31 minute read
Judaism
ASK THE RABBI
Looking for answers? Send your question to Rabbi@RabbiSchochet.com
GENOCIDE IN ISRAEL
Dear Rabbi
I really appreciated what you had to say last week about Israel and our response. But how do I retort to someone who says Israel is genocidal?
Harris
Dear Harris
For one thing, you can point them in the direction of some influencers on social media who realised after the fact that their inflammatory remarks triggered all sorts of anti-Semitic responses. So they backtracked, acknowledging, as in the words of one, “This is no time for hyperbole.” In other words, the claim is hyperbole – which only reflects how dangerous it is, and the damage it can cause.
Second, let’s consider the numbers. It is true Israel dropped 1000 bombs on Gaza (Yes, you read that right). 230 people were killed as a result. Of those 230, 160 were Hamas terrorists. Israel can give you their names, where they lived and what they did. That leaves 70 civilians, and that is not to be undermined in any way whatsoever. Israel takes no pleasure in taking civilian lives. Take note, however, that of the 4000 missiles that Hamas sent into Israel, one third of them didn’t make the distance and fell back on their own population. So we can assume that the total number of civilian casualties caused by Israel was 47. 1000 bombs, 47 causalities. Either Israel has really bad aim (and these are high tech precision fighter jets), or – wait for it – Israel wasn’t targeting civilians, though alas that was an inevitable reality when Hamas continue to hide amongst civilians. I think the facts speak for themselves and I don’t have to preach the obvious in this column. But point that out to any hater and see what they have to say. The bottom line, as we all know is, Hamas sends their rockets over indiscriminately, hoping to kill as many Israeli civilians as possible. Israel drops its bombs with precision, hoping to avoid all civilians altogether. Ours is a false world, and, as I observed last week, the singling out of Israel for condemnation and ignoring the blatant facts, has nothing to do with anyone’s care about the Palestinians and everything to do with the undercurrent of anti-Semitism that is much like a sleeping dog – waiting to rear its ugly head once more.
TREATING INTERMARRIAGE
Dear Rabbi
I know that you often talk about tolerance of our fellow Jews. I am dealing with a real situation that I could use your guidance on. If a Jew (whom I know) who knows better and intermarries, how should one treat his or her spouse? Coldly? Warmly? Somewhere in between?
Elliott
Dear Elliott
The Talmud (Sotah) relays two separate incidents of individuals who ought to have known better and in either instance, the Talmud makes the point that one should “push away with the left hand but draw close with the right hand.”
Treatment of the non-Jewish spouse is paramount when looking to make a difference to the Jewish individual’s life. My rule of thumb is to never do anything that implies, even in the slightest, a “sanctioning” of the relationship. He or she knows you don’t recognise the spouse and you should never soften your stance in that regard. It doesn’t mean, however, that you should be offensive to a point where the Jew in questions stops engaging with you. But your left hand is reserved for the spouse while your right hand is intended for your brother or sister.
To be sure, “one doesn’t sin unless possessed by a spirit of folly.” Even as we presume the individual to “know better,” no Jew, in their right mind, would risk severing their bond with their roots. As such, there really ought not to be a distinction between the treatment of those who “know better” and others who don’t.
Moreover, the verse in Samuel (2:14:14) states: “so that no one may be kept banished.” This oft-cited verse is a fundamental principle of kiruv. Regardless of the background and awareness of the individual, they have a pintele Yid – a Jewish spark - which flickers within. The fact that you are now encountering them is no mere coincidence. It means that it is now your responsibility to trigger that soul thus enabling the spark to become a passionate spiritual inferno. Find the balance between the rejecting left hand and embracing right hand and look to bring them home.
THE JEW COMPLEX
Dear Rabbi
You are the only thing I read that is Jewish. Please, please don’t see this as an attack on Jews, but don’t you think if Jews didn’t call themselves “the chosen people” or if Israel didn’t exist, that maybe there wouldn’t be anti-Semitism?
