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Shoftim: Murder and the Cow with the Broken Neck

8/29/2011

 
If…a dead body is found lying in the open and the identity of the killer is not known, your elders and leaders shall go out and measure the distances from the corpse to the nearby towns. The elders of the town nearest the corpse shall then take a cow which has never worked, which has never pulled a yoke, and the elders of that town shall…break the cow's neck… Then all the elders of the town nearest to the corpse shall wash their hands over the cow…and they shall make this declaration: “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it done. Absolve, Adonai, Your people Israel whom You redeemed, and do not let guilt for the blood of the innocent remain among Your people Israel” (Deuteronomy 21:1-8).
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What a strange ritual! What possibly could be the purpose of a ritual in which the leaders of a town declare their innocence in the case of a murder that did not take place in their town and of which they had no knowledge? What exactly are leaders saying by making this declaration?

In the Mishnah, the rabbis seem to have the same questions about the purpose of the ritual of the eglah arufah ("the cow with the broken neck"). They state:

Surely, it would not occur to anyone that the elders of the rabbinic court spilt this blood!  Rather, the declaration means, “He did not come into our hands and we did not send him away without food.  We did not see him and allow him to leave without escort." (M. Sotah 9:6)

The rabbis seem to be saying that there might actually be a hint of guilt upon the leaders of the nearby city for this crime. Their declaration is not just that they did not commit the murder, it is that they did not allow the crime to happen by neglecting the needs of the person who was killed in the lands adjacent to their town. They must perform this ritual because they should be held responsible—morally and legally—for the care of any stranger who happens to pass by their land. 

Do we accept that responsibility?

On average, more than thirty people are murdered every day in the United States. The U.S. has by far the highest murder rate in the industrialized world, despite having an overall crime rate which is similar to that of other industrialized nations. (Why?). 

When most of us hear statistics like this, we think about the role of poverty and guns in creating a climate for homicide. We may think about the frequency with which racial minorities are the perpetrators and the victims of these murders. But we don't often think about our own culpability. 

What would happen if we had to make the declaration of the cow with the broken neck described in this week's Torah portion? What if, every time you read about a homicide in your town or an adjacent area, you had to travel to the scene of the murder and declare that you had no opportunity to offer the victim food, to care for him or her, or to offer protection from harm? Could you do it? Could any of us?

As I have remarked before, the Torah has no particular interest in the rights of an individual, but it has a very keen interest in a person's obligations. The Torah offers us no right to remain uninterested in murders committed in the places near where we live. By the very fact that we do live in the place, we already are implicated. We are obliged to protect from harm even the stranger who is passing through.

If we do nothing, who will absolve us?

Learning about Jewish Prayer from Yoga

8/24/2011

 
I think I found my new yoga teacher today. Scott at geoYoga in Stuart has a quirky sense of humor to go along with a deep understanding of the spiritual underpinnings of the practice. Also, he completely wore me out with a long class in the Florida heat.

It was something he said, though, near the end of the class today that really caught my attention. "It is in our practice that we discover our most authentic selves. It is the goal of every spiritual practice to do so."

I've been thinking all day about how much that applies to the practice of prayer in Judaism. By entering deeply into the words of prayer, we discover ourselves connected to a reality far greater than ourselves, yet, paradoxically, a part of ourselves. My own most meaningful prayer experiences have been those in which I found myself uttering the words effortlessly, as if they flowed from a place within me like water spilling from an open faucet. In such moments, prayer feels like an expression of a deeper self, one that underlies the masks we present to the world to project our desires and to hide our fears.

This is what prayer does and can do. It helps us to answer the most simple and the most difficult question we can ask ourselves: "Who am I?" By reciting the words of the worship service, we discover a place within ourselves that precedes words, a place where we connect deeply with the truest truths about ourselves. 

I know that this is not the way that most Jews think about prayer. Judaism is such a wordy tradition and the liturgy can be quite intimidating with page after page of dense Hebrew text. The worship service can seem like an ordeal of just trying to get through all of those words. Viewed this way, Jewish prayer hardly seems like the kind of experience that would allow a person to enter deeply into self-awareness.

