Parshat Bamidbar begins with the third official count of the Jewish nation. The term used in the Torah is that we should “count the heads” (1:2) of all the households, but the Hebrew word “Se-u” could also mean, “lift the heads”. Why would the Torah use such ambiguous language? Also, why were they to be counted according to their households, which had never been done in the past? Rashi informs us that prior to the census each Jew was required to produce a book of their lineage. The Midrash adds that producing this book was also required to be able to receive the Torah. Why is receiving the Torah dependent upon having this book of lineage?

Rabbi Zweig explains that surpassing the expectations that have been defined by one’s social upbringing is what gives a person a sense of accomplishment. If a person is able to identify their lineage, they might learn that their ancestors were people who took responsibility for themselves and had honorable standards. For the rest of the world, the very act of taking responsibility is in itself an elevating sense of accomplishment. However, behaving responsibly is not considered an accomplishment for G-d’s chosen nation. Jews are EXPECTED to behave differently than animals, to act responsibly, for our forefathers have set a standard that makes anything less unacceptable. This explains why households were important enough to be counted. The Ramban (Nachmanides) enforces the lesson of our Parsha by explaining the use of the Torah’s language: The alternative meaning of “lifting” of the heads can also be a positive, but only if the body and its actions are lifted with it. Our heads and minds can lift us to greatness, so long as we have our actions to take us there!

Naso (From Rabbi Avi Weiss):

Perhaps the most famous blessing is found in this week’s Torah portion. The Birkat Cohanim, the priestly benediction is recited by the priest and by parents to their children every Friday night. (Numbers 6:24-26) The benediction is divided into three sentences each containing two important elements; God’s blessing, and a prayer to avoid possible pitfalls of the blessing.

In the first part, the priest states: “May the Lord bless you and keep you.” The Sifrei understands this to refer to monetary benefits. But money has the potential to corrupt. Therefore a blessing for money is not complete unless accompanied by an assurance of protection from its dangers. Hence the last word of the sentence, “May the Lord guard you.”

In the second section, the priest states: “May the Lord cause His light to shine upon you.” The light of the Lord is often associated with Torah knowledge (Proverbs 6:23). However, while one can know every word of Torah, one can still lack the ability to interact and engage others in an appropriate manner. Hence, this blessing concludes with the word, ve-hunekah, from the word hen, grace. This last statement is telling us to remain gracious to others because knowledge often makes one insular — even arrogant.

In the final part, the priest states,” May the Lord lift His face to be near you.” This blessing expresses the hope that one should always feel the presence of God, for too often we sense that God’s face is hidden from us. (The Hebrew word yeesah, to lift, is the opposite of God being lowered or hidden.) Although we hope to always be absorbed in God’s presence, sometimes even that experience can distort one’s perception of how to change the world. Too often, people have done dastardly things in the name of God. Therefore, the text concludes, with a blessing of a grounded belief in God, of shalom, coming from the word shalem, whole. This threefold blessing reminds us that there is no absolute good. Every step forward always contains the possibility of unforeseen problems. May we be blessed with this awareness.

Beha’alotcha:

In this week’s Parsha, Beha’alotcha, Aharon is instructed on how to light the Menorah, and did as he was told, and “did not deviate”. Why were we told that Aharon did not deviate? In order to understand this, we must first appreciate what’s been happening in Aharon’s life at the time: On the first day of Nissan of that year, the Mishkan was complete, Aharon gave the first public Birkat Kohanim (priestly blessings), and each tribe’s leader brought their own personal offering in celebration. The Medrash Tanchuma says that Aharon was sad that his tribe was the only one that wasn’t able to contribute with his own Korban offering. Still, Aharon accept everyone else’s Korban, as he was instructed, as well as performing his role of lighting the Menorah also as he was instructed.

Rav Meir of Premishlan explains that it turned out that Aharon was given the only commandment that would endure forever (candle-lighting endures today as Friday night candles, as lighting the Menorah on Chanukah, etc)! This was especially fitting for Aharon who was described in the Midrash as a “man of the people”, for he would regularly walk among the nation and mingle with them, looking to help anyone, be it with teaching them Torah, how to pray, or resolving arguments. Rav Meir explains that even after Aharon was given the most prestigious task of lighting the Menorah, he still “did not deviate”, and continued to mingle with the Jews. It is this very Midda of guiding others that the lighting of the Menorah represented! Aharon’s actions beg the question: Do we mingle and help others, or are we too busy with our jobs and lives to bother?