Claudia
Dear Claudia
Tell that to the non-Jews: American president, John Adams (not Jewish): “I will insist that the Hebrews have done more to civilize man than any other nation. If I were an atheist, and believed in blind eternal fate, I should still believe that chance had ordered the Jews to be the most essential instrument for civilizing the nations…”
Russian novelist, Leo Tolstoy (not Jewish): “The Jew is that sacred being who has brought down from heaven the everlasting fire, and has illuminated with it the entire world. He is the religious source, spring and fountain out of which all the rest of the peoples have drawn their beliefs and their religions…” PS: If you think there would be less anti-Semitism in the world if Israel didn’t exist, let me refer you to all of human history between 136 CE and 1948.
Follow Rabbi Schochet at: RabbiSchochet.com Twitter: @RabbiYYS Facebook: facebook.com/Rabbiyys.
Pirkei Avot
For Refuah Shalema for Eitan Moshe Ben Tal Perek 3: Mishna 6
הָרָׂשֲע ,רֵמֹוא הָיְנַנֲח רַפְכ ׁשיִא אָסֹוד ןֶב אָתְפַלֲח יִּבַר רַמֱאֶנֶׁש ,םֶהיֵניֵב הָיורְׁש הָניִכְׁש ,הָרֹותַּב ןיִקְסֹועְו ןיִבְׁשֹויֶׁש ,הָׁשִמֲח ולִפֲא ןִיַנִמו .לֵק תַדֲעַּב בָצִנ םיִקֹלֱא )בפ םילהת( ולִפֲא ןִיַנִמו .הָדָסְי ץֶרֶא לַע ֹותָדֻגֲאַו )ט סומע( רַמֱאֶנֶׁש ןִיַנִמו .טֹפְׁשִי םיִקֹלֱא בֶרֶקְּב )בפ םילהת( רַמֱאֶנֶׁש ,הָׁשלְׁש ׁשיִא ’ה יֵאְרִי ורְּבְדִנ זָא )ג יכאלמ( רַמֱאֶנֶׁש ,םִיַנְׁש ולִפֲא רַמֱאֶנֶׁש ,דָחֶא ולִפֲא ןִיַנִמו .’ֹוגְו עָמְׁשִיַו ’ה בֵׁשְקַיַו והֵעֵר לֶא ךיֶלֵא אֹבָא יִמְׁש תֶא ריִכְזַא רֶׁשֲא םֹוקָמַה לָכְּב )כ תומש( :ךיִתְכַרֵבו
Rabbi Halafta of Kefar Hanania said: when ten sit together and occupy themselves with Torah, the Shechinah abides among them, as it is said: “G-d stands in the Divine assembly” (Psalm 82:1). How do we know that the same is true even of five? As it is said: “This band of His has established on earth” (Amos 9:6). How do we know that the same is true even of three? As it is said: “In the midst of the judges He judges” (Psalm 82:1) How do we know that the same is true even of two? As it is said: “Then they that fear the Lord spoke one with another, and the Lord hearkened, and heard” (Malachi 3:16). How do we know that the same is true even of one? As it is said: “In every place where I cause my name to be mentioned I will come unto you and bless you” (Exodus 20:21).
This Mishnah is reminiscent of much of how Gemara (the Talmud) works, quoting many verses as proofs to build up arguments. The main point to take is as the children’s song goes; namely that Hashem is here, Hashem is there, Hashem is truly everywhere. Even a person learning or praying by themselves will be in the presence of G-d. Of course it is much better to be in the presence of ten, but don’t be despondent to learn Torah alone. Hashem is always around!
TO ADVERTISE CALL 020 3906 8488
Torah from Israel
Beha’alotecha: The Good Old Days
BY RABBI MOSHE TARAGIN
“We want fish, We want fish!” These ridiculous chants boomed through the Jewish camp as an angry mob clamoured for a return to Egypt. Astonishingly, the hordes demanded a return to Egypt, a return to oppression and a return to the puny and putrid scraps of fish they received at the end of each dreadful day of labour. People always yearn for the “good old days” but, often, those old days weren’t that good to begin with. What lies at the heart of this illusion about the good old days? What incited this ludicrous demonstration in the desert?