But all of the words of the siddur are just variations on a theme. Nearly the entire prayerbook can be summed up in a few phrases: "There is a Creator who wants to be known and who wants to transform your life. Let the Creator in, and you will find yourself within the Creator. Once you do that, the path of joy and fulfillment will be open to you." All of the prayers in the siddur are just poems saying this in various ways. We have to say it in so many different ways only to keep us searching for ourselves. The siddur is the can-opener of the soul—a tool for opening ourselves up to receive this truth. 

Prayer is not, as so many people imagine, something that we owe to God. Nor is it a way of asking God for the stuff we want. Prayer is a practice that we give as a gift to ourselves. It is a way of delving deeply into ourselves and discovering the great truth that connects us all.

Re'eh: MOST FOLKS ARE ABOUT AS HAP Y

8/19/2011

 
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I am new to the South and some of its habits are peculiar to me. Among them, the practice of churches putting up inspiring phrases on big outdoor letter boards. "Jesus wants you back." "Enter now for eternal reward." They are as common here as "Columbus Day Sale" signs in October.

In small-town New England, which was my home up until six weeks ago, signs like this are more often seen in front of local fire departments with messages like: "Spagetti Dinner Fiday Nite, $6 all u can eat." (Yes, the misspellings and abbreviations are all part of the charm).

A few things surprised me about the letter board sign I saw on the way to the synagogue a few days ago, which said, "Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." The first thing that surprised me is that it is not in front of a church. It's in front of the State Farm  insurance agency in Palm City, Florida (like a good neighbor). The second thing is that the message is so immediately relevant to this week's Torah portion (Re'eh), and to the central purpose of this blog. 

I suppose that truth is where you find it, even if it's on a letter board sign in a Florida beach town.

This week's Torah portion begins with Moses setting out the two big options before the Israelites: "See, this day I set before you blessing and curse—blessing, if you will listen to the mitzvot of Adonai your God that I am enjoining upon you today; and curse, if you do not listen..." (Deuteronomy 11:26-28).  That's the simple lesson. The choice is yours to either live a life that is in harmony with what is right and good, or to choose to live a life that disrupts the order. One way leads to happiness and one way leads to suffering.

Moses (and the local State Farm agent, for that matter) does not mean that God will magically bring luxury and comforts to those who obey the commandments and a lump of coal to those who don't. The teaching is more basic than that. We choose our happiness in the ways we live our lives. When we live a meaningful life that is connected to other people, when we make the happiness of others a priority in our lives, we experience our own happiness. 

It is a message that is all around us in the choices we make every day. You are the master of your own happiness. The signs are everywhere.

Tu B'Av

8/15/2011

 
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There were no more joyous days for the people of Israel than the Fifteenth of Av and Yom Kippur, since on these days the daughters of Jerusalem would go out dressed in white and dance in the vineyards. What were they saying? "Young man, lift up your eyes and choose wisely. Don't look only at physical beauty. Look rather for family, 'For charm is false, and beauty is vanity. A reverent woman is the one to be praised!'" 
—M. Ta'anit, 4:8 (quotation from Proverbs 31:30)

Today is Tu B'Av, the fifteenth day of the month of Av.  It is a minor holiday whose theme is love. Some have called it the "Jewish Valentine's Day."

There are no mitzvot associated with this day–nothing you are required to do, nothing from which you are required to abstain. It's just a day for love and joy. 

Do something intentional today to make yourself a little bit extra joyful. Put on some clothes that make you happy. Get a massage. Give your loved ones an extra kiss. Make yourself happy for your own sake, for the sake of those around you, and for the sake of God and the world.

