FAITH LIFT

   I find that today’s society focuses on improving appearances and many speak of “Face Lifts” to enhance the way they look. It is important to focus on one’s self image and I feel that in our day and age we all are in need of a “Faith Lift.”

This reminds me of the story of the little child who was suddenly awakened out of a deep sleep. The child began to cry and was very distressed and the mother asked, “What is the matter?” The child replied,”Oh, I lost my place in my dream”.

I wonder, “Have we, as the עם הנבחר, lost our place in our dream of perfecting a people who are to live in the “Image of G-D,” and a people who were destined to be the אור לגויים.?”

Then our dream started to blossom with Avraham appearing on the Jewish historical scene, as he is instructed by Hashem;

לך לך מארצך וממולדתך ומבית אביך, 

G-D instructs Avraham to leave his birth place and his parents home and to travel to a land that Hashem will designate and there he will become a great nation. One wonders, “Was it necessary for Avraham to leave his home to accomplish the will of G-D?” It seems that Hashem’s plan was to extricate Avraham from his environment and all the places where his life influences are constantly having a direct affect on his way of life and especially on his spiritual outlook. This change was necessary to fulfill the will of G-D, but even more so to mold and perfect a Nation of morality, ethics, beneficence and obedience to Hashem. Avraham recognized, that for him to succeed as the messenger of G-D, he must remove himself, completely, from all previous influences.

The Torah emphasized this idea with a reasonable and a necessary explanation, and for which it is an important lesson for our modern day. As the sentence states,

למען אשר יצוה את בניו ואת ביתו אחריו ושמרו דרך הי

“For he commands his children and his household after him , that they should keep the way of Hashem to perform righteousness and justice.”

This is the mission that is planned for Avraham and for his progenitors after him .

  Where do we start? Avraham provides us with the answer that will secure the future for the Jewish People and his life as our Patriarch. Abraham’s life begins at his home, with his gracious acts of hospitality, that will inspire us that Judaism is first and foremost a religion of the home , and from the home it spreads its wings of influence into the world.

  For Avraham to succeed in this endeavor he beseeches the Almighty to bless him with a son to carry on his mission to spread the word of G-D to the world.

We need to remember that Avraham taught us that a person is not only what he believes in, but more so in how he lives and teaches others. This is the essence of Judaism. We are not only to be people of ideals but we must be people of action, for only then will we see the growth of Judaism in the most productive way.

The beauty of Avraham’s life is that he answered the call of Hashem unquestionably, and similarly we are to respond to the call of G-D.

The best way to follow this ideal is the story told by Gershon Sholem. When the Baal Shem Tov had a difficult task before him, he would go to a certain place in the woods, light a fire and meditate in prayer and what he had set out to perform was done.

When a generation later the Maggid of Mesretz was faced with the same task he would go to the  same place in the woods and say we can no longer light the fire, but we can still speak the prayers and what he wanted done, became a reality.

Again, a generation later, Rabbi Moshe Leb of Sassoon, had to perform this task. He went into the woods and said, “We can no longer light the fire, nor do we know how to recite the meditation belonging to the prayer, but we do know the place in the woods to which it all belongs and that must be sufficient and it was.”

But when another generation had passed and Rabbi Israel of Rishon, was called again to perform the task, he sat down in his golden chair in his home and said, “We cannot light the fire, we cannot speak the prayer, we do not know even the place, but we can tell the story of how it was done , and the story teller adds, the story which he told had the same effect as the actions of the other three.”

This is our Torah, telling the stories of inspiration, but to do so we need to provide our society with the proper and capable story tellers and teachers that will inspire and bring our generation to act in the most Judaic way that will lead us on the path of living an invigorated Torah way of life. 

עץ חיים היא למחזיקים בה

It is our tree of life to sustain us for everlasting time as we go forward, holding onto the “Coat Tales” of our Patriarch Avraham.

          

Challenges of life

Challenges are what make life interesting. Overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.

                                                                                 There is no challenge more challenging, than the challenge to improve oneself.

When we least expect it, life sends us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change.