In part, the Jews were suffering from a form of “prisoner anxiety”. Freedom carries great weight and great personal responsibility. Often the burden of freedom is too difficult to bear, especially for people who have enjoyed the tranquillity of a life without choice. Imprisonment and slavery snatch away freedom of choice, and relieve us of the heavy burden of decision making. The former Jewish slaves now faced a frightening march through the desert as well as a looming challenge of conquering the promised land. As adversity set in, it was easier to ‘flee” these challenges and escape back to their prior state of slavery – a world without ‘heavy’ expectations and a world in which they could rely upon their daily fish as a “given”. Facing a choice between fish and freedom these panicked slaves chose fish.
In addition to fearing their freedom, the Jews fell into a well-known psychological trap – the deception of nostalgia. Nostalgia allows our memory to selectively choose moments from our past, which, when dusted off and polished, appear shinier then our dreary present. We recall our past in a manner that our brains choose to remember it, and we imaginatively reinvent and glorify that past. As the past is unaffected by the struggles and hardships of the present, it always seems more radiant, more dazzling and more perfect. Often, anxiety about our current state, drives us into unrealistic memory of a “better” past.
Sometimes we experience collective nostalgia – not about our personal past but about past generations. Facing problems and challenges in our own societies we often look to previous societies as more successful versions of the human experiment. We convince ourselves that our world is dysfunctional and beyond repair; once convinced, we exonerate ourselves from efforts to improve our contemporary condition. Personal and collective nostalgia often provide easy escapes.
For Jews, the challenges of “generational nostalgia” are particularly complex. We live with acute historical consciousness and we reference our collective past and compare it to the present. As we stream our contemporary experiences alongside the past, we are often nostalgic about past generations, viewing them as religiously and spiritually superior to our own fallen state. This view is captured by the concept of “nitkatnu hadorot” which asserts that later generations have literally become “smaller” and are in constant state of religious decline. Is this completely true? Does the passing of generations bring with it religious deterioration, and is a later generation-by definition- spiritually inferior to previous generations? In some ways this is true but in many other ways it isn’t.
Jewish faith and the transmission of Torah both emanate from one seminal event which occurred 3300 years ago. On that epic day G-d directly revealed Himself to over 3.5 million people; this once-in history event never recurred. Those who lived in closer proximity to that event, obviously, possessed a more accurate transmission of Torah than those who lived historically removed from “the source”. Since those “closer to Sinai” possessed a more accurate Torah, they also possess greater halachik authority than later generations. In addition to their proximity to Sinai, those who lived through the ensuing 1300 years of prophecy enjoyed supernatural access to “Heavenly” information. The Torah knowledge gathered under these conditions certainly surpasses the level of Torah achievable in subsequent generations who struggle to recover the traditions of Sinai without the aid of prophecy. Certainly, our collective level of Torah knowledge cannot possibly match the achievements of generations upstream in Jewish history.
Generational decline also affects the calibre of Torah personalities. Torah greatness can’t be achieved, it must be endowed. Exposure to great people is absolutely necessary for Torah excellence. Those who lived in earlier generations were exposed to more surpassing Torah personalities and were therefore, better able to achieve their own Torah eminence. As history progresses we suffer deterioration, both in our collective knowledge of Torah as well as in the quality of Torah scholars.
If earlier generations possessed greater Torah knowledge, we would expect their moral and religious behaviour to be equally surpassing. Often this was true, but, sadly, human experience doesn’t always match expectations. During first Temple era, our religious behaviour was abysmal. Widespread violation of cardinal halachik prohibitions doomed the great potential of that period and sentenced our people to its first exile. We were far too confident in our land, our Temple and our belief that G-d would protect us from any and all calamities. Convinced of our invulnerability, we committed terrible sins. Our careless religious lifestyles wrecked our national potential and condemned the Temple.
