OUR GUARANTORS

 There are times when our minds start to wander and interesting thoughts enter our thinking process, especially, when we read of the many frightening forecasts of how many Jews are being lost to Judaism. I have never subscribed to being a pessimist, especially, when it comes to the future of Yahadut, for our dependence on Hashem gives us confidence for our survival.

   I recall the story when the Nazis occupied Lublin, Poland.The Jews were gathered in the city square and surrounded by the cruel Nazi troops who ordered the Jews, “Dance Jews and sing one of your songs”, and the whips began to fly. One of the Jewish men began to sing an old Chasidic tune, in which the person asks G-D to be reconciled with him, “Lomir Sich iberbeten, iberbeten, Avinu shebashamayim”, and the Jews all joined in with great gusto. The Nazis enjoyed the scene roaring with laughter, beating the Jews as they sang.

   Suddenly, the words of the song changed and they began to sing very loud, “Mir vellen zey iberleben, iberleben, Avinu shebashahmayim”. “We will outlive them, outlive them, our Father in Heaven.” What an amazing story, and even more amazing that the truth of these words have come about, which continues to give me an optimistic and a positive attitude to the future of Yiddishkeit here in the Galut and in Israel.

   Why am I sharing this with you? While in Disney Land Magic Kingdom with my children and grandchildren and great-grand-grandchild there was an announcement on our app that a mincha/maariv minyan will take place. To my amazement, there were over a hundred people gathered at “Tomorrow Land” for Tephillah. At that moment I remembered those words, “Mir vellen zey iberleben”

What an amazing truth that The prophecy of suffering Jews saw the future of Yiddishkeit come about in all its glory. 

   This observation has great bearing on this week’s Parsha,Yisro. In this Sedrah it is recorded the most important occurrence in Jewish History - the cosmic event in which G-D revealed Himself at Sinai in order to give the nation the Torah. It is due to this awesome event that our sages continuously try to recapture the feelings of our ancestors who stood amidst the glory and the splendor of Sinai.

There is one passage of the Talmud that has always troubled me.

The Gemorah states regarding the sentence,ויתיצבו בתחתית ההר, “ They stood at the foot of the mountain.” This teaches us that G-D held Mt. Sinai over their heads and said to them, ‘”If you accept this Torah, fine, if not, there will be your burial.” 

   Very enigmatic, for it seems that the Almighty had to coerce the Jewish People into observing its many laws. This begs the question, why, and what does it really mean?

   Hashem asked our forefathers for sureties before giving them the Torah. 

They replied, “Our Forefathers and our Prophets will be our guarantors.” Hashem rejected these proposals. Finally, the nation said, “Our children will be our guarantors,” and G-D accepted their offer. 

The idea is quite simple but profound. The Divine gift of the Torah was too precious to be given to a single generation, it was meant as a legacy for all time, bequeathed to every future Jewish generation.

   The coercion that I mentioned was not for that generation receiving the Torah, for they accepted it without reservation, but for future generations. They had to be forced to do so, for they seemingly did not want to take the responsibility of placing such a Book of Laws and Rules without them being present. That is why Hashem responded that if they did not accept the responsibilities for future generations, there will be their burial.  For if future Jews did not accept the Torah, and neglected their responsibilities as Jews, they would meet their tragic end as Jews.

   This must be our pledge and our responsibility to make sure that our children and all future generations are well educated and encouraged to carry on the heritage and the legacy that was accepted at Mt. Sinai - A Loyalty Pledge of Allegiance to G-D and His Torah.

   This responsibility is not to be passed off to someone else for it is the responsibility of every Jew and Jewess.  It must be fulfilled and it must be done NOW.  In our hands lies the future of Yahadut, and we must not minimize the consequences if we ignore our duties as Jewish conveyers of our heritage.

Permit me to conclude with an amazing story related about Golda Meir. When she served as the first ambassador to Russia, she went to the Shul in Moskow on Rosh Hashanah, and was amazed to see over 50 thousand Jews gathered to welcome her.  That had come at the displeasure of the Soviet regime, to declare their love for Judaism, their loyalty as Jews, and their feelings for Israel. The crowd surged forward and in a bellowing united force, shouting “ Golda, Shalom, Shalom, Goldele, laben zolst du, Shana Tovah , Goldele”. Long life to you Happy New Year Goldele. She was overwhelmed with emotion, and said to them, “A dank zich vos ihr zeit gebliben Yidden”, Thank you for having remained Jews”.

   Need I say more, that’s what Yidishkeit is all about. Our crucial and immediate   responsibility is to assure that our future generations will remain dedicated and committed Torah oriented Jews.

 Our glorious tomorrow is a strong Jewish today.

     

POTENTIAL FOR GREATNESS

G-d has implanted in every one of us the potential for greatness and whatever profession we choose in life will depend greatly on all the opportunities that we are given. To achieve that greatness depends upon how we perceive ourselves.