Ekev: Deuteronomy vs. Job

8/14/2011

 
This week's Torah portion (Ekev) includes this section, which the ancient rabbis designated for the second passage of the Sh'ma:

When you hear My mitzvot, which I enjoin upon you today, to love and serve Adonai with all your heart and all your mind, I will bring rains to the land in season—spring and autumn rains. You will gather your grain, wine and oil. There will be grass in the fields for your cattle. You will eat your fill. Take care not to be lured to serve false gods and bow to them, for Adonai’s anger will flare against you and God will shut the skies; there will be no rain and the ground will not yield its bounty. You will soon perish from the good earth that Adonai gives you (Deuteronomy 11:13-17).
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The entire passage (through verse 21), traditionally is called "Kabalat Ol HaMitzvot," or "The Acceptance of the Yoke of the Commandments." It was omitted from the liturgy by the early Reform Movement on the grounds that it is theologically unacceptable. As a result, there are many Reform Jews who attend synagogue regularly and have no idea that this passage was ever recited prominently at the center of  every morning and evening service. In truth, there also are plenty of Conservative and orthodox Jews who never have noticed the passage and its problems as they mumble their way through it.

The problem with the passage is the problem of how we view divine reward and punishment. The early reformers argued that the passage seems to say that all good fortune is a reward for good behavior, and all misfortune is a punishment for bad behavior. Such a belief is neither  supported by what we observe in the world, nor is it ethically defensible. We know that there are, in fact, many good and innocent people who suffer catastrophes and there are many evil people who enjoy pleasure and comfort. The passage is, at best, troubling.

But who says that we should reject everything in Torah that makes us troubled or uncomfortable? Once the red ink starts in editing the Torah, it is difficult to keep it from flowing onto every page. I would prefer to see what is truthful in the passage and also to acknowledge the discomfort. I would rather argue with the Torah than ignore it.

We can view the passage as a poetic statement of the general idea that "what goes around, comes around." People who live lives of caring, love and compassion do tend to reap a harvest of joy and fulfillment in their own lives—even when misfortune falls. People who live lives of selfishness and hard-heartedness do tend to suffer from isolation and fearfulness—even in the midst of material comforts. You cannot say that it works that way in every case, but it is a generally truthful statement about our lives that is worth teaching and repeating. 

It is also worth remembering that the theology of this passage is not consistent throughout the Hebrew Bible. There are other sections that appear to be direct counterpoints to Deuteronomy's theology of reward and punishment. In particular, the book of Job seems to be in a twenty-five-hundred-year argument with the book of Deuteronomy. 

The book tells the story of Job (Iyov in Hebrew), a righteous man who is punished by God. When Job asks God why he has been made to suffer despite all his good behavior, God famously responds with a non-answer: "Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundations?  Speak if you have understanding" (Job 38:4). In contrast to Deuteronomy, the book of Job acknowledges that the good do suffer, but that it is beyond the ability of human beings to understand why. We were not there at the creation and we are not privy to God's plans. 

Deuteronomy says that our suffering is, in part, our own fault. Evil things happen to us because of our failings to sanctify God's presence in our lives. Job says that we have no answers to questions about human suffering. We can only hope to respond with reverence to a God who is beyond our understanding.

It is possible that neither answer will satisfy us. We may feel tempted to say that everything is random and there is no meaning—hidden or knowable—to explain the universe. But, if that is so, then our lives, also, have no meaning and there is no significance to anything we do in life, good or bad. I prefer to think that truth lies somewhere between Deuteronomy and Job. 

There is a divinity that shapes our ends—to coin a phrase—and our actions do play some role in hewing them. However, it is not for us to understand exactly how or why some suffer and others enjoy fortune. We try to make the best choices we can in life, not in order to receive a reward, but because the choice itself is its own reward.

Ten Observations on Starting at a New Congregation

8/11/2011

 
It has been one month since I began my new position as the rabbi of Temple Beit HaYam. I can't say that I have mastered anything in my new job yet, but here are ten observations about the experience:

1) As excited as I am about the new congregation, the members of the congregation are even more excited about the new rabbi. There is a tremendous amount of energy in the congregation because of the transition. I'm trying to harness that energy to build lasting efforts toward long-term goals.

