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https://youtu.be/epAGte4bMxU #ParashatDevarim #TorahPortion

One of the premier commandments in the Torah is to “Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself”. Back in the Talmudic period, someone showed up at Hillel’s house and asked him to teach him the entire Torah as he stood on one leg. Hillel responded: “What is hateful to you, do not do to others. The rest is commentary”. Many of us remember when political debates were intellectual exercises. Two of more candidates would get on stage behind podiums, and it was a civics test. They would bring up issues from around the country on various fronts—economics, foreign relations—and we would follow along, our intellects stimulated. These days, it’s still reminiscent, but more about what we used to call “rank-out session”. Each candidate now either insults the other or finds a way to denigrate him or her, usually based on personal appearance, likes or dislikes, family members. It resembles more of the Jerry Springer show than a debate with the only thing missing is the bouncers to make sure the fisticuffs don’t get out of hand. Recently there have been other incidents as well. Now people are getting personal. Protesting isn’t enough anymore. Now, people in their businesses are refusing to serve other people because of their life styles and political affiliations. Unfortunately, it goes further than that. Social media is rife with threads posting a news source or video, with comments getting terse, aggressive and sometimes outright vulgar. There have been situations where family member ceased interacting with each other over differing points of view and opinions. It goes even further than that. People have always disagreed about politics. Now people are getting into physical fights and there are reports of aggression. When and how did it get so bad? In my company, we all interact virtually on line. Someone, in order to make a more cohesive work force, decided to start a thread called “water cooler” where people could take a few minutes out of the day and converse by a virtual water cooler. Today’s question was what do you miss out of your past that is no longer available? My answer, and there were agreements: civility. King Solomon, in his Book of Proverbs, stated, “Who is strong? One who controls their passions.” There isn’t a lot of control going on. Some political strategists years ago started tapping into this suppressed frustration. By addressing it they fueled it and thus opened the lid on the Pandora’s Box of emotions. It snowballed into the current situation where these days people feel that now not only is it OK to act out, but the new normal. It’s hard to stop a charging bull. It’s hard to stand in front of a gushing fire hose and contain the water of years of pent-up resentment and anger let loose. But it has to stop and there are signs that people are starting to get fed up. The best way to change the current situation is to be, yourself, a beacon of hope. Follow the time-tested tenets of our religion. It may be hard to love your neighbor, but you can sure respect them. When someone goes into a tirade, refuse to reinforce by taking part. Either remain silent, change the subject, or walk away. Eric Berne, in his landmark book, “Transactional Analysis”, discussed his adaptation of Freud’s make-up of the human psyche as ego states. When someone cathects or activates their inner child by expressing unrestrained passions, you can cathect the adult and be the logical Mr. Spock and address their queries with pure logic. Ask them about sources, who said what, where did the statistics come from, etc. That may quiet them down. In the final analysis, though, these people probably have unresolved anger or resentment themselves. It may help to be understanding and make it personal by asking them how all this affects them on a personal level. Maybe they had an IRA audit that ruined their finances. Perhaps a family member had a medical illness that the current system seemed to slough off. Perhaps by being understanding, you may help them through these issues and resolve some issues. And then we are being good Jews by truly loving our neighbors and bringing just a little peace to the world.

