How does the prophet respond when the people are suffering? Isaiah says, speaking in God’s name: “For a moment I hid My face from you, and with everlasting kindness will I have compassion on you (Isaiah 54:8).” Our hearts remain burdened with grief for the hostages who were murdered and one of the places we turn for understanding is to our ancestors, who again and again endured the pain of persecution and loss. So how did the sages who came before us, who also suffered unimaginable losses, understand this verse? I looked at the commentaries and found a recurrent theme….
Rabbi Wolpe - ADL Impressions
September
Shoftim – The Importance of Law
Judaism proposes laws that are considered the bare minimum of society. They are called the Noahide laws – or the seven laws of the sons of Noah. Among them are laws against theft and murder of course, but also the demand to set up a system of courts. In ancient times, law was vengeance. What you did to me I would do to you, or your family. The institutionalization of grudges or claims was a great advance of humanity. No longer could I take the law into my own hands. Judaism understood that a society that works is one that…
August
Re’eh – Care for Oneself and Others
“You are children of the Lord your God. You shall not gash yourselves or shave your head because of the dead” (Deuteronomy 14:1). Asking why the two statements are juxtaposed – 1) that you are children of God and 2) you should not gash yourself for the dead – our commentators offer a range of interpretations. Underlying all these explanations is the obligation not to harm oneself, which is of great importance in Judaism. As children of God, we should cherish and esteem what we have been given. Taking care of one’s health and not destroying or defacing our body…
Ekev – Three Secrets of Jewish Survival
This week begins with very provocative words: “If you listen.” In that phrase alone, you find a secret of the remarkable survival of the Jewish people. What is it we listen to? From the time we are children, we love to listen to stories. Not only does the Torah tell the story of the Jewish people, but we ourselves tell it over and over again. The story of Passover – recounted in the Haggadah, the “telling” – is a story we never tire of repeating and learning. Several years ago, I was in Dharmsala and gave a lecture to Tibetan…
V’Etchanan – A Verse That Speaks to Our Problems
There is no obligation to have a favorite biblical verse. In the Talmud, a couple of Rabbis identify favorite verses, but most do not. If I had to choose, I would select a verse from this week’s parasha, Deut. 4:9 — “Guard your soul carefully.” This verse has grown in importance in our own day, although it was always a crucial reminder given the snares and distractions of life. I’d like to suggest three ways we need to learn to guard our souls better in this world. 1. The overemphasis on bodies. Culturally, we are worshippers of the physical. We…
Devarim – History and Vision
Before Israel enters the land, Moses recounts their history. He discusses the wandering, the gathering at Sinai, the episode of the scouts, and much more. This parashah of the Torah, Devarim, is always read before the commemoration of destruction on Tisha B’av. The Shabbat, because of the haftorah reading from Isaiah, is known as Shabbat Chazon, the Sabbath of a vision. The title is taken from the first words of the book in which the prophet’s vision is introduced. In one Shabbat, we read of a look back and a vision of the future. What has all of this to…
Matot-Masei – The Promise Then and Now
After the final campaign east of the Jordan river, the nation is ready to advance into Israel and enter the Promised Land. But there are two, eventually two-and-a-half, tribes that want to stay in the land they have recently conquered. They recognize the delicacy of the request. Israel is the Promised Land and they are willingly absenting themselves. What follows is a subtle but beautiful example of what it is to ask, and what it means to listen. The Gadites and Reubenites approach Moses, Eliezer the priest, and the chieftains of the community (Numbers 32:2). We are told, “And they…
July
Pinchas – What About the Children?
When I was in college, I studied for a year abroad in Scotland. There I met an English student named Justin who told me, quite plainly, that he had never liked Jews. When I asked him why, he explained that his father, whom he revered, had always disliked Jews. I still remember Justin’s face as he told me that he just could not come to grips with the idea that his father could be wrong. In this week’s parasha, we come across a strange verse inserted in the genealogical lists of which the Torah is so fond. Suddenly in recounting…
Balak – Do You Know the Meaning of This Day?
Tuesday is the the 17th day of the month of Tammuz. For many Jews this date holds no significance, but in Jewish history and observance, it matters a lot. And I recently had two experiences that reminded me anew why this day is so significant. Five calamities are said to have occurred on that date, the most important being the Romans breaching of the outer walls of the Jerusalem. Three weeks later, the Temple was destroyed, a catastrophe commemorated by Tisha B’av. The 17th of Tammuz is a minor fast day. Why should we fast for the beginning of the…
Korach – A Dream Deferred
The Israelites have been wandering for a long time. Why does the rebellion of Korach occur now in the biblical story? Rabbi Baruch Epstein, the author of Torah Temimah, in his commentary Tosefet Bracha, explains: There were always dissatisfactions, but the people held them in check for they had a great expectation. They were about to enter the land. In last week’s Torah portion, however, the spies returned with their evil report. God’s wrath was inflamed and God spoke through Moses. “In this very desert shall your carcasses fall. Of all you who were recorded in your various lists from age…
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