Our priorities depend on what is essential for a good and decent life. We are encouraged to pursue these priorities and view life in a positive way. Too often, what seems to us as a successful life in others, may merely be an illusion and a false reality that is only surface deep and cannot be called a true success or a Iife of happiness.

I realize, more and more, that life is often judged by ones fiancial status. This may be what our lives have become , due to our societal priorities, and indeed might be what we are all judged by. 

“But is that really IT?”

When we begin to see life in a more positive way -to see all the positive aspects of our lives and continue to travel on our own selected road, then life has greater meaning and becomes more appreciated.

As I always say “Enjoy the journey, it belongs to us and to no one else -and that which is ours is the glorified road to true happiness.”

With these thoughts in mind, I am reminded of a truly insightful commentary made by 

Rabbi Aharon Soloveitchik זצ״ל on this week’s Parsha, Beshalach, wherein we are told of the miraculous intervention by Hashem permitting the Jewish People to cross the Red Sea to safety, fleeing from the onslaught of the Egyptian army. After successfully, reaching the other shore, Moshe led them in the singing of the שירת הים.

Why did it take them so long to sing a Shirah to G-D, when they should have done so immediately after they miraculously left the Egyptian bondage?

Rav Ahron, makes a basic distinction between the miracles the Jews witnessed in Egypt proper and the ones they experienced at the Red Sea.

The difference between the two sets of miracles correspond to the difference between two Hebrew terms meaning salvation; הצלה and ישועה.

הצלה is a term that connotes an act of salvation during which the party being saved remains completely passive.

ישועה on the other hand, is a salvation that comes about through the efforts and the active participation of the party being saved.

In Egypt the process through which G-D redeemed the Jewish People involved הצלה, when the people remained totally passive while Hashem did everything on His own to bring about their redemption.

However, at the Red Sea, Hashem’s salvation was a ישועה that required the nation’s active participation. In fact, חזל teaches, that Hashem did not split the Sea, until Nachshon jumped into the swirling waters and until the water reached the nostrils of the Jews.

Thus, we see that when the Jews experienced the wonders at the Red Sea, and became active participants in the miracle of salvation, they were encouraged to sing a Shirah to Hashem.

We see that the active participation by the people was a necessity, to show their total allegiance and commitment to Hashem, to bring about their salvation. Indeed we believe that Hashem performed miracles in the past and we are confident that He will do so in the future and we must show our total allegiance to G-D. We evidence this by our actions, and our willingness to be participants in the unfolding of Jewish history rather than just being observers.

This is true as a nation, and even more so as individuals. For life to be successful and productive, we need to get involved and become participants in our life endeavors, in achieving our goals.

Our Emunah must continue to be strong, and at the same time our self confidence and our inner convictions must propel us to the next level of our personal growth, leading us down the path to greater human achievements. 

The real purpose of life is not to get ahead of the next person, but to conquer ourselves. Meaningful life is not measured in years, but in deeds, and not by how long but by how well. 

Experience is not just what happens to us. It is what we DO with what happens to us. 

The lesson is quite simple, it is important to cultivate the art of being grateful of life itself, of keeping our minds open to harmony and love. 

We make our world better by starting with ourselves and to live our lives in a way that transcends our personal existence. 

“A good Jew is anyone who wants to be a better Jew”

    These are times that encourage us to sing songs of praise to Hashem, and to live lives that are in itself a song of Holiness and glory to all of mankind. 

  As we celebrate טו בשבט this week , let us plant trees of life that will bear spiritual fruit for future generations. A life of Torah and a life of  Erleckeit, for then we will be able to sing in unison    עץ חיים היא למחזיקים בה. 

שבת 

ENCHANTED POSSIBILITIES

   As I pen this blog, I began to think of the extraordinary amount of times that I spoke in so many different venues, on so many different topics, but my mind and heart were enthused when I was asked to join a symposium in Boynton Beach, on an intriguing topic, “The role of grandparents in modern times”. The topic was very interesting to me because it gave me an opportunity to reflect how times have changed, and in a dialectic sense I realize that in reality that things really have stayed the same, but are just clothed in a modern version.

Turn with me to a dialogue between Moshe and Pharaoh in this week’s Sedrah.

Moshe insists that Pharaoh release the Jewish People from bondage. Pharaoh replies,”לכו עבדו את הי , go worship the Lord your G-D.” To which Moshe replied, “בנערינו ובזקנינו נלך, I am sorry Pharoah, our youth and our elder statesman, will go together.”

Moshe knew, well, that the future of the Jewish World depends on its’ youth, and, more so, that our youth and our elders must walk together, in harmony.

We realize, more and more, that with all the assimilation taking place, if we don’t have our youth with us, then there is no tomorrow. But they must become בנערינו , our youth, yes they must always remain, “Our”, not hostel, or in opposition to our Judaic way of life, and our Torah oriented lifestyle. We must continue to strive and work with our youth to be Part of us and not Apart from us.