All these thoughts come to mind as we read of the greatest test and challenge presented to Avraham by Hashem, when he was instructed to take Yitzchak and bring him as a offering at the Akedah.

This entire episode, as recorded this week’s Sedrah of Vayerah, is very perplexing and brings with it enormous questions as to its propriety and the quality of conforming to G-Dly accepted standards of behavior and morality.

With this quandary, comes to mind the following thought, “Life is full ofchallenges, but these challenges are only given to one whom G-D knows his faith is strong enough to get him through them.”

Avraham prepares himself to meet the challenge for the Akedah, and inspires Yitzchak to a greater sense of faith, and both continue to walk hand in hand towards Har Hamoriah , proving to the world their faith and trust in the Almighty.

Everyone, eventually, faces challenges in life and it is a matter how we learn how to overcome them and use them to our advantage.

Let us remember well, that the biggest challenge of life is to be yourself in a world that is trying to make you like everyone else.

 This is the greatest problem that faced Avraham. He realized that his directive in life is to fulfill the word of G-D that will lead him to reach his potential of spiritual greatness, and thereby becoming our Patriarch from whom we are destined to learn the ways of Hashem, bringing fulfillment as the עם הנבחר.

As we speak of challenges and tests, we realize that Hashem who is יודע הכל does not require a test in order to clarify what the intention of Avraham was through this entire episode, but rather it was to make Avrahamsearch within himself and to conclude that he had the capacity and the wherewithal to be the leader and the father of the Jewish People. Hashem saw the immense attribute of humility and modesty that Avrahampossessed and only through some extreme measures would he come to know that he possessed great Emunah and Betachon,enabling him to achieve the goals of being an אב המון גויים and the ultimate Patriarch of עם ישראל.

Rav Soloveitchik tz”l, reflected on the Medrash that describes the world bewailing the death of Avraham, “ Woe to the world that has lost its leader and woe to the ship that lost its navigator”.

One wonders, “What was gained by adding the idea that Avraham was the navigator of the world, to the fact that he was leader of the world?”

The Rav explained,  “While Avraham was truly the leader of the Tzibur, of the populace, he never lost sight of the individual. Abraham was the leader and the navigator of his society and always worried about the individual.”  We saw this many times, as he worried about Lot and went to rescue him after he was captured. Even though Lot rejected Hashem, Avraham went to battle for him. 

Avraham was a man who lived up to his responsibility as a true man of Chesed. He faced a severe challenge and faced it with great alacrity and showed the world what responsibility means to all of humanity.

The lesson is a poignant one. Avraham recognized that G-D was a source of strength at a time of great stress, and a source of comfort when he was in pain. He recognized that Hashem was an important part of his life and that he needed G-D at all times, and that Hashem would be there for him always. With this in mind, we acceptAvraham as our emulator, learning how to accept challenges in life, in a very positive way. 

Too often we try to avoid challenges by asking the question,”Why Me?”, instead of asking, “How?” “How can I deal with this crisis; How to assuage the anguish that comes with many of our challenges?” With the How, we then take on the responsibility of finding solutions to these tests and challenges of life, like Avraham did at the Akedah.

The Baal Shem Tov said it well, “Wherever a person’s mind is, that is where they are entirely.” Our pure minds will lead us to the true דרך הי, which will lead us to our modern day הר המוריה, ushering a time of peace to all our challenges, reliving the life of Blessing that graced the life of Abraham.

Avraham is our most glorified Patriarch and will always be known to all as our מגןאברהם, for he is our Father who brought the presence of Hashem into our lives, and for that we will always glorify his being.

                          SHABBAT SHALOM

       http://rabbimehlmansthoughts.blogspot.com

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EMBRACE OUR BLESSINGS

 

  As I stepped into the Sukkah, on the third day of Sukkot, I recited the Ushpezin of the day and with overflowing hearts our family welcomed the Patriarch Yaakov- our Patriarch who represents Emet and Galut. In many ways we can identify, greatly, with Yaakov, for many of our trials and tribulations are due to our Galut, very similarly, to the tribulations that Yaakovexperienced.