Throughout our extended exile we also experienced periods of religious let-down. Unsurprisingly, the more Jews were persecuted the greater religious resolve we displayed; the more comfortable our surroundings and the greater the cultural embrace of Jews, the more our religious resolve atrophied. 15th century Spain and 19th century Eastern Europe provide two regrettable examples of religious regression prompted by excessive acculturation. Jews and Spain and Jews in Western Europe each became too comfortable in their respective cultures, and though each generation produced great Torah scholarship, they each experienced widespread religious regression. It is not always true that past generations exhibited greater religious commitment.
There is an additional area in which generations don’t necessarily retreat. Regarding national faith and our response to historical adversity, later generations often surpass previous ones. Certain generations display uncommon courage in the face of excessive hostility. For example, the bravery of the Jews living under Roman persecution in the 1st and 2nd centuries was legendary. Known as the ‘dor hashemad’, their courage in defying the great Roman empire reinforced Jewish religion and pride, and paved the way for the emergence of the Talmud.
Our own generation has displayed similar national valour. Our generation has faced two daunting challenges unimaginable to previous generations. After the nightmare of the Holocaust, our people were tasked with rebuilding Jewish communities and reconstituting the Jewish spirit. Over the past 80 years we have heroically rebuilt the foundation of the Jewish world and restored a sense of Jewish communal belonging. Alongside the mission of recovering from the Holocaust, we have also been challenged to rebuild and resettle our ancient homeland in the face of unrelenting opposition and constant invasions. Jews around the world have lobbied together to craft this historical miracle despite the hatred and violence directed against us.
The concept that generations deteriorate can be very misleading and worse, can become very enfeebling. This belief can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Convinced of our own helplessness, we become incapable of greater aspirations and too frail for great accomplishments. Jewish tradition is definitely built upon a hierarchy which acknowledges the authority of past generations. However, each generation faces its own “historical setup” and some generations display great heroism, courage and commitment in facing off against history. Our generation has much to be proud of.
Rabbi Moshe Taragin is a rabbi at Yeshivat Har Etzion/Gush, a hesder yeshiva. He has smicha and a BA in computer science from Yeshiva University as well as a masters degree in English literature from the City University of New York.
Weekly Dvar Torah
FROM ERETZ YISRAEL
From the Mikdash to the Machaneh
BY RABBANIT SHANI TARAGIN
Parshat Beha’alotcha continues the theme of Sefer Bemidbar – teaching us of the sanctity of the “machaneh” – the encampment of Am Yisrael as it surrounds the Mishkan in a dynamic state, preparing us for our journey and imminent settlement in the Land of Israel. That’s why numerous laws and narratives that we would have expected to find in Sefer Vayikra (and some we do), are mentioned (or repeated) in Sefer Bemidbar from a different perspective, complementing the holiness of the Tabernacle stemming from Hashem, with the holiness of the camp, which the people themselves are responsible to maintain!
The kohahim, for example, in Sefer Vayikra, are presented as models and teachers of sanctity in the “ivory tower” of the Tabernacle, whereas in Sefer Bemidbar we’re taught of their participation with all members (thieves, promiscuous women) in the “machaneh”. A nazir may even reach a kohen-like state in the camp (see Ramban), and the princes consecrate the mizbayach on behalf of the people, just as the priests do for their sacrificial order.
Our parsha opens with the commandment to Aharon to light the menorah (8:1-4), also mentioned in Sefer Vayikra (24:1-4), with a different emphasis. In Vayikra, the lighting of the menorah constitutes a service for Hashem – “before the Lord continually.” In the book of Bemidbar, the lighting emphasizes the form of the menorah – “the whole of it one beaten work of pure gold,” expressing a central idea evident to the people and a symbol of Jewish identity (see this week’s haftarah, Zechariah, ch.4).
As the parsha continues with the appointment and sanctification of the Levites and their service in safeguarding, dismantling and carrying the mishkan, their role as representatives of the camp is emphasized. The tribe of Levi replaced the firstborn “from among the children of Israel,” a phrase that is repeated sixteen times in the unit. In addition to the kohanim, the representatives of Hashem in the Mishkan as highlighted in Sefer Vayikra, the Levi’im are set aside and authorized by the power of the people of Israel and for their sake – as part of their camp, in the book of Bemidbar.