https://youtu.be/RL7RnRRX6P4 #ParashaMattotMasei #TorahPortion

This week’s Torah portion is Phinehas. While the portion addresses various topics, one of those topics talks about the rights of women, and more important, fairness. It would seem that while the #MeToo movement is new, and the Equal Rights Amendment campaign was started a mere 40 years ago, they are barely in their infancy compared to Judaism. Yes, the idea of women’s rights for the Israelites goes back about 3200 years, literally to the time of Moses. And the issue isn’t just about women’s rights, it’s about doing what is right. In this portion, we see a census, not just of all the tribes, but the clans within those tribes. One of the clans within the tribe of Mannasheh was the family of Tselophahad. This is a man who had only had daughters and died without giving birth to any sons. This presented a problem. These four women went to Moshe Rabbeinu and entreated him. They said that in this male-dominated real estate system, since property was handed down generation to generation to only the sons, this would mean that their ancestral divinely-granted properly would pass out of their family forever. This would also be the case in any similar situation. Moshe then goes into his tent and inquires of Hashem. Hashem states that the daughters of Tselophahad speak true. He told Moses that while land would primarily pass to sons, in the event of a man having no sons and only daughters, the latter would then be the heirs. This way, the land would stay in their family or clan. This would certainly be considered an early victory for the women’s rights movement. But consider that there is also a much larger issue involved. That is “fairness”. Hashem is a perfect Being. He is omniscient, and as we read in our psalms that are designated for Shabbat, He metes out Devine Justice. So the judgment was based on only that: fairness. The daughters of Tselophahad approached Moshe and their inquiry was sincere. Their concern was only for getting what they felt should be theirs based on the underlying principle of the system, that property should be passed down generation to generation remaining in the family or clan. Since Hashem recognized the logic of their concern and accepted the sincerity of their request, He granted it in the way of a brand, new commandment. Consider then, the basis of the decision. There was no pre-conceived notions about the place of women or whether women should get power or be equal to men. I was about one thing and one thing only, what is the right thing to do under the circumstances, devoid of any other characteristics. As we, ourselves, go through life, it’s important that we approach life in this same way. In our interactions with others, how many times does ego get in the way? How many times do we consider a decision not just on the merits of the consequences, but also the impact it may have on our own esteem? There was never any thought about how that decision may emasculate men, which, by the way, it wouldn’t. But maybe human males might think that if women were able to inherit property, next is being a Kohen or a Kohen Gadol and then what do we do? Interestingly enough, these days women are becoming more prominent in the religious management of synagogues by becoming rabbis and cantors. Many men might feel threatened. Yet, if a woman can do a better job, given the same circumstances, why not let her take that role? For some, the introduction of a woman in the competition poses yet another reason why we may not get what we want. In the case of the daughters of Tselophahad, the land really should stay in the family anyway. Many times, our insecurities prevent us from being fair as we seek ways to give ourselves an advantage. The obvious path would be to do what we have to do to make sure we are the best and best-suited for that to which we aspire. That may mean working harder and smarter. It may also mean accepting a loss…which may not be a loss at all, but rather a divine intervention that what we seek is not in our best interests. So the point to all of this is that we make sure we are doing our best to maintain equity. We are made in G-d’s image. Part of that image is to be as divinely just as we can and make decisions based on fairness. It may threaten our egos a bit, but we should always live life doing what is right. And usually, there’s a mitzvah attached to it.

https://youtu.be/uGIiSmn9ARI #ParashaPinchas #DvarTorah #TorahPortion

Many of us get into situations and challenges in life that can be trying and frustrating. Often, we will just accept the fact that our plans have been redirected and accept that it is “G-d’s plan”. Such is also our acceptance of the situation when either things don’t work out as we thought they would or should. This week’s Torah portion (June 30, 2018) is Balak and highlights that concept. Balak was a Moabite King who contracted with Balaam, a wizard and a prophet, to curse the Israelites. Balaam set out to do just that, but HaShem had a different idea. First a little background. According to some commentators, Israel was the only people with a prophet. G-d gave each one of the 70 nations a similar prophet. This way, none of them could say that Israel had an unfair advantage in battle. Balaam was such a prophet. He was also, however, a wizard. He supposed knew that one time during the day that G-d meted out judgment and so was able to coordinate his cursing of a people with that time. So this is why Balak hired him and what he set out to do. Along the way, he was met first by Hashem who inquired what he was going to do, and then by an angel who got in his way and prevented him from traveling. The word that was used, by the way, was “satan”. “Satan” really means obstruction, and fyi, this is the first time we encounter The angel then informed Balaam that he was not going to curse Israel but would bless them with the words that Hashem would put in his mouth. Balaam then goes through three sets of blessings for Israel. The last blessing was so beautiful that the sages decreed it to be part of the service. “How goodly are your dwellings, O Jacob, your sanctuaries, O Israel”. So here we have a prime example of a plan that resulted better than the original plan. For us, anyway. For Balaam, consider the fact that even though things didn’t go his way, he ended up doing a mitzvah. Of course, it would have been better for him had it been his idea…. Probably all of us have heard that saying, “G-d answers all prayers, but sometimes the answer is ‘no’”. Consider probably a better postulate that we would consider in Judaism: “G-d answers all prayers, but sometimes the answer is ‘no, I have a better plan in mind’”. As He did in the case of Balaam and King Balak. How many times have we wanted or desired something. We work hard, put all the pieces together, and then it seems like everything goes wrong. We’re frustrated, and we throw our hands up and wonder why G-d doesn’t like us, or what did we do to not deserve this success. But then, things progress in a different direction and in retrospect, we see that things happened better than we thought. That’s because a mind that is omniscient is in charge. G-d knows better than we do. Now this doesn’t mean we should just sit back and do nothing and wake up every day and say, “OK, G-d, You’re in charge. Rouse me when you got it all prepared”. Judaism is a religion of action. Our commandments all pretty much start with “do” or “do not”. So it’s not just OK but expected that we live our lives taking some sort of action, doing some activity. Yes, make plans. But be aware. Be alert to what’s happening, how things play out, and then go with it. Be the CEO of your life and let HaShem be the COO. Obstructions may be there not to confound your plans but as a sign to change direction. Obstructions may actually save you from pursuing a course of action, that while supposedly leading to success, may end up causing more problems. These obstructions may end up saving us a lot of grief. So while Satan may seem to be an enemy, Satan, as G-d’s prosecuting attorney, might just save you from making big mistakes. Enjoy your life, make plans, and remember to always be alert to what’s happening and use it to the fullest. That way, you will enjoy success and happiness. And not be cursed.

