I was surprised to hear that some people gathered together to enjoy a Thanksgiving turkey either on Thursday night or Shabbos night as the Friedman family did, and neglected to give thanks. Therefore I would like to read to you the thanksgiving message that I composed.
“I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November (next,) to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks …
“And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations, and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; … to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations … and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue … to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best. “
“The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God . . .
“No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People".
Now truthfully I must admit that I did not compose these mellifluous and eloquent words. The first two paragraphs were written by George Washington in 1777 on his way to Valley Forge when he called upon all citizens to dedicate Thursday Nov. 26th (the same date as in 2009) as a national day of thanksgiving. The last two paragraphs were penned by Abraham Lincoln when, in the middle of a great war he called for an annual day of thanksgiving in an attempt to unify and uplift a war torn nation. When viewed from a 2009 perspective it is amazing that a president could utter such words. Divine providence? National sin? An orthodox Rabbi sure but not a President.
Jewish settlement in America has paralleled the rise of this great country to prominence. This is no coincidence as we see in this week’s parsha. I bet you knew that this week's parsha explained it. This week's parsha always seems to explain everything. The parsha opens with Jacob fleeing home. The Midrash tells us that he is robbed by his great nephew Elifaz. This explains why he arrives at his uncle Lavan with no money. As the parsha plays out the poor immigrant marries raises a large family and experiences remarkable almost supernatural prosperity. This is the story of Jacob's children's exile also. We are well familiar with the pogroms and expulsions and certainly with the holocaust of the previous generation. However there was much prosperity also. Abnormal prosperity. When Jacob arrived Lavan didn't even have a son. His daughter was his shepard. How embarrassing. Now that Jacob has spent some years with Lavan we hear his sons discussing their father’s wealth. Why did Lavan experience such prosperity? Lavan tells Jacob "G-d has blessed me because of you" Why did the United States experience this prosperity so that it could provide safe haven to Jacobs children.
As we continue to read the parsha we see that Jacob cannot live with Lavan forever. The good times come to an end when Lavan turns on Jacob. I am not one to read the Torah and predict the future. It is a Torah fact however that we will return to Israel. How or when that will happen I hope soon but I don't know. In the mean time it is certainly our obligation to thank Hashem for creating this wonderful land with its most unusual dedication to liberty and religious freedom that every one in this room had been and continues to be a beneficiary of.
I want to conclude on a cautionary note. The United States of America was established on the foundation of the rights of the citizens to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. After many years those rights were granted to people of color and then later to both sexes. In more recent times these rights have been extended to people with all forms of moral persuasions and religions. Everyone is guaranteed the right to preach their beliefs. These principals cannot remain unlimited if the country is to service. When religions have homicidal intent and deviant groups undermine the health and well being of the citizenry they must be curtailed or the government will no longer be able to ensure the security of the citizens. In either event the options that lay ahead do not bode well for the Jewish people. If the government takes no action to restrict religious freedoms, to discriminate, to restrain the pursuit of happiness of some parties our lives will be imperiled. If the government takes steps to restrict religious freedoms our Jewish lifestyle may also be imperiled. It is a serious crossroad that will soon have to be navigated. May G-d protect us.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Parshas Toldos
Q What are the two major questions asked about the story of Yaacov and Eisav and the blessings of Isaac?
A1. How could Isaac get it so wrong?
2. How does Jacob whose attribute is truth do something so deceitful?
A careful reading should point us in the right direction.
Q What is the highpoint of the story?
A When Jacob goes in to Isaac disguised as Eisav. We are sitting on the edge of our seats wondering if he be exposed or get away with it. Isaac says "the voice is the voice of Jacob but the hands are the hands of Eisav"
Q What is an item that shows up in the story that is not part of the theme? This is a popular question that Rabbi Dovid Fohrman likes to ask.
A Hands. Mentioned five times in the story.
Q What is the most out of place sentence in the story?
A Verse 23 where the Torah tells us "and he did not recognized him because his hands were hairy like Eisav's" This narrative verse is out of place in a story that is primarily dialogue. In addition it doesn’t tell us anything we didn't know.