2) Everything is on the table. I have not yet heard someone say, "We don't want you to change that at all." With the energy of transition there is the ability to consider careful and thoughtful changes in almost every aspect of the congregation.

3) I could eat three meals a day for a month just by accepting every invitation I've received. I regret the need to say "no" or "not yet."

4) It takes a long time to feel really comfortable in a new workplace. I didn't realize how many details go into making my office just right.

5) There is a limit to the number of new names my brain can learn in a day.  I have a long way to go.

6) The fact that I feel so overwhelmed by everything reminds me not to overwhelm the congregation with things that are new to them.

7) Human beings are, by nature, warm and welcoming to someone who has come to join their community.

8) I constantly need to forgive myself for not understanding so much about how this congregation works.

9) Unpacking boxes takes a really long time.

10) Everything offered with love is received with love. Every kindness is an invitation to kindness in return.  I am blessed to be here.

Va'etchanan: Finding God

8/9/2011

 
“If you seek there for Adonai your God, you will find — if only you seek with all your heart and soul.” —Deuteronomy 4:29

On this verse, the Kotzker Rebbe teaches that the word umatzata, "you will find," is related to the meaning of "sufficient." He sites another verse in Torah (Numbers 11:22), in which the word is used to suggest the possibility of having enough — "Could enough flocks and herds be slaughtered to suffice (umatza) for them?"
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The Kotzker teaches that seeking God is the same thing as yearning for God. The very act of searching for God is enough—it is sufficient—to find God. The moment we recognize that finding God does not need to be a struggle—all that is needed is to open our hearts—God will enter us. The main thing that keeps us distant from God is the mistaken conviction that we have not yet done enough to merit God's nearness.

Devarim: How?

8/1/2011

 
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Moses despairs.

In this week's Torah portion (Devarim), Moses complains to the Israelites about the difficulty of bringing this nation through the desert. Even as he stands with the Israelites on the border of the Land of Israel—their journey almost at its end—Moses reminds them how difficult it has been to get them this far.

He declares, "How can I bear unaided the trouble of you, and the burden, and the bickering!" (Deuteronomy 1:12). Moses knows something about the failures of the human will to do what is right. He knows that the great victory of reaching his lifetime goal will not last forever.

That first word of the verse, "How," has a special resonance this week. In Hebrew it is "Eichah," which is also the first word of the book of Lamentations, which we will read next Monday night on Tisha B'Av. In Hebrew, Lamentations is called Megillat Eichah, "the Scroll of How." 

There is a tradition of chanting the verse that begins "How" in this week's Torah portion to the same mournful melody used for Lamentations on Tisha B'Av. We hear in this verse a harbinger of the destruction of the First Temple in 586 bce, as it is described in Lamentations. There also is an echo of the other catastrophes for the Jewish people that are said to have occurred on Tisha B'Av—the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 ce, the crushing of  the Bar Kokhbah Rebellion in 132 ce, the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492, among many others.

Both Moses' complaint and the book of Lamentations share a sense of despair. How is it that human beings can be so cruel, destructive, and so forgetful of what is right? It is as if Moses foresees the doom that is the destiny of the people he serves. Eventually, their tendency toward complaint and ingratitude will bring about the destruction of the Temple. How can he bear the thought that his life's mission of service to the Israelites—to bring them to the Land of Israel—will be reversed by their own failings?

This is one of the great questions of human existence. How can we, knowing what we know about human history, continue to offer prayers for our deliverance? Don't we get it? Human beings are stuck in a routine of justifying their own cruelty. We are forever forgetting the values that lead to our own happiness.

Maybe this is the point of Tisha B'Av. This day of mourning exists to remind us—at least once a year—not to forget. It reminds us of the terrible price we pay if we do not treat each other with compassion and forgiveness. Tisha B'Av is our annual peek into the abyss of "How?" so that we will remember to hope for a better world. It's not about mourning for a building. It's not about wishing for the restoration of animal sacrifices. It is about clinging to hope despite despair. It is about envisioning a reality in which we transcend our human failings.

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