https://youtu.be/_-dCBFG0VRo #ParashahBalak #TorahPortion

People show up for Friday night and Saturday morning services after a challenging week for spiritual inspiration. They come to hear prayers that soothe and calm them and citations from Torah, Prophets and Writings that will make it seem all worthwhile and put it all together. They look for meaning. Most of what we read and discuss does just that. There are also some commandments in the Torah that seem to have no logical basis to them. This week’s Torah portion is “Hukat”. A Hukat is a decree. Most commandments are understandably based in reality. The commandment, for example, “don’t steal” is very straightforward: if it’s not yours, don’t touch it. HaShem in His omniscience gives everyone what they need and deserve and by taking someone else’s stuff, you’ve gone against G-d’s plan and thus G-d Himself. Besides, society would deteriorate, and nothing would get done if everyone had to constantly worry about protecting their belongings. A Hukat by contract, is a proclamation that seems to make no sense at all. This week’s parish starts off addressing the procedure of the red heifer. This is a cow that is entirely red—two different colored hairs disqualify it—that is used in the sacrificial rite to purify anyone who comes in contact with a corpse. It makes no sense. Why not just take a shower? A similar hukat is the laws of Kashrut. The prime directive is “Don’t cook a kid in his mother’s milk”. As we proceed through the Torah, we are introduced to a whole laundry list of living creatures that we can not eat. Why can we eat cows and deer, but not pork? And why can’t we have a cheeseburger? Why chicken and turkey but not ostrich? Why carp and trout and not lobster and shrimp? We read these names of animals to the end waiting for the explanation. At the end we are met simply with the words, “…and you will be holy to your G-d”. Although we can understand this, it also seems kind of vague. It’s Friday evening. You take your family out to a restaurant. While you’re waiting for your food, your wait person brings you a basket of bread and a bottle of wine. You put on your kippot and pull out two candles. Of course, in this day and age, to light candles you’d have to be outside in the smoking section under the heat lamps. But what a great way to take our family out to dinner and celebrate Shabbat at the same time. Simply put: because we don’t. We don’t go to place that we know is not kosher (and a kosher restaurant would not be open on Friday night, of course), and speak words of Hashem that tell us not to follow our hearts or our eyes but follow the commandments. Jews have speculated for years what the purpose of these degrees is, especially kashrut. Some will say that there are certain health reasons that are only now in the modern age starting to come to light. Some will say that back in the olden days before hot water and dishwashers that raw meat could seep into clay eating ware and when combined with milk would leave one contaminated with germs. The sages would simply say that it doesn’t matter, it’s a decree from HaShem. How does this make us better people? In these times when man searches for meaning, how do these decrees enliven our spirit? How do we rationalize these obscure acts? We don’t. We go with them. Consider that we’re not doing anything to harm ourselves or others. But as Captain Kirk (played by a Jew) said to Charlie X: “There’s a million things in the Universe you can have and there’s a million things you can’t”. The bottom line, though? Ask any Marine why they do a lot of things and they’ll give a one-word, straightforward answer: discipline. We all know why we fast during Yom Kippur: to afflict ourselves and atone for our sins. But there is, as typical in Judaism, other reasons as well. And many a Marine would be proud to know that we afflict ourselves for discipline, to train ourselves to resist temptation. Many sages would also tell you that part of the reason may to wean us from indulging temptations which are the desires of the body. In this way, we get more used to our spiritual selves. In this way, we can minimize the desires that lead us to sin in general. Finally, this also sets us apart. We are a holy people, sanctified to Hashem. Yes, there may be times when it is not so convenient, but that is what makes us strong and has kept us alive as a people for thousands of years.