Perhaps we can tie it all together as follows. Isaac saw Eisav with his faults and qualities. Eisav did not have the voice of Jacob a voice that spoke kindly (sit up please my father) or use the name of G-d (that G-d presented). On the other hand he had hands. Hands can accomplish things. Eisav is a doer not a talker. This is a very important quality in someone who it is hoped will take over the mantle of Abraham’s monotheistic campaign. Isaac decided to go with Eisav intending to bless him in the hopes that the blessings would motivate him to use his talents in the service of G-d all the while aware of his limitations. Now someone stands before him who does not seem to have any limitations. He has the best of both worlds. His voice is that of Jacob speaking of G-dly things yet he has hands that can do things like Eisav’s. That is someone that deserves a bracha. That is someone who you can pin your hopes on. That is someone whom you can give a bracha that is so all encompassing that there is nothing left to give any other child. Which makes sense? If I have a child who has it all give him all the blessing. Did Isaac think Eisav had developed a voice or had Jacob found hands? That remains a good question. Perhaps you have an idea.
A1. How could Isaac get it so wrong?
2. How does Jacob whose attribute is truth do something so deceitful?
A careful reading should point us in the right direction.
Q What is the highpoint of the story?
A When Jacob goes in to Isaac disguised as Eisav. We are sitting on the edge of our seats wondering if he be exposed or get away with it. Isaac says "the voice is the voice of Jacob but the hands are the hands of Eisav"
Q What is an item that shows up in the story that is not part of the theme? This is a popular question that Rabbi Dovid Fohrman likes to ask.
A Hands. Mentioned five times in the story.
Q What is the most out of place sentence in the story?
A Verse 23 where the Torah tells us "and he did not recognized him because his hands were hairy like Eisav's" This narrative verse is out of place in a story that is primarily dialogue. In addition it doesn’t tell us anything we didn't know.
Perhaps we can tie it all together as follows. Isaac saw Eisav with his faults and qualities. Eisav did not have the voice of Jacob a voice that spoke kindly (sit up please my father) or use the name of G-d (that G-d presented). On the other hand he had hands. Hands can accomplish things. Eisav is a doer not a talker. This is a very important quality in someone who it is hoped will take over the mantle of Abraham’s monotheistic campaign. Isaac decided to go with Eisav intending to bless him in the hopes that the blessings would motivate him to use his talents in the service of G-d all the while aware of his limitations. Now someone stands before him who does not seem to have any limitations. He has the best of both worlds. His voice is that of Jacob speaking of G-dly things yet he has hands that can do things like Eisav’s. That is someone that deserves a bracha. That is someone who you can pin your hopes on. That is someone whom you can give a bracha that is so all encompassing that there is nothing left to give any other child. Which makes sense? If I have a child who has it all give him all the blessing. Did Isaac think Eisav had developed a voice or had Jacob found hands? That remains a good question. Perhaps you have an idea.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Parshas Chaye Sarah
Vavraham zakayn bah bayomim / And Avrohom was old he came in days. What does it mean to come in days? The Shaloh haKadosh and others quoted in Nesivos Shalom tell us that it means that Avrohom practiced chesed / loving kindness each day of his life. Furthermore a Jew must do an act of kindness each day or that day is not a day in his life.
Why is chesed so essential to make it a day? The Nesivos Shalom offer three reasons which I present out of his order.
1. Olam chesed yibaneh. The world is built on kindness. Hashem modified His planned conduct of the world with straight justice by adding mercy. Without this kindness the world would never survive. Since Hashem constantly recreates the world our continued existence is due to his constant kindness. If we wish to continue to deserve this kindness we must ourselves practice acts of kindness. This is because Hashem tzilcha. Hashem reacts to us like a shadow. What we do He returns to us. We are kind to others He is kind to us.
2. The goal in life is not Torah and mitzvos but rather devaykus clinging to Hashem. We learn Torah and practice mitzvos to bring us to Hashem. The truest way to come close to Hashem is through imitation. Since Hashem is Kind with a capital K so too we should be kind. When I practice acts of kindness I am emulating Hashem therefore becoming closer to Him. We all imitate that which we truly admire.
