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Video-Vort Tzav 5772

 

Tzav 5772

It is easy to be overwhelmed, perhaps under-whelmed, by the often repetitive and detailed delineation of the korbanot (sacrifices) that comprise the Book of Leviticus. This week’s parsha, Tzav, is true to Levitical form by showering the reader with details of sacrifice and ritual and cult as performed by the Kohanim on behalf of the Israelites. The natural inclination of the reader is to glance-read over the details until the eye hits something of interest. However, as is the way of traditional Torah study, the thoughtful method of learning the Torah portion is to invest time in each verse in order to uncover meaning that at first is not apparent. An example from this week’s portion is, “And every grain offering of a Kohen will be whole, it shall not be eaten.” (Leviticus 6:16). What does Judaism learn from this verse? 1) A Kohen eats the grain offerings of others but not his own as he, too, must make sacrifices in his relationship with Gd, and, 2) A Kohen must first expiate his own transgressions before expiating those of others, thus exemplifying the Talmudic dictum, קשט עצמך,ואחרכך קשט אחרים,‘adorn yourself, and only then can you adorn others’or, more colloquially, ‘point the finger at yourself before turning it on others.’Perhaps we can also apply this teaching to our Torah study: invest oneself in learning the week’s parasha, and only then can one critique it from a place of knowledge.

Video-Vort Vayikra 5772

 

Vayikra 5772

As we begin reading the Book of Leviticus – especially with the early chapters' emphasis and descriptions of sacrifices – how does the reader find a connection between the ancient practices of Israelite altar worship and practices of the modern Jew? In truth, the connection is quite intense and intimate and it begins with the fact that nowhere in the Five Books of Moses are the Jewish people informed or instructed about daily prayer. There is Midrash that makes philological (linguistic) links to actions of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as engaging in morning, afternoon and evening prayer – but our sages do not claim that the actions of our patriarchs are the foundational origins for a Jew's obligation to daven 3 times a day. The source, the root, the origin of Jewish prayer is the sacrificial system. Why do we say the Amidah (also termed the Shemoneh Esrei) each morning, afternoon and night? The Torah instructs that each morning and each afternoon there was to be a daily sacrifice in the Temple and that the remains of the sacrifices are to burn into the night. When the Temple was destroyed in 70 C.E. – davening during these three times each day became the uniquely Jewish form of sacrificial service to Gd.

Vayakhel-Pekudei 5772

This week’s parasha, Vayakhel-P'kudei, contains the prohibition of kindling fire on Shabbat.  The command is quite clear, but what were the Jewish people to do upon the advent of electricity?  Does actively initiating use of electricity fall under the same category as fire?  Like fire, electricity may be used to provide warmth, and light, and energy by which to cook and to cause motion.  How are poskim (deciders of Jewish law) to tackle the issue?  Two camps of decision-making exist:  there are those who say that, scientifically, electricity is nothing like fire or any of the other Shabbat-prohibited categories of work.  Then there is the camp that looks at the end result of what electricity provides and says that it is prohibited and then search for a way to explain the proscription using the Torah-prohibited categories of work.  One of the greatest poskim of the 20^th century, the haredi Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, z”l, was in the first camp.  Still, he prohibited the use of electricity as it is not in the ‘spirit of Shabbat’ -- that is, the use of this technological advancement would be injurious to the atmosphere of rest, liberation from environment manipulation, and the holiness that Shabbat intends.

 

Video-Vort Vayakhel-Pekudei / Shabbat Parah 5772

 

Video-Vort Ki Tissa 5772

 

Ki Tissa 5772

וַיַּרְא הָעָם, כִּי-בֹשֵׁשׁ מֹשֶׁה לָרֶדֶת מִן-הָהָר; וַיִּקָּהֵל הָעָם עַל-אַהֲרֹן, וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֵלָיו קוּם עֲשֵׂה-לָנוּ אֱלֹהִים אֲשֶׁר יֵלְכוּ לְפָנֵינוּ--כִּי-זֶה מֹשֶׁה הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר הֶעֱלָנוּ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם, לֹא יָדַעְנוּ מֶה-הָיָה לוֹ – And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered against Aaron, and said to him: 'Make us a god who will go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.' (Exodus 32:1)

There is a notion that in order for humans to connect to and be in relationship with Gd, we need some physical form by which we can relate to Gd. This theory explains why, in the absence of Moses, the Israelites felt it necessary to build the Golden Calf as a conduit to Gd. This theory explains why Christianity gave human face and manner to Gd in the form of Jesus. This theory explains why Chassidic Judaism emphasizes the role of the rebbe in his community. This theory also explains the desire and demand of some communities to have clergy who are observant despite the congregation's own non-practice. In each of these examples, an essential and foundational element of Judaism is missing – individual responsibility.

Iran, Israel and the USA -- Is it an Issue?

 

[My friend, the television news journalist in Tampa who ask me about Obama, Israel and 2012 US Presidential Elections, has spawned the following:]

 

What are your thoughts on Iran? Are they for real? What are your thoughts on the US role in that dilemma?

In short, the threat from Iran freaks Israelis out (though not me – as I have an unhealthy ability to compartmentalize). 

The right question is not "Are they for real?" -- nobody will be able to answer this question with certainty if they do/will have nuclear warhead capabilities.

The question is:  "Can Iran be trusted to act responsibly with nuclear weapons?"

1. Is Iran currently satisfied to have sovereignty over its own borders or does it believe it is justified to extend its reach beyond its borders? (recent arrests in Thailand and India give some answer to that, so does its financing and arming of Hezbullah, Hamas and Syria).  The Iranians are the prime suspect in the JCC bombing in Buenos Aires in 1994, too, amongst other international terrorism crimes...

2. Does Iran's current leadership deal rationally and fairly with its own citizens who disagree with its policies?  If not, it is reasonable to believe that it will deal far worse with those who they deem its enemies, yes?

3. Regarding making a case against a suspected murderer, three terms are mentioned:  means, motive, and opportunity.

We know Iran has the motivation -- both its political head (Ahmadinejad) and its Islamic religious head (Khamenei) have spoken publicly about the desire to eliminate the State of Israel (the little devil) and the United States (the big devil).

Means and Opportunity are one-in-the-same as soon as Iran has nuclear warhead capabilities as it currently has the means and opportunity to deliver an indefensible missile strike on Israel and other U.S. Interests. 

4. Do we have reason to trust that Iran is not intent on creating nuclear warheads, rather, just using nuclear energy for its domestic energy needs?  (Reminder:  Iran sits on one of the largest crude oil reserves in the world).

Has Iran been forthcoming in allowing inspector/observers to see the current uranium enrichment production in order to determine the intended use of the uranium?

Question:  If, during the Cold War, Cuba (i.e., USSR offshore) were known to be enriching uranium and had publicly espoused an attack on the U.S., would the citizens and government of the U.S. hesitate to prevent those weapons from being developed?

That is, if Cuba were a modern day satellite of Iran would there be reason enough for U.S. to obstruct/intervene in the development of enriched uranium?

The duplicity of Western world leadership on this matter is farcical and...despicable.

Do I think Israel should attack Iran?  No. 

I think the international community (IC) needs to sanction Iran to the point of impotence.  If the IC won't do that -- then I do believe Israel should do whatever it evaluates it needs to do to protect itself and the U.S. should be its partner in doing it.

Video-Vort Tetzave 5772