We, the adults, must be able to open our eyes to the issues that our youth present to us and to act accordingly, in a way that they will feel welcome and encourage more curiosity on their part and never to be threatened by their questions. 

  We may then come to understand, in a more intellectual and emotional way, the plague of darkness. As the Torah describes this, “ויהי חושך אפלה בכל ארץ מצרים , it was total darkness.”Those Jews living among the Egyptians were not affected by the darkness. One wonders how this was possible?

The Torah Temima comments on this dilemma. He states, “There was plenty of light and the sun did not cease to pour forth it’s rays, rather

“דינים החושך היה לא באויר רק בעיני האנשים.” He suggests that, “Hashem caused some kind of membrane to cover their eyes, possibly cataracts, so that the light could not penetrate to the retina.

  The darkness that they experienced was not merely the darkness of the night, it was absolute darkness of the blind.” In other words, the darkness was a barrier within them that shut out the light and precluded any meaningful social contact.This was a crucial part of this plague.

I find this P’shat fascinating and I would take it a step further.

So many of us are blind to our fellowman’s plight and needs, as if “suffering from a plague of darkness

We may be on the upswing in our Halachic observances, בן אדם למקום, but I question how we are seeing and viewing the needs of others, and fulfilling the great mitzvah, בן אדם לחברו. .

In lieu of these comments we need to address my earlier remarks regarding, “How are we dealing with our youth of today, especially as we see so many are falling by the ‘Judaic Wayside.’

Our task is to uncover the darkness of indifference and non observance, by turning to their needs and doubts and bring the light of fellowship and patience into their midst. 

“Fortunately for our children, the uncertainties of the present always give way to the enchanted possibilities of the future “

                   

THINK HIGHER

   This past week a teenager approached me and bewailed that he is facing many problems in school and it is affecting his relationships at home.  He asked, "What can I do about my dilemma?" After analyzing the issues he shared with me I said to him, "You can do it! You can rise above the problems! You can grow! You can achieve greatness! Look at life in an optimistic way, be hopeful, positive and have a helpful approach to your life". 

    After this encounter, I began to focus on this week's Sedrah Va'era, and realized that it may very well be possible that Moshe had a similar problem, when he said to Hashem, “How can I go to Pharoah, when הן בני ישראל לא שמעו אלי ואיך ישמעני פרעה ואני ערל שפתים.” Here we learn that Moshe felt inadequate, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharoah, even my own people don't listen to me?” Here we sense that Moshe felt incapable of fulfilling the will of G-D, due to his personal handicap. Hashem reassured him that he would succeed with Aaronat his side. 

   This entire scenario proves to me that Hashem feels that every person is capable of overcoming their personal handicap, whether it is physical or it is emotional. No one should be obsessed with a feeling of deficiency. 

  Too often, when like Moshe, we feel incompetent, because we tell ourselves we are, and when we think we are, the result is we live life in the negative lane, resulting in a non productive life and a life of suffering.

   We all need to hear the encouraging words of Hashem,that worthy efforts can help to overcome any feelings of inadequacy,  and not escape the realities of life, but  face the obstacles that so many face and to feel that with our faith in The Almighty, we will be able to succeed. 

   Let us realize that not only Moshe felt unequal to life's task, many people do. 

  Success does not always lie in achievement but, even more so, lies in the degree of effort that one is willing to strive for to reach their goals in life. 

   I have witnessed, repeatedly, that progress and growth are made possible through the help and guidance of others and by the applications of pure common sense. No one can get anywhere alone. I refuse to believe the quotation, "Self made man.” Such people are blind to the many Blessings around them, and, for many, the words Appreciation and Thanks are foreign to them.  

    There is non- contentment and dissatisfaction with ones lot that brings about this feeling of inadequacy. 

    “לא עליך לגמור. It is not our duty to complete the task,” but neither are we free to desist from being involved in the effort of trying to accomplish the task. 

    We are living in an age of challenge and must face that challenge and stand up with our faith. 

  To this end we need to Think Higher, not to think, merely, ephemeral, the now, the immediate enjoyment, for there is much more to our faith. 

  Eli Weisel tells the story of a poor Chasid in Eastern Europe who had no fish for Shabbat, yet he felt he needed fish lest the Shabbat meal be dishonored. He was so unhappy, that his wife decided to do something. Disregarding the freezing wind and snow, she went to the river, dug a hole in the ice and caught a fish. 

  She returned home, prepared the Shabbat meal with great joy and her husband began to eat the fish with great appetite. 

  At one point, she made her husband stop eating and said, “Dear Chaim, I know that you are hungry, and I know it's a mitzvah to put your heart and soul into your Shabbat  meal, but, please remember I risked my life to catch this fish, so while you’re eating, try not to think about the fish- but Think Higher !!

  This is our lesson of today.  We may be inundated with problems, we may find success in different aspects of our lives, but we always need to THINK HIGHER.  With that attitude, life becomes a gift. Always remember to THINK HIGHER.