The Stuff of Real Life
The
underlying message of the portion is that nothing affects our mindset and value
system more than our social environment. We are all conditioned by repeated and
constant exposure to the prevailing culture. Harmful outside influences can
easily pollute our ability to distinguish right from wrong and can easily
desensitize us from appreciating the value and sanctity of every humans life.
This underscores the importance of ensuring that our homes are
bastions of light, joy and an appreciation for the kedusha of Klal Yisroel.
These values must permeate the atmosphere to the point where they are imprinted
on the minds and hearts of our children. Only by building our homes according
to the Torah’s blueprint can we turn them into lighthouses of positive energy.
They will thus become the miniature ‘cities of refuge’ that will protect
ourselves and our families from the steady onslaught of moral decay and
corruption in the surrounding culture.
Wishing you a wonderful Shabbos
A Bridge to Nowhere
Parshas Matos
Posted on July 11, 2018 (5778) By Rabbi
Mordechai Kamenetzky | Series: Drasha | Level: Beginner
Moshe had been the consummate conciliator for the past 40
years. From the sin of the Golden Calf when he appeased Hashem through the many
ordeals throughout the 40-year desert sojourn, he is constantly an advocate for
the wishes of his nation. This week, however, Moshe he reacts totally different
to what appears to be a simple requisition.
The children of Gad and Reuvain come
to Moshe with a simple request. They are shepherds and do not want to cross the
Jordan River into the Land of Canaan. They claim that the land on the east bank
of the river is better for grazing. Before they even get a chance to fully
present their request, Moshe releases a virtual tirade at them. For eleven
verses, more than any single rebuke in the entire Torah, Moshe chastises them.
He says that their request is subversive and will dissuade others from crossing
the Jordan. He relives the fateful episode of the spies and their slander of
the Land of Israel. He recounts the wrath of Hashem and details the suffering
of Israel because of that sin. He compares the representatives who requested to
remain to those terrible men, and claims that Gad and Reuvain “have risen in
their place to add more burning wrath of Hashem against Israel” (Numbers:
32:6-16)
It is extremely difficult to
comprehend why Moshe, normally so conciliatory, patient, and understanding,
even during the most difficult of times, became so sharply incensed at this
request. Obviously, Moshe’s actions are a lesson to all of us. What is it?
David was driving to the
Catskills for Shabbos but set out from his Manhattan office with hardly enough
time to make the trip and arrive before sundown. Traffic was backed up on the
Major Deegan and crossing the Hudson via the George Washington Bridge seemed an
almost impossible task. Mid-span, after sitting nearly an hour in stop-and-go
traffic, he realized that the red orb in the sky was about to sink below the
horizon. He had never desecrated the Shabbos before and traffic on the George
Washington Bridge was not going to make him violate the Sabbath now. In a
panic, he pulled his car as close as he could to the guard rail, left the keys
on the visor, removed his wallet and hid it together his personal effects and
hoped for the best. At worst, the car would be stolen. Maybe the police would
get to it first and tow it.
Feeling a little guilty about
adding to the traffic delays on the bridge, David left his car, flashers
blinking, and walked back toward New York City where he decided to spend the
Shabbos at a friend who lived in nearby Washington Heights.
Saturday night he returned to the
bridge and his car was nowhere to be seen. He went straight to the police
station and asked for the desk officer. “Did anyone see the gray Honda that was
on the George Washington Bridge on Friday night?”
The officers eyes widened. “You
mean the car with the keys on the visor?”
David nodded.
“Franky, get over here,” the cop
yelled to his friend,” listened to this!” By now a couple of officers moved
closer to David.
The sergeant raised his voice.
“You mean the Honda with the flashers on?” Again David nodded, this time more
nervously. You mean the Honda with the wallet with close to $500 dollars left
under the front seat!” he shouted. “Was that your car!?” David shook his head
meekly. “Yes, officer, that’s my car. Where is it?”
“Where is it??” mocked the
officer, “Where is it? Do you know how many divers we have looking for your
body in the Hudson!?”
Moshe understood that the worst
of all sins is not what one does privately in his heart or in his home but
rather when his actions affect the spirit of others. Often, one’s self-interest
mires any thought of how his conduct will affect others. The children of Gad
and Reuvain had a personal issue. They did not want to cross the Jordan River
because they wanted to graze in greener pastures. Yet they did not consider
what effect their request might have on an entire nation. They did not take
into account the severe ramifications their actions may have on the morale of
hundreds of thousands of enthusiastic people wanting to enter the Holy Land.
In our lives, at home and at
work, not everything that we do, say or act upon may be interpreted with the
intent that motivated the action. And sometimes those misinterpretations can
have devastating effects on morale, attitude and feeling. We may refuse to
cross a river for a matter of convenience. Others, however, may see it as a
calamity. Our job is to be conscious that everything we do affects not only
ourselves, but is a bridge to many other people.