3. All of our mitzvah performance suffers from lack of intent or ulterior motives. When we don't concentrate on a mitzvah it degrades the mitzvah and if we have ulterior motives we may not get credit at all. Chesed loving-kindness is different. When acts of chesed are preformed even with ulterior motives it does not matter as long as the recipient receives the benefit. Each and every day we must perform at least one mitzvah pefectly. Chesed is perhaps the only mitzvah that we have a good shot at performing perfectly.
In light of this third point I would like to speak out against a phrase I hear all too commonly. That is "no good deed goes unpunished". This is usually heard when one has just done an act of chesed by dropping something off at someone’s house and then hit their car backing out of the driveway. Or we tried to do something for the shul and get an earful about why we didn't do it differently. This pernicious phrase implies that it's not really worthwhile being nice. Although we always “Ha Ha Ha” when we hear it, the statement sinks in and it has been adopted as a truism. Therefore I want to explain why these bad things do happen to people who do good deeds particularly chesed.
Once a good deed has been done the Satan is in a bad spot. He tried to prevent us from doing the deed but failed. The only way he can get rid of the deed is by getting us to regret it and thereby cancel it. So he hits us with adversity in the hopes that we will say "darn, I never should have done that mitzvah in the first place". So watch out. Be prepared. When some adversity hits just after having done a mitzvah particularly acts of chesed which are the most perfect of mitzvos, do not give in. Say ‘I know your tricks. I am on to you. I will deal with this but I am still happy I did the mitzvah. Because when the time comes I want to come with this day as well as all of the others before Hashem.
Why is chesed so essential to make it a day? The Nesivos Shalom offer three reasons which I present out of his order.
1. Olam chesed yibaneh. The world is built on kindness. Hashem modified His planned conduct of the world with straight justice by adding mercy. Without this kindness the world would never survive. Since Hashem constantly recreates the world our continued existence is due to his constant kindness. If we wish to continue to deserve this kindness we must ourselves practice acts of kindness. This is because Hashem tzilcha. Hashem reacts to us like a shadow. What we do He returns to us. We are kind to others He is kind to us.
2. The goal in life is not Torah and mitzvos but rather devaykus clinging to Hashem. We learn Torah and practice mitzvos to bring us to Hashem. The truest way to come close to Hashem is through imitation. Since Hashem is Kind with a capital K so too we should be kind. When I practice acts of kindness I am emulating Hashem therefore becoming closer to Him. We all imitate that which we truly admire.
3. All of our mitzvah performance suffers from lack of intent or ulterior motives. When we don't concentrate on a mitzvah it degrades the mitzvah and if we have ulterior motives we may not get credit at all. Chesed loving-kindness is different. When acts of chesed are preformed even with ulterior motives it does not matter as long as the recipient receives the benefit. Each and every day we must perform at least one mitzvah pefectly. Chesed is perhaps the only mitzvah that we have a good shot at performing perfectly.
In light of this third point I would like to speak out against a phrase I hear all too commonly. That is "no good deed goes unpunished". This is usually heard when one has just done an act of chesed by dropping something off at someone’s house and then hit their car backing out of the driveway. Or we tried to do something for the shul and get an earful about why we didn't do it differently. This pernicious phrase implies that it's not really worthwhile being nice. Although we always “Ha Ha Ha” when we hear it, the statement sinks in and it has been adopted as a truism. Therefore I want to explain why these bad things do happen to people who do good deeds particularly chesed.
Once a good deed has been done the Satan is in a bad spot. He tried to prevent us from doing the deed but failed. The only way he can get rid of the deed is by getting us to regret it and thereby cancel it. So he hits us with adversity in the hopes that we will say "darn, I never should have done that mitzvah in the first place". So watch out. Be prepared. When some adversity hits just after having done a mitzvah particularly acts of chesed which are the most perfect of mitzvos, do not give in. Say ‘I know your tricks. I am on to you. I will deal with this but I am still happy I did the mitzvah. Because when the time comes I want to come with this day as well as all of the others before Hashem.
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