 29:9 -31:30
Précis: This week we read two parshiot together. In Nitzavim, Moses continues to address the People: You stand (nitzavim) this day before God. In his final words to the People, Moses recounts the wonders God has done for the people, and calls upon them to remain loyal to God through the covenant. The extent of the covenant relationship is explained: it will survive exile and captivity with a return to the Land. The Torah is an “open book” that is accessible to all the People. A blessing and a curse have been set before the People, and they are to choose their path. Moses urges them to choose the blessing, to choose life, so that they may inherit the Land which God has sworn to their forefathers.
In Va Yelech, the death of Moses approaches, and he transfers his mantle of leadership to Joshua as his successor. Moses orders regular reading of the Law, and then transfers the written Torah into the hands of the Levites for safekeeping in the Ark of the Covenant.
Deuteronomy 30:11-14: “Surely, this instruction which I urge upon you today is not too baffling for you, or beyond reach….No, it is a thing that is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart, to observe it.”
This week, we approach the end of one year and the beginning of the next with Rosh Hashanah. Every year, we ask ourselves, essentially, “where do we go from here?” The answer suggested in this verse is that the Torah (and our tradition) can offer us a road map.
Amy Perlin (Ten Minutes of Torah, 8/30/10) points to a Talmudic story about Rabbi Joshua ben Chananiah (Eiruvin 53b). Rabbi Joshua was walking on an unfamiliar road and came to a crossroads, finding a young boy. He asked for directions to the town. The boy, pointing to the left and said, “This road is near but far” and then gestured to the right, saying “That road is far but near.” The Rabbi chose the route that was “near but far” but soon found an impenetrable barrier of thorny bushes and fences blocking his way to the town. When he retraced his steps and upbraided the boy, the youngster responded that he had acted innocently: “Didn’t I say that this road is near but far? It is the nearer road if you ask about distance on a map, but because of the barriers, it is the farther in time. I said that the other way was far but near. It is further on the map, but nearer because the path there is clear.”
This verse I chose to focus on this week reminds us that the Torah is “close to you.” Too often, we are like Rabbi Joshua. We ask for directions but we don’t listen closely to the response. Even more, we may not ask the key follow-up question. We don’t think things through, we jump to conclusions. This is true in our workday lives and in our interactions with family and friends.
This Rosh Hashanah, we have a choice we are faced with every year: do we take the easy route or do we take the path that will actually help us reach the desired goal? Indeed, we ask ourselves, “What is that goal?”
One answer is, “To live a life worth living.” To reach that goal, we need to take the path which is far but near. It may take a long time to follow such a path, and it may take prayer, contemplation, observance of mitzvot, care for others, and study. This path may be far, but it is near. Shabbat Shalom and Shanah Tovah.
Friday, September 23, 2011
Friday, September 16, 2011
What goes on behind closed doors matters, too
Ki Tavo
Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8
Précis: The parasha contains numerous religious mandates regarding the formation of a civil and moral community (including tithes of first fruits and tithes to support the Levites). The People are promised that if they follow God’s instructions, they will be transformed into a “holy people.” They are further instructed that they have a choice in their own destiny: there are blessings and curses (the “Admonition”), and they must to choose between the two - and take the consequences. The parasha ends with Moses reminding the People about all that God had done for them in bringing them from Egypt, providing sustenance, defeating their foes, and giving them the Land.
Deut. 17:15-26 “‘Cursed be the man who makes a carved or cast metal image, an abomination to the Lord... cursed be anyone who dishonors his father or his mother.... cursed be anyone who moves his neighbor's landmark.... cursed be anyone who misleads a blind man.... cursed be anyone who perverts the justice due to the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow.... cursed be anyone who lies with his father's wife... cursed be anyone who lies with any kind of animal.... cursed be anyone who lies with his sister.... cursed who lies with his mother-in-law... cursed be anyone who strikes down his neighbor in secret.... cursed be anyone who takes a bribe to shed innocent blood... cursed be anyone who does not confirm the words of this law by doing them."
The list of curses in these verses is interesting. All relate to things that someone could do when they think they are alone, without other people to observe their behavior. The first and last of the curses deal with a person's relationship with God (do not make idols, observe God's commandments). The other curses deal with family relationships (do not insult your mother or father) and with moral behavior (sexual impropriety, do not misdirect a blind person on his way). According to Rabbi Plaut, these particular activities leading to curses were chosen because they were "unpunishable by human courts" since they were acts committed in secret.
There is a story about what Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakkai said to his disciples when they asked him for a blessing before he died. "May you fear God as much as you fear other people," he told them. "Only that much?" his disciples asked, clearly disappointed by his response. Rabbi Yochanan responded, "You fear the disapproval of other people so much that you refrain from doing in public that which you readily do in private.” (Berakhot 28b). Our tradition is suggesting through this story that the mark of great character in an individual is that he or she refrains from improper actions even when unobserved.
As we approach the Yamim Noraim, many of us know that it is our responsibility to ask forgiveness from others we may have harmed during the prior year. These are public sins for which repentance is required. Now is also an appropriate time to consider those acts we may have taken in private for which repentance is also due. This requires real introspection, and perhaps more than a bit of courage.
Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8
Précis: The parasha contains numerous religious mandates regarding the formation of a civil and moral community (including tithes of first fruits and tithes to support the Levites). The People are promised that if they follow God’s instructions, they will be transformed into a “holy people.” They are further instructed that they have a choice in their own destiny: there are blessings and curses (the “Admonition”), and they must to choose between the two - and take the consequences. The parasha ends with Moses reminding the People about all that God had done for them in bringing them from Egypt, providing sustenance, defeating their foes, and giving them the Land.
Deut. 17:15-26 “‘Cursed be the man who makes a carved or cast metal image, an abomination to the Lord... cursed be anyone who dishonors his father or his mother.... cursed be anyone who moves his neighbor's landmark.... cursed be anyone who misleads a blind man.... cursed be anyone who perverts the justice due to the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow.... cursed be anyone who lies with his father's wife... cursed be anyone who lies with any kind of animal.... cursed be anyone who lies with his sister.... cursed who lies with his mother-in-law... cursed be anyone who strikes down his neighbor in secret.... cursed be anyone who takes a bribe to shed innocent blood... cursed be anyone who does not confirm the words of this law by doing them."
The list of curses in these verses is interesting. All relate to things that someone could do when they think they are alone, without other people to observe their behavior. The first and last of the curses deal with a person's relationship with God (do not make idols, observe God's commandments). The other curses deal with family relationships (do not insult your mother or father) and with moral behavior (sexual impropriety, do not misdirect a blind person on his way). According to Rabbi Plaut, these particular activities leading to curses were chosen because they were "unpunishable by human courts" since they were acts committed in secret.
There is a story about what Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakkai said to his disciples when they asked him for a blessing before he died. "May you fear God as much as you fear other people," he told them. "Only that much?" his disciples asked, clearly disappointed by his response. Rabbi Yochanan responded, "You fear the disapproval of other people so much that you refrain from doing in public that which you readily do in private.” (Berakhot 28b). Our tradition is suggesting through this story that the mark of great character in an individual is that he or she refrains from improper actions even when unobserved.
As we approach the Yamim Noraim, many of us know that it is our responsibility to ask forgiveness from others we may have harmed during the prior year. These are public sins for which repentance is required. Now is also an appropriate time to consider those acts we may have taken in private for which repentance is also due. This requires real introspection, and perhaps more than a bit of courage.
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