The Age Of Experience
Posted on July 1, 2013 (5773) By Rabbi Naftali
Reich | Series: Legacy | Level: Beginner
“Man was
born to toil,” said Iyov, and indeed, how we toil! We seem to be under constant
pressure, ever working to provide for ourselves and our families while trying
to find time to enjoy the fruits of our labors. But did you ever notice that
when we attempt to relax, it sometimes can be difficult to apply the parking
break? While attempting to unwind, we tend to become restless, straining to
return to the world of activity and achievement. And this makes us ask why we
are so compelled to always occupy ourselves. Why, when we finally do have a
chance to relax, do we find it so difficult to detach ourselves from the throb
and hum of our daily lives?
At least part of the answer lies in the fact that “life” and
“activity” are really synonymous. Creative activity is the ultimate expression
of human life. Inanimate matter is fixed in its place, and even animals can do
little more than move from one place to another. Only we humans are endowed
with the innate ability to channel our talents toward meaningful growth and
advancement. By creating us in this fashion, HaShem gifted us with the capacity
to emulate Him, to become partners in the creation and development of His
universe. As we move along the road of life we are naturally growing,
developing, blossoming and maturing. At times it may not appear as if we are
realizing any major accomplishments. Nevertheless, we can be assured that core
values and morals are continually refining themselves as we learn from our past
mistakes and move towards a better tomorrow.
This concept is beautifully reflected in the opening words of this
week’s Torah portion, “These are the journeys of the children of Israel who
left the land of Egypt . . .” . The Torah continues to devote many lines to
detailing each of the forty-two locations where the Jews encamped during their
forty years of wandering in the Sinai wilderness. The questions are obvious:
why does the Torah devote so much space to delineating the precise places that
the people traveled from and to which they arrived? Furthermore, it was only
the very first journey, from Ramses to Succos, which took them out of the land
of Egypt. Why then does the Torah associate all of their journeys with their
Exodus from Egypt by telling us with each segment “they traveled from . . . and
they encamped at”? Would it not have sufficed to simply record the historical
location of each stop that they made in the wilderness? It is also interesting
to note that the Shabbat Torah reading this week is recited in a melodious tone
that is also used the recital of the other ‘songs’ in the Torah. Why is this
historical narrative to be sung and celebrated?
The commentaries explain that the forty-two journeys enumerated here
represent the many journeys, wanderings, and seemingly fragmented episodes that
occur to all of us during our own lives. Just as the Children of Israel were
distancing themselves from the ancient land of Egypt, so we, during each of our
own stages of growth, are attempting to remove ourselves from our own
mini-Egypt. The Hebrew word for Egypt-Mitzrayim is rooted in the word for
boundary and constraint. “Egypt” expresses much more than the place of our
physical slavery: it symbolizes the daily constraints and limitations imposed
upon us by the terms of our very existence.
Throughout our life’s journey, the physical body constantly moves
forward, serving as the vehicle of our growth, while our soul and conscience
take the role of an internal compass that steadily guides us across the
wilderness, prodding us to leave our ‘little Egypt’ while drawing us ever
closer to our very own promised land. Each stage and phase of our lives
represent essential chapters in our personal life documentary. Each stage and
phase has a celebratory note, for at each station on our journey we glean
invaluable insights and pointers that bring us one step closer to our ultimate
destination.
This important concept is reinforced with a Torah commandment that
obliges us to honor and stand up before an elderly person. Why is it so
important to venerate a senior fellow? Many older people do not seem to have
accomplished that much in their lives, so why do we confer upon them so much
esteem and reverence?
The commentaries explains that our esteem for the elderly is
grounded in our appreciation for the reservoir of experience that they have
inevitably garnered as they charted and navigated their passageway through
life. The insight and understanding that they have gained with the passage of
time are the ‘goods’ that we pay deference to and stand up for ! Thus, even if
the older person may not have any groundbreaking accomplishments in their
life’s portfolio there is much that still deserves our respect.
This explains the Torah’s lengthy description of the people’s
journey through the wilderness. Each stage of their journey was enriching. It
enabled them to distance themselves from the constraining influences of Egypt
and drew them one step closer to their destination. In our lives too each
chapter invariably will leave us with valuable insights and lessons that guide
us forward towards a more meaningful tomorrow.
Wishing you and yours a wonderful Shabbas
Rabbi Naftali Reich
Text
Copyright © 2013 by Rabbi Naftali Reich and Torah.org.
Rabbi Reich is on the faculty of the Ohr Somayach Tanenbaum Education Center.
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