  Therefore, my search for greater meaning to the Yom Tov of Sukkot will give us the Chizuk to weather the storms of Galut and to forge ahead more enthused and more spiritually enhanced.

  As we enter our Deras Arai, our home away from home, to the outdoors of an alienated society, we experience, very similarly, Yaakov’sepisode of the night under the stars when he had the vision of the ladder stretching from earth to the sky, and the angels assuring him that he will be protected by Hashem. It is the same protection that I felt as I walked into the Sukkahwelcoming our Patriach of Truth assuring all of us that, in spite, of the fact that we are experiencing our night of Galut we are assured that our Torah oriented way of life will prosper and live on.  

    Permit me to share, at this time, the following words of inspiration

 

"Focus on your strengths, not your weaknesses”

“Focus on your character, not your reputation”

“Focus on your blessings, not your misfortunes”

“At all times embrace your blessings, and make every today worth remembering.”

These words are so important to assure life is worth living and gives life a meaningful direction that will bring honor to mankind and honor to G-D.

   

   Rashi explains that we are, indeed, blessed with the words of Birkat Kohanim, the Priestly Blessing, on Yom Tov, as was recited byAharon,וישא אהרון את ידיו אל העם ויברכם,"And Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them".  The Birkat Kohanim has a very special meaning for the Jewish People, as a Nation. It is a blessing that is to be absolute and unconditional. As we study the Hebrew words of the Bracha, we notice that even though the blessing is for the entire nation, the words are in the singular form. This expresses an amazing idea in Judaism. Though we are a nation of many, we must see ourselves as one integrated whole, as "One Persona". 

  Achieving this unity we can be confident that the last part of the Bracha וישם לך שלום, the blessing of Hashem for our nation with peace, will be forthcoming.               

 Peace can only prosper if we see our Nation as one integrated whole, with brotherly love extended to each other, leading us on the path of becoming a true עם אחד, under the rubric of our strong belief of הי אחד ושמו אחד. 

   With this אחדות, we can face any adversary that may step in the path of our Nation’s success, and thereby assuring a brighter future for our Jewish Nation. 

   This is our message for our people's survival. Our future is a glorious one if we continue to have love in our hearts and compassion in our deeds. 

    These attributes are to be transmitted to our children and grandchildren, as the Torah states;

 " והודעתם לבניך ולבני בניך" "Teach and make known the ways of our Torah to your children and to your grandchildren." This is, truly, one of the most important Mitzvot of the Torah, a Mitzvah of והודעתם, of transmitting our Ways of Torah to the next generation. Our survival depends on the success and the strength of our Mesorah's influence on our next generation. This was Yaakov’s legacy to his children, and to K’lall Yisrael.  His name was changed from Yaakov to Yisrael, to assure our survival and our continued Blessing in our Galut. As we step in to the Sukkah of our Galut, let us welcome our Yisrael- Yaakov  to our temporary home with benevolence, friendship and love.

    Let us continue to emulate G-D's ways of 

אהבת עולם ואהבה רבה, to each other and in doing so, we will herald the time of the coming of our Mashiach in our time. With this in mind, we will then turn our Sukkah into our true Mikdash Me’at, when the S’hchenah will bring the Ananei Hakovad to rest upon all our homes.

 

SHABBAT SHALOM 

AND 

CHAG SAMEACH

ROSH HASHANA

   During these days before Rosh Hashana,the constant refrain is "Change", or, better yet, it is time to do "Teshuvah". This concept is a meritorious one, but the fulfillment of being able to Change, for many, is not an easy task. In fact, in today's society I find that many are just not able to grasp the idea of improving themselves through Change and surely find great difficulty to begin the process of Teshuvah.

   For many, actions seem to be in total opposition to this idea of wanting to Changecertain aspects of one's behavior.  I asked a student why he wasn't applying himself more studiously to his school work, and his reply was simply, "Rabbi, Whatever.”  When I inquire of an adult regarding their actions and/or their situation in life, very often the reply is, "It is what it is". 