Similarly, the “Pesach in the wilderness” is presented in the parsha to properly re-establish Jewish identity on the anniversary of the ceremony through which we left Egypt as began our journey of religious identity. It is therefore necessary on the eve of our sojourn as a “machaneh” to Eretz Yisrael, to solidify our religious-national identity. Only now that there is “holiness” in the camp do we encounter the argument of “impure” people who cannot fathom national-religious FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) “among the children of Israel.” Hashem’s response to their initiative with the possibility of Pesach Sheini insures their inclusion in the collective of the machaneh.
In our parsha (9:15-23) the details of when to travel and when to camp “at the commandment of Hashem” are delineated, indicated by the cloud of fire above the Mishkan. Juxtaposed to the travel of the cloud, the commandment of blasting the trumpets comes to complement the Divine initiative with a human response. Similarly, as the cloud leads Bnei Yisrael in the wilderness together with the Holy Ark of the Mishkan charting the course for the people, Moshe requests of Chovav to accompany them as well, serving as “eyes” for their journey. Moshe Rabbeinu understands from the commandment to fashion and blow the trumpets, that in addition to journeying based on G-d’s command and initiative, it’s necessary for the people to play a role – to sound the trumpets and guide.
We are reminded of our divinely inspired abilities to respond to the source of kedusha, initiated by Hashem in the Mishkan, with actions in the machaneh. Hashem does not want us to be a passive-robotic people, but rather an empowered and inspired nation who will participate and maintain a relationship of holiness through our actions in the machaneh. Even as we leave the “ivory towers” of yeshivot and midrashot, we’re meant to continue our symbiotic relationship of kedusha through our travels and tribulations in the wilderness, in our communities, and certainly as a nation “encamped” around the Mikdash in the Land.
Rabbanit Shani Taragin is educational director of World Mizrachi and teaches at Matan and other educational institutions in Israel.
Parshat Behaalotecha: “Like A Child”
BY GAVRIEL COHN
Within this week’s sedra a painful, tragic fracture begins to occur. Sefer Bamidbar opens listing the regal, military encampment of the Jewish People in their desert journeys, how they would travel in an impressive, united formation, all surrounding the divine Tent of Meeting, basking in G-d’s Presence, and following His cloud and the call of trumpets. Yet this organised, G-d-focused picture is shattered in this week’s portion, when “the People took to seeking complaints”, and all begins to crumble, spiralling down into rebellions against G-d, punishments, plagues, civil war, and political strife.
Perhaps this week’s sedra could be seen to mirror itself, with the organised visionary first half, directly paralleling the fractious second part:
The dissenting, grumbling complainers are a far cry from the Leviim consecrated for their Temple duty at the beginning of the sedra, set aside “to perform the service of the Jewish People in the Tent of Meeting” and to be entirely devoted to G-d. The raging divine fire that then consumed those complainers perhaps mirrors the pure lamps of the Menorah described in the portion’s opening passage. The people’s protests to Moshe and Moshe’s own bitter cry, are further the antithesis of the ceremonious, confident short trumpet blasts commanded to be sounded in times of trouble in the first half of this week’s sedra, from which “you shall be remembered before G-d and you shall be saved from your enemies.” The people’s visceral displeasure with the manna and the sustenance given to them by G-d, “rejecting G-d”, stands in stark contrast to the pious, impure men of Pesach Sheini eager not to “lose out by not offering the sacrifice of G-d.” Furthermore, those righteous men of Pesach Sheini were the very opposite of those at Kivros haTa’avah who began to gorge themselves on the excessive hordes of meat that they had gathered greedily as they were struck down by G-d.
So, what went wrong? What caused this utter breakdown, this complete shift from the organised structures and dutiful journeying portrayed from the start of Sefer Bamidbar until now, “when the people began to complain”?