https://youtu.be/g_iD_KW5Nx8

Someone who was Christian, Catholic actually, was expressing frustration at a concept he was told by a priest. In the gospel, Jesus is quoted as saying that when two people are together is when he comes to them. He wanted to know why it takes two, or more, and why wouldn’t he get the same consideration if praying by himself? In Judaism we have a similar concept. There are certain prayers, sanctifications, which require a minyan in order to be said during services. Additionally, there is no repetition of the silent standing prayer (“Amidah”, “Tefillah”) unless there is that quorum of 10. Also, without the mandatory and minimum ten, we can’t even take out the Torah! He was dismayed at the thought that unless there are multiple participants in prayer, the prayers are not effective, or just plain don’t count. This isn’t such a foregone conclusion. Considering the context and framing of that type of requirement, who wouldn’t be dismayed that G-d only hears a crowd, not an individual? The reality, however, is different than the assumption. It is true that these sanctification prayers are supposed to be done only with a minyan. The sanctification prayers are the Kaddishes, which includes the Mourner’s Kaddish, and the Kedushah that is said during the reader’s repetition of the Amidah which incorporates the third prayer of HaShem’s name. One may think that without the quorum, our prayers are either not effective or outright useless. Remember, first of all, that most of our prayer service was developed after the destruction of the second Temple. The idea that these specific prayers can only be said with a minyan is from the Torah that states, “the people of Israel will sanctify the Lord”. Since “people” is plural, rather than just two or even three as in the case of the Birchat Hamazon, they derived the idea that it requires a minyan of ten. Consider also that the concept of having prayers that can only be said with a minyan may be a motivation to get a lot of people to pray together and thus keep the community together and focused on practicing Judaism. Of course, the idea that an individual by him or herself cannot pray alone would certainly contradict our Torah. After all, each of our patriarchs is credited with initiating each of the three daily prayer services (Morning-Afternoon-Evening) and each of them was alone when they first prayed to HaShem. Certainly, there wasn’t enough Jews in the world, let alone locally, to even consider a minyan. There are those of us who do pray three times daily and especially out here, the chances of getting a minyan for any one of those services is remote. Yet there is still a prayer service. The actual kiddushim that require a minyan are a very small percentage of the service, maybe five per cent. So we can still certainly pray on our own and hit almost all of the prayers, thus saying what we would want to say to G-d, expressing our innermost desires, supplications, thanks and acknowledgments. Even without a minyan, our praying is effective. In fact, that doesn’t mean we can’t study Torah. There is no preclusion for reading and studying Torah at any time, let alone during a morning service. What this does mean is that without the minyan we can’t do a specific Torah service in which we take out the Torah from the Ark, parade it around and then read directly from it. But as many people know, we have still done a D’var Torah on a Saturday morning even without the required ten. Now we have another concept. If we don’t ultimately need a minyan to pray so much of the service, why even bother? Why hold formal services at all? Why not pray at home and save gas and the bother of dressing up and wasting money on gas, or time to walk to shul? So that we can come together as a community and support each other. United we stand, divided we fall. Our sense of community has helped us survive for the last 2000 years in exile. When we come together to pray and see our brothers and sisters next to us reciting the same prayers with the same “cavod”/dedication, we feel part of something great. And that feeling of togetherness is not just about praying; it’s about supporting each other socially and financially. That’s a main concept in praying: coming together. When it is Saturday morning and we are spending time studying Torah, we are sharing ideas. When we share ideas, we feel as part of a community. And that’s what it’s about. #FridayNightSermon

https://youtu.be/T_zcUI3Zio8 #DvarTorah #ParashaKorach #TorahPortion #ParashChukat

https://youtu.be/uG66wenLFjQ #TorahPortion #DvarTorah #ParashaShelach