  Are these life's answers for everything, 'Whatever and It is what it is?' I hope not!

  These phrases are so negative and can be so damaging to our growth, our betterment, our Change and surely for our Teshuvah. 

   I once read that these answers can be referred to as " Tautophrasal Evasion",defined as, "I am not spending anymore effort on this matter, and nothing is going to change, so just get used to it." 

   I can just imagine this attitude when we go to a Doctor and we ask him, "What can we do about the situation?" and he responds, "Well, it is what it is". 

   These two responses, 'Whatever and It is what it is,' are the most devastating expressions in our human lexicon.  They make life so helpless and even hopeless. That is not what Judaism prescribes for life, especially during this period of beseeching the Almighty for a new year of health and prosperity. 

   Surely, we can say "Que sera, sera-Whatever will be, will be.” However, in doing so, we are taking our G-D given qualities and options to better ourselves, taking them out of our hands and thrusting them to the wind. This is not an option and I, personally, refuse to act this way. 

   As we prepare for Rosh Hashana, let us work to replace the "It is what it is" with "It will become what it ought to be". This is the true idea and directive to achieve the ultimate act of Teshuvah. 

    This is extremely true as we embark on a more observant road in our Judaic way of life and in the way we act to one another. Yes, we need to remove the oft time quoted words, "It is better than nothing", for that is just as bad as "It is what it is and whatever." 

  Now is the time to take responsibility for our actions. Now is the time that certain attitudes need to be changed. Now is the time for Teshuvah,  that will make our lives more meaningful and make us more responsible. 

     With these thoughts in mind, we can better understand the opening words of this week’s Torah reading.' You are standing, all of you, before Hashem", and then the Torahgoes on to enumerate everyone, from the leaders, to every member of the Jewish people. This is done to emphasize a most important idea in Yahadut, that when we stand before G-D , we are abe to see ourselves as equal, and not  to look upon one another  as more superior, for Hashem’s love of Am Yisrael, is one of inclusivity, and never exclusivity.

    It is with this feeling of togetherness, and brotherly love that we present ourselves to Hashem on Rosh Hashana, a time of V’tain Kavod L’amecha,  Bestowing honor on the Jewish People , as a unified and a United Jewish Nation. These are times that we must change our venue and begin to realize we are all together in the same boat of life and if we act inappropriately, to cause a hole to emerge in our Judaic Boat, it will only result in our failure.

 The beauty of life is to know we have G-Dgiven capabilities. Let us begin to use them as we approach this new year of 5780. Let it be a year of change and a year of improvement that will lead us to a year of Bracha and Yeshuah. 

      Wishing all my blog friends a year of  שנת חיים וטובים. 

 

            

  

         

 

WHAT DEFINES US

 

 
" WHAT DEFINES US ?"

                                                                                                                                                      

הי מלך הי מלך הי ימלוך לעולם ועד                                                                   Before I begin let me make note that we recite   

This is not depicting the game of thrones for our Melech is מלכי המלכים and there is no game of thrones with our מלך. 

      Now that I got your attention permit me to continue with my thoughts:

 When I was in the Rav’s shiur he reiterated the importance of  נעילה. In essence, He said that  נעילה encapsulates all of the previous T'filos. In fact,  one cannot daven  נעילה  if he missed any of the other T'filos because עצומו של יום depends on the T'fila of  נעילה and it is only when we recite נעילה does our atonement  takes place. This may be logical in thought ,but in my opinion it all depends how we approach  נעילה that will verify and bring about the true atonement. The question we need to answer is, "What attitude is required to achieve this Kapara? I will answer as a Jew always does with a question. 

If I were asked, and it is rhetorical, "What word would I choose from the entire Torah that can enunciate our faith and our true essence? I would select the word that Hashem uses to Adam after he sinned in the garden of Eden - that word is  איכה- where are you? 