The answers lies in one pivotal clause, just before the slew of disasters and punishments are told: “They turned from the Mountain of G-d [travelling] a three day journey” (Bamidbar 10:33). The Jewish People, as our Sages explain, “ran away from Mount Sinai like a child escaping from school” (brought in Tosfot, Gemara Shabbos 116a; Ramban, Bamidbar 10:35). After encountering the Divine and receiving His Laws at the foot of Mount Sinai, the Jewish People then turned and fled like a youngster running from school.
The Jewish People’s mentality was as a child’s. They perhaps failed to appreciate the inner value of the laws, seeming them only as acts of obedience that they needed to follow in order to gain reward. Seeing Jewish Law that way, they were scared to take on even more rules and so fled from Mount Sinai. On having accepted the Covenant at Sinai they then expected desert life to be easy, for their obedience to be met with a showering of physical reward and luxury – just as a child does. They were unwilling to accept the natural reality of the Wilderness. “Like a child” the Jewish People thought that if they followed G-d’s laws then life would instantly and always be perfect, that they would presents and gifts would be thrown upon them from On High. However, instead, those Laws given at Sinai are meant to direct us to improve our moral characters, relationships, and society at large. Judaism’s true purpose lies improving us as people and connecting us to G-d and to truth. Without knowing the inner meaning of Judaism, the regal structures of the Law, like the military-like desert encampments of the Jewish People, are set to collapse. The Jewish People instead should have appreciated the rich meaning and purpose of each of G-d’s Laws, “why” G-d commanded us to adhere to them, and to thus come to serve G-d out of love, and not, misguidedly, for their own self-directed, material aims (see Rambam, Hilchot Teshuvah, chapter 10). As the Rambam wrote, “it is more important for me to expound on a fundamental of the fundamental principles than any other matter I teach” (Rambam, Commentary on the Mishneh). Really, if we delve into this inner content, we have no reason to flee from Mount Sinai, or to then complain. Instead, “how great is our portion.”
A Torah bite for the Shabbat table Applying the Brakes
RABBI GOODMAN
A Jewish life is a busy life. Always on the move, with Torah to learn, Mitzvos to keep, and character traits to perfect, there is not too much time for resting on one’s laurels. However, effective spiritual growth does not necessarily mean emulating Speedy Gonzales or Billy the Whiz. On the contrary, we learn from this week’s Parsha that sitting tight demonstrates a much greater degree of spiritual devotion and commitment.
Klal Yisroel spent forty years in the wilderness, embarking on no less than forty-two journeys, before reaching their destination. Rabbi Shimshon Rafael Hirsch (1808-1888), poetically describes these journeys, likening the Clouds of Glory- whose change of location signaled the onset of a new journey- to the shepherd’s raised staff, motioning his flock to journey forth. He explains that these journeys ingrained within us, the Jewish people, the ability to put aside our own agenda and instead follow Hashem’s lead with faith and devotion.
Rabbi Hirsch points out that instead of focusing on the arduous journeys that Klal Yisroel endured, the Torah concentrates on their encampment between each journey. The pasuk says, “And whenever the cloud was lifted from atop the Tent, afterwards the Children of Israel would journey,”- meaning, Klal Yisroel would stay put until receiving instructions to move. The Torah then states, “All the days that the cloud would rest upon the Tabernacle they would encamp,” and finally, “When the cloud lingered upon the Tabernacle many days, the Children of Israel would maintain the charge of Hashem and would not journey.”
Rabbi Hirsch explains that the Jewish People’s primary challenge during their forty years spent in the wilderness was to sit tight. Despite knowing that their current location- a dangerous and threatening place- was certainly not their ultimate destination, and that a great future awaited them in Eretz Yisroel, they had to wait patiently for the signal to carry on, and not jump the gun. More importantly than learning how to set out on a journey, Klal Yisroel learned how to wait for the right time. Indeed, about this specific quality, the Torah declares, “V’shamru Bnei Yisroel es mishmeres Hashem,” that the Children of Israel would maintain the charge of Hashem.
