Friday Shabbat Shalom

This story of global destruction, human sin and righteousness demands re-reading in light of our current reality. One theme is clear: the complete interdependence between humans and the natural world. Human behavior pollutes and then dooms the entire world.

So many people look at Genesis, Chapter 1 in Parashat Bereisheet, as a simple, fairy-tale kind of story. It’s the kind of narrative we teach in Early Childhood classrooms and have small children create lovely artwork around. For many people, it’s certainly not as compelling or “true” as the Big Bang Theory or the Theory of Evolution.

As we memorialize the Pittsburgh Attack this weekend, recalling the worst anti-Semitic act committed in recent memory, we search for comfort, meaning and a way to respond. What can I do to address something that seems so much bigger than I am? How can I make a difference? What is the best means to fight anti-Semitism? I am not sure that there is a “best” answer to these questions, but I do think there are steps I can take.

The sedra of Emor outlines the festivals that give rhythm and structure to the Jewish year. Examining them carefully, however, we see that Sukkot is unusual, unique. One detail which had a significant influence on Jewish liturgy appears later on in the book of Deuteronomy: Be joyful at your Feast . . . For seven days celebrate the Feast to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete. (Dt. 16: 14-15)

The Day of Judgment evokes very ominous feelings. We approach it bewildered and unsure how one day can be so different from others. How does this day enable us to reach back in time to atone for sins? Why is it uniquely imbued with the power to preordain events for the year ahead?

Whether you were interested or able to watch the Emmy’s this past Sunday night, you’ve probably heard or seen Alex Borstein’s acceptance speech for her award as best supporting actress in a comedy (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel). In the middle of it, she became serious and told the audience she came from a family of immigrants and Holocaust survivors...

How should we remember the past so that it best teaches us how to live our lives into the future? Parashat Ki Tavo gives us a very interesting answer and model for us to use. Israelite farmers were commanded to bring the first cuttings from their produce in a basket to the Temple where the Kohein (priest) would place them in front of the altar. The farmer then had to recite a declarative paragraph casting himself as an actor in the history of the Israelite people (Devarim/ Deuteronomy 26:5-10)

Some of the laws found in it make me very glad the Rabbis came along and through the halachic system, interpreted them in much more enlightened, humane ways. See for example: The Rebellious or Wayward Son (cue: the Kansas song) discussed in chapter 21:18-21, whom we are supposed to stone to death. Personally speaking, if I had to carry out this particular command, my son would be long gone (pu pu, hamsa hamsa), and I am pretty certain most parents of teenagers would be in similar straits.