I am sure you understand that our infinite G-d knows where we are. The question is not pertaining to the geographical or physical location of Adam for G-d knew exactly where he was, but rather He wanted Adam to know who he was and what his essence was and how he saw himself in the scheme of things.  Remember the answer that Adam gave to Hashem when he asked him what he did and why he went against the word of G-D? He replied, "I am not responsible for what took place" and he went on to blame חוה and she in turn, blamed the snake and even the snake blamed G-D Himself, for it was G-D who brought חוה to him. 

This is my question to all of us - "Where are we after these days of repentance, as we prepare for the Holiest Day of the year? Where is our איכה, where do we stand at this most crucial hour seeking G-D'sassurance for a year of Blessing  and Life. It is interesting to note that at the beginning of the שמונה עשרה, we say ,

זכרנו לחיים מלך חפץ בחיים

And at the end of the Amida we say                                                             

  וכתבנו בספר חיים טובים   

                             Why at this juncture of the Amida, do we use the word                טובים                             ?                                                                                                                                                                 

   My answer is, "At the beginning of ourT'filos we have no specifics of what will make our lives truly good.  It only after we mention all the Brachot, דעת, סליחה,רפאנו, that we begin to realize our goodness. Therefore, only, after the Amidah, do we realize what a good life is all about, and that we are truly Blessed."

 

As a student of the Rav, I am inclined to see man as a dialectical being. Let me clarify, what I mean by dialectical, as it reflects man in two mutually exclusive ways.  

In the first place, man is an important being, for he was created with great intellectual and spiritual capabilities, as Tehilimsays,ותחסרהו מעט מאלוקים. We were created slightly less than Angels. We embody a divine element that allows man to be in proximity to Hashem, we are then עומד לפני הי. And on the other hand, Judaismsees man weak and at times helpless. On Yom Kippur we merit to have a glorious rendezvous with G-D, as a reward for spending an entire day in prayer in imitating an angelic being and beseeching Hashem, humbly, to bestow His Blessings upon us. We, then, feel confident that we are standing  לפני הי- resulting in being acclaimed by Hashem  תטהרו - we are inscribed in the Book of Life.

          With this feeling of being close toHashem, we begin to glow with the aura of being a blessed child of G-D, imbued with greater spirituality, and confidence in a life of Bracha, Mazal and Nachas , walking into the future with this Bracha on our lips.

בספר חיים ברכה ושלום, ופרנסה טובה, נזכר ונכתב ונחתם לפניך,אנחנו וכל עמך בית ישראל, לחיים טובים ולשלום

    

WORTHINESS OF MAN

                               “It takes time to become anything worth becoming.”

 

This thought comes to mind as we approach that awesome day of Tisha B’av commemorating the destruction of our Holy Temple. The Rav said, “We need to remember the destruction but more so we need to remember  how magnificent it was when the Mikdash was standing in all of its majesty, and when Jewry  went to the Mikdash,and were a part of that Holy  experience”. 

In life we have a tendency to look at that which is negative and that which is destructive and that which is wrong.  There is a need in our day and age to be more optimistic and to observe that which is beautiful and   that which is kind and that which is understanding and that which is positive in our lives. These past few days we’ve been reading how young people took guns in hand without thought, and only with malice and hatred and began shooting and killing innocent men, women and children. This is not what life ought to be. This is truly, the Churban that we are so inundated with at the present time.

We need to begin to educate our children and grandchildren, to select priorities that enhance their lives and to be less concerned with their materialistic goals and focus more on the spiritual and humane concerns. This will prevent a narcissistic way of life that undermines the virtues of caring, kindness and especially respect for others. Our goal is to achieve the Worthiness of Life, dedicated to life’s values.

The question still remains, “Why is there so much anger and hatred in our society”?

This is the question that needs to be answered, or else we will fall deeper into the abyss of inhumanity. Our worries are exacerbated by the fact that this anger is pouring out over the streets of our country. Why are there so many leaders in our government vilifying the State of Israel and the Jewish People by their accusations that Israel is mistreating their surrounding neighbors.This hatred is venom that spreads to others, and many callously repeat these same ideas and some even go to more extreme measures, that often result in violence.  