Our lives are a series of journeys towards the ultimate destination- the World to Come - and we are as much under the guidance of Hashem as were Bnei Yisroel during their years in the wilderness. Although we lack the Clouds of Glory, signaling to us when to embark on a new journey and when to stop, in their stead Hashem has granted us great spiritual leaders to guide us along the way.
This spiritual principle of waiting patiently not only applies to the Jewish People as a whole, but to every single one of us as well. Although spiritual growth is about being proactive, being proactive is not always about being active, and while holding back in spiritually can feel wrong, often it is the right thing to do. Of course, each person must seek the appropriate guidance for his individual situation, but ultimately, whether the resolution is to move forward or hold back, both options qualify as service of Hashem.
A project of My Dvar Torah, Torah Bite is your resource for a short, dynamic, and meaningful Dvar Torah to share at the Shabbos table. Originally from London, Rabbi Ben Goodman has spent 20 years in Jerusalem, teaching and inspiring students from all backgrounds and from all over the world. He is the director of My Dvar Torah, providing tailor-made Divrei Torah for all occasions. www.mydvartorah.com. He encourages feedback & ideas: ben@mydvartorah.com
Chovat Halevavot
At times even one who has trust in G-d may find that their sustenance is not readily available. Such a person can reason, “Hashem Who brought me to the world at a given time and decides how long I have here, is the same One who knows when I will earn my living and when not and whatever He decides will be for my benefit”.
Sometimes, a person only has just enough for food. One who trusts in Hashem can tell themselves: “Hashem who provided me with sustenance since I was a baby – where immediately upon my birth, my mother was able to nurse me as much as I needed on a daily basis until I was able to eat more “exciting” foods, in the same way that the milk I drank then was exactly what I needed and it did not harm me that it was precise, so too, if Hashem has enabled me to earn exactly the (couple of) hundred pounds that it costs to feed my family precisely, but not more, that too, is what He knows I/we need.
When a person withstands these tests and trusts in Hashem even when their income is slow in coming, they are rewarded by Hashem, as He told the Jews in the Midbar that each day they should go out and collect the Manna they need for that day “in order to test them will they still go in the ways of my Torah” – meaning, even when they are given a precise amount of food will they still trust in Me and follow My Torah?”, the result being as we are taught later on in Devarim – “in order to bestow goodness upon you”.
Eventually G-d would tell the very moving words to Jeremiah – “Go out and call in the ears of Jerusalem saying: So, says G-d, I remember the kindness of your youth (meaning the Jewish people as a young nation in the wilderness) the love of our marriage when you followed Me into a wilderness where nothing is planted.”
G-d returns our faith in him with love and reward, not only in the present, but long into the future too.
Hilchot Shabbat
We continue with the laws of items Muktzah due to their uselessness.
A utensil which has broken, whether on weekday or on Shabbat, is Muktzah if its pieces are useless. If the broken pieces are lying in a place where they may cause harm to a passer-by then they can be moved to the side.
If the shards are useful then they do not become Muktzah, so long as it is not the common practice to discard of such pieces. If the owner of perfectly usable items discarded them prior to the onset of Shabbat then they are Muktzah even for others who find a use for them, however, if they were only discarded by the owner on Shabbat and another person finds a use for them, then they are not Muktzah.
If a perfectly usable item was thrown out even before Shabbat by the owner, then another person is permitted to move them and use them.
Similarly, disposable items, such as used plates or used napkins, also become Muktzah and may not be moved for nothing. (If they are dirty, they can be discarded.)
If a piece of furniture or other utensil has a part of it which has broken, then it depends how easy it is to fix it. If it is easy to fix, then the pieces may not be moved as the Sages were concerned that a person will forget and transgress a prohibition of fixing on Shabbat. If, on the other hand, it is difficult to fix then one may move the pieces so long as the pieces have some use on Shabbat.
A door of a cupboard or of a room may not be detached on Shabbat and if they are detached, they are Muktzah. If, however, one detached it before Shabbat and had in mind to use it for a permissible use on Shabbat, then it is not Muktzah, but it may not be returned to its position on Shabbat.