 Please understand that my remarks may seem alarming, but this is not my intention.  My intention is to awaken in all of us a need for greater Chesbon  Hanefesh  within ourselves and within the  Jewish community in general.

 To begin with, let us focus on the first word of the Megillah that we will read on Saturday night, The word is AYCHA, “We Bewail” reflecting on how the Jewish People stand alone in our society. When this happens, we must change the word, using the exact same letters but read differently and with different meaning, AYECHA, “Where are you?” This selfsame word was used by G-D, when Adam sinned in the Garden of Eden.  Hashem knew where Adam was, but wanted him to look within himself, and see what he did wrong and how he could make amends for his action and in doing so becomes a better person.

  This is so simple and yet so profound for all to consider and for all to realize that we can change the AYCHA, from bewailing our fate, to  AYECHA by changing our way of life and engendering a change in our individual personalities and behaviorisms by  aligning ourselves with our Torah and with greater  Ahavas Yisrael.   

 Let us take an important life lesson from the last words of איכה.

השיבנו ה׳ אליך ונשובה

Turn us to You Hashem,and we shall return to You

חדש ימנו כקדם

Renew our days of old

Dr. Norman Lamm, explains the word כקדם, not referring to days of old, but rather referring to the place called, קדם, the place from which Adam was expelled after he sinned. One wonders why would we want to return to a place from which we were expelled? It seems somewhat ominous?

I sense our Sages were suggesting that Adam and Eve were living in the Garden of Eden, and their actions brought conflict and sin into their lives. It was only at this point that Hashem did them a favor and expelled them from this Garden of Eden, resulting in a better relationship between Adam and Eve, eventually building a home together, and learning a very important lesson In life, that they needed each other for survival. Their expulsion brought about a life of creativity in a world of reality.

This idea can be our important lesson in life, a life of  חדש ימנו כקדם a life of being able to face East of Eden, with courage, fortitude, and confidence and to face the world of reality making it a place for all humanity to build character and to feel the need to love G-D and to live with the love of mankind.                                                                                                  

Learning to live with Torah and יראת שמים,will enable mankind to face the realities of life in a more positive way.

The world is ours and what we do with it will depend on our efforts and on our commitment to improve and change our society from its negativity, into its positive attire, that Hashem has provided us with. אל תירא יעקב does not mean “Don’t worry, I will take care of everything.” I believe it means, “Don’t be afraid, but be courageous,” for you have the courage to be the active force in making this world a better one - a world without hate - a world of peace and a world of respect and serenity.                                                                               

We must put the word Love into the equation of Life.

Love G-D,

Love man,

Love our people,

Love our Jewish State,

Love our glorious Country,

Love our families,

Love life and live it to the fullest.

This may seem like paradise once again, and it can be with Divine help, and with our brotherly love.

 

Let us follow the words of the Navi, and turn our days of mourning into days of joy and happiness for K’lall Yisrael, and for all mankind.

 

B’nechamet Tzion

 

 

FAKE NEWS

  Fake news, Fake news, is today’s most popular expression of modern day parlance. These words are more confusing and more complex than the fake news itself. Where is the truth in all this, when will we see what Emes is all about, fulfilling the dictum of תתן אמת ליעקב?

The political scene has become so full of שקר, that the world recoils itself into a life of not believing anyone and distrusting everyone. 

The more we delve into this modern dilemma, the more we become disheartened, leading us to the brink of anxiety and demolishing our well being. We need to attune ourselves to an existence of greater calm and begin to search, for ourselves, where the truth lies and not to constantly believe every word we hear and read, and surely not to repeat every word that others utter.

We must begin to filter and draw into our being only the truth derived from logic and the unbiased information free of distortions. 

As I reflect on this issue, the famous words, משה אמת ותורתו אמת come into mind.

Then I proceed to read our Torah portion of the week, Korach. 

Here is a man of ample means, totally involved with his jealousy of Moshe and Aharon, angrily wishing to destroy their leadership dragging along hundreds of malcontents by using Fake news. Korach, at all times uses arguments that seem logical at first but, in reality, are false and destructive to the entire process of Jewish unity.

This man Korach, is a person who is responsible for destroying the harmony among the Jewish People. To accomplish his goal of destroying the leadership of Moshe, he made libelous accusations against him, committing the most destructive Fake news. It is this crime of Korach, that our Chazal states,

”This this was a controversy not motivated for the sake of heaven, but rather to create disruption and schism amongst the Jewish People. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Our society is suffering from this self same destructive force by the way our country acts, constantly, with so many verbal abuses and false motives to achieve their own personal agendas, rather than pursuing a road of Emes, that would lead our country down the pristine road of benevolence and humanitarianism.

As our Mishna states, “The clue to our actions is to try achieving mutual respect and selfless motives that will guarantee that our society is סופה להתקיים, is to be an everlasting testimony for the endurance of our people that are created in the Image of G-D, leading to our true salvation.”

We need to start acting with greater respect and understating even with those we are not in agreement with, and begin to listen to each other , not only with our ears, but with our minds and especially with our hearts. Demagoguery has no place in our society and especially in our times. Enough of the words and actions that are distortions of our ethical and moral principles and are only pontificated for their own self aggrandizement. These are times we need to return to our Image of 

G-D that resides in all of us, and which beckons to be projected into our society, leading to our Geulah Shelemah.

SPIRITUAL NOURISHMENT

While shopping in the supermarket, most shoppers are extremely careful 

to check all of the food items for the expiration date to make sure their family consumes the freshest food. 

Realizing this important requirement for fresh food, I realize how important it is to assure that our spiritual nourishment is not compromised by religious feelings that do not pass an expiration date. Our spiritual lives must be ever fresh in our hearts and minds.

With these thoughts let us read this week’s Parshas, Pinchas , which represents the turning point for the Jewish People as their sojourn in the desert comes to a close and  marks the end of the road for Moshe as his leadership is being turned over to Yehoshua.

This must have been a very traumatic experience, not only for Moshe, but even more so for Am Yisrael, - a new leader, a new way of conducting themselves, and a new set of rules and priorities.

One may wonder with this new leadership, can we be guaranteed that he will lead us successfully in assuring that our future generations will remain dedicated and committed to the Torah that was transmitted to Moshe and now in the hands of a new leader? 

The question that always bothered me, “Do we have leaders that know, well, how to lead their constituents in a meaningful and respectful manner reflecting the true needs of the people?”

As I probe this question, I realize that in this same Sedrah, that a new leader is appointed, we are told of an extremely perplexing story of Pinchas who, seeing an act of immorality, reacts with a sense of zealotry, to maintain the sanctity of G-Dsname, and kills the two participants in this very act of debauchery. It is true he did so בקנאו את קנאתיבתוכם, as Hashem said, “When he zealously avenged Me among them.”  However, one wonders, “Is an act of zealousness, the role that a leader should play?” In fact the Netziv, reflecting on G-D’s response to the act of Pinchas, הנני נותן לו בריתי שלום, suggests that this lesson of Shalom, as a reward for his zealous act, was to make sure that Pinchas, himself, was at peace.  Too often such a violent act, as much as it was needed, can have a very serious deleterious effect on the psyche of the individual, who acted in this way. For how just it was, he did kill, and Hashem,needed to bless him with Shalom, a Shalom of an inner peace and tranquility so that he could go on with his life unscathed by this brutal, albeit, necessary act.

In fact, when the word Shalom is written in the Torah it is written with a וי״ו דשלוםקטיעה היא, a split VAV. One may ask, “Why did the Torah write it this way?” I sense the Torah is trying to tell us that, indeed the actions of Pinchas may have brought some kind of peace, albeit a flawed peace. True, there are times that a violent act may assuage a horrendous situation, but such a zealot reaction brings about a flawed peace, for anytime an act brings with it a violent solution, than peace is flawed and must not be tolerated.

I always remember the words of Golda Meir

“We can forgive the Arabs for killing our children. We cannot forgive them for forcing us to kill their children”. 

Violence is never the answer, for a sense of humanity is lost even for the most life saving reason. That is why Hashem, rewards Pinchas with a message of peace, a lesson to remain gentle and peaceful in his dealings with humanity. 