Beha’alotecha Sidra Summary
“When you kindle the lamps, toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast light” (Bemidbar 8:2)
1ST ALIYA (KOHEN) – BEMIDBAR 8:1-14
G-d tells Moshe to instruct Aharon, the Kohen Gadol, to light the Menorah every day in the Mishkan (Tabernacle). G-d tells Moshe to appoint the Levi’im to their service in the Mishkan. This involves bringing two animal offerings, the people placing their hands upon the heads of the Levi’im and each Levi being physically lifted in the air and waved by Moshe and Aharon.
2ND ALIYA (LEVI) – 8:15-26
The tribe of Levi is to take over the role that had been designated for the firstborn, who were sanctified on the night of the Exodus from Egypt, when the Egyptian firstborn were slain and the Israelite firstborn survived. Point to Consider: Why were the firstborn dismissed from their role? (see Rashi to 8:17)
3RD ALIYA (SHLISHI) – 9:1-14
In the second year after the Exodus, on 14 Nissan, G-d commands the people to bring their Pesach offerings. There are people who are ritually impure, having recently come into contact with a dead person. Unable to bring an offering, they come to Moshe and Aharon and express their desire not to miss out. G-d tells Moshe that they can have a second chance, a month later, on what becomes known as Pesach Sheni (‘the second Pesach’).
4TH ALIYA (REVI’I) – 9:15-10:10
A cloud covers the Mishkan by day, with a fiery appearance at night. The Israelites remain encamped until the cloud lifts, which is the signal to journey on. The duration of time during which the cloud covers the Mishkan varies. G-d tells Moshe to make two silver trumpets to summon the people before travelling in the desert. The trumpets are also to be blown when the nation is at war, in order to evoke Divine mercy, as well as to accompany communal offerings on Shabbat and festival days. 5TH ALIYA (CHAMISHI) – 10:11-34
In the second year after the Exodus, on 20 Iyar, the cloud lifts and the nation journeys from the Sinai desert to the Paran desert. The Torah describes the order of the tribes’ journeying and the different stages of dismantling and erecting the Mishkan. Moshe asks his father-in-law Yitro, referred to here as Chovav, to join the nation on their journey.
6TH ALIYA (SHISHI) – 10:35-11:29
When the Aron (ark) would start its miraculous journey in front of the nation, Moshe would appeal to G-d to scatter His enemies. The people complain. G-d sends a fatal fire against them, until Moshe pleads for mercy on their behalf. The ‘rabble’ then complain about the manna, which does not taste as good as the food in Egypt. G-d is angered. Moshe says he is helpless to deal with the nation’s complaints. G-d tells him to appoint 70 elders to assist in leading the nation. G-d tells Moshe that, in response to their complaints, the nation will be given meat for a whole month, until they are sick of it. The 70 elders are appointed and are given prophetic powers.
Point to Consider: Why are there inverted letter ‘nuns’ placed before and after the first verse of this Aliyah? (see Rashi to 10:35)
7TH ALIYA (SHEVI’I) – 11:30-12:16
A wind blows quails into the camp. The people gather the quails and start eating them, but G-d sends ‘a mighty blow’ against the people for their original complaints. Miriam and Aharon speak negatively about Moshe. G-d rebukes them and Miriam develops a tsara’at skin affliction. Moshe prays for her recovery. Miriam is quarantined outside the camp for seven days, during which the people do not journey.
HAFTARAH
The prophet Zecharia relates a vision in which an angel visits Yehoshua the Kohen Gadol and chastises him, as symbolised by Yehoshua’s soiled garments. The angel also shows Zecharia a menorah and two olives trees to provide oil for lighting it, indicating that the Second Temple will not be built by use of force, but by G-d’s spirit.
WE ARE HIRING HEAD OF MARKETING
(MATERNITY COVER)
JNF UK, Britain’s oldest Israel charity, is looking for a creative and results-driven Head of Marketing to join the senior management team at a pivotal time in the charity’s history, as we celebrate our 120th anniversary.
Can you lead and develop the marketing and communications function to drive forward stakeholder engagement and income generation?