Our society needs more humility and less self righteousness.

What better reason, for concluding ourAmidah with the most significant T’fillah,

ה׳ יברך את עמו בשלום, and let us echo, may it be so.

שבת שלום ומבורך

 

FOCUS and PERCEPTION

 As we approach the solemn nine day period of mourning for our Holy Beit Hamikdash I ask, “What should our demeanor be during these few days?” The answer is reflective in our outward observances, such as not shaving , not eating meat, not drinking wine, which is, understandable, according to Halacha. But I am searching for much more. This period must engender a greater sense of introspection into our observances, touching more of how it affects our inner core of being a Jew in this tumultuous period of history. A time that we are experiencing more anti semitism, and more negativism towards our Jewish State.

Do I have all the answers to our dire situation? No! But I do realize that if we wait until circumstances are precisely right for us to achieve and accomplish something, then, very often, nothing ever will be accomplished or achieved. Neither we nor circumstances are ever precisely right. I sense that to succeed in changing things and in achieving our goals, we are to whine less over our fate and start to take whatever has been given to us and make the best of it, by rallying our political and spiritual forces.

Judaism directs us to reject any and every kind of fatalism that denies us the freedom and the ingenuity to choose a way to strike out against the evil forces that wish to

 de legitimize our Judaic rights.

We must not let others judge our role as Jews, especially those who seem to be on the periphery. We need to take a somber look at what is important to me as a Jew and to recognize what is right and what is wrong in our society - to focus more on what is valuable for our existence as a Jew and to pursue those goals.

If we wish to change the perceptions what others have of us, then we need to begin to see our true selves and perfect our G-D given qualities.

Ask me, “Where do I begin?” This is my reply;

“Have I grown more caring? Have I become more forgiving? Have I become more tolerant? Have I become more generous or more self centered? Have I held onto the principles of our faith, and have, with my life, built a Sanctuary to G-D?”

Doing all this may not change the way others look at us, but it will send a message that, as a Jew, our world is much better off with us being a part of it, and for mankind to count their Blessings that there is a glorious and the benevolent State of Israel, transforming the entire Middle East into a Democratic environment.

Taking these thoughts to heart, we may readily understand the entire episode of Moshe’s dealing with the tribes of Reuben and Gad, in their request to remain on the East side of the Jordan, rather than cross over with the entire Jewish people into the land of Canaan.

The request seems to be upsetting to Moshe as he saw it as an avarice act on their behalf. It seemed that they were only concerned with their flocks, and the wealth it would bring to them, more than their concern for their families and, especially, their children. This angered Moshe for he knew, as we know today, our children come first, and to focus more on their needs and especially their education. Their spirituality, is the essence of what Judaism stands for, and it is the foundation that supports our way of life. Only after being convinced that these S’hvatim realized this truism, that he acquiesced to their requests

This idea is intensified as we recall the words of the Birchat Kohanim, “May Hashem bless you with earthly possessions and keep these possessions from possessing you. May He shield you against the destructive effects that too often followon the heels of prosperity.”

This, I sense, was bothering Moshe after the request and until he was sure otherwise, he did not want to agree to their request.

The lesson is simple but greatly needed for our success. Place our trust in Hashem, and more so place our trust in ourselves that we have the G-D given power and the wherewithal to engender change in the false perceptions that are engulfing so many of our own constituents and those who are maligning our Jewish State.

Oscar Wilde wrote ”Anybody can sympathize with the sufferings of a friend, but it requires a very fine nature to sympathize with a friend’s success”.

Until those who find fault with Israel and the Jewish People realize how belligerent and wrong they are in their perception of the Jewish people and the role they play in society, we, as the עם הנבחר, will continue to strengthen our אמונה, by experiencing greater אהבה for our Jewish brethren and to assure that our priority at the present time are our children and to continuously provide them with the a greater sense of loyalty and pride in our Judaic way of life.

Our quarrel is not with Jews who are different, but with Jews who are indifferent.