Shlach:

Parshat Shlach contains the famous story of the spies that are sent in to check out Canaan, which would later become Israel. The decision to send the twelve spies, however, was made by the people, as G-d previously assured the Jews that He would take care of everything. But they insisted on seeing for themselves, and were instructed to send them of their own accord (13:2). The tribe leaders went in to spy, and came back with an awful report, scaring the Jews into wanting to go back to Egypt. What happened? What happened to the faith in G-d, and with all His open miracles? What happened to the spies that they didn’t realize that everything they saw in Canaan was actually a blessing (1 – They saw huge fortresses, but that really meant that people in it were scared of something, 2 – They saw people dying, but G-d made it that someone died when the spies came, so that the people would be preoccupied with burying them and not notice the spies, etc.)?

The answer lies in their very first mistake.. they wanted to see the land through THEIR eyes, and that’s what they got to see. Seeing things without the proper perspective can make even positive things look bad, even if you’re a tribe leader that people depend on and look up to, even if you’ve witnessed countless miracles in your life, and even if G-d just told you that He’s on your side! What seemed like a harmless request turned out to be a disaster that cost the Jews 39 more years in the desert! And to think that they could have done it right, had they done what Yehoshua (Joshua) did.. put G-d’s name first (Yud, the letter representing G-d added to the beginning of his). We too can look at the world and at our lives, and see living without G-d and the Torah, and it may not seem so bad. But we’d end up wandering in circles, only to realize that it was our decision to be “free” that caused us to be slaves to nature and to our desires. OR, we can find our Torah goal, hang it where we can see it, and through the challenges and through it all, we’re guaranteed to “see” it through!

Korach:

Parshat Korach relates the story of Korach, Datan, Aviram and 250 members of the shevet (tribe) or Reuven challenging Moshe’s choice for Kohen Gadol (high priest). The end result was that the 250 members were burned by a heavenly fire, and the other 3 were miraculously swallowed by the earth. From a motive perspective, Korach makes the most sense, because he felt slighted for not having been chosen himself. But why would 250 people follow him to their certain death, with apparently little to gain?

The answer can be found in Rashi, the great medieval commentator, who writes that just as Korach’s family camped on the southern side of the Mishkan (Tabernacle), so did the tribe of Reuven. Rashi quotes the words of Chapters of the Fathers, “woe to an evil person, and woe to his neighbor.” The 250 people met their death, simply because they were influenced by their neighbors! This points to the awesome influence that friends, neighbors and associates have on us. So who do we surround ourselves with? Do we have positive friends and neighbors? Are WE positive friends and neighbors to others?

Chukat:

Nature dictates that children look somewhat like their parents, fruits look like other similar fruits, and animals act in predictable ways. But if that were always true, then how do the laws of the Red cow, brought in Parshat Chukat, make sense? How could the impure be purified, while the pure become impure? How do these things make sense, if there is to be order in nature and creation?

The Mofet Hador explains that we too were all given opposing forces. We were given the Torah, which tells us of these and other ‘contradictions’, and we were given the brain that wonders about all of it. The Parsha starts by helping us deal with these, and other issues. ‘This is the law of the Torah” …our laws make sense, even if we don’t understand them! We’re limited in our wisdom. In fact, King Solomon, who was given all the knowledge, couldn’t understand the laws of the Red Cow, and said, “It is far from me”. The logic is there, but none can discern it, and that too is part of nature. So when we come to a fork in our lives, and we’re deciding whether to do what we know we should or what we think we could, we should remember this lesson: Our minds might be limited in understanding, but the Torah’s wisdom is eternal!

Balak:

After a whole ordeal trying to curse the Jews, Bilam finally ends up blessing the Jews instead. So what does a person whose power lies in his word utter, after so much suspense? He says “How good are your tents, O Yaakov, your dwelling places, Israel” (24:5). Is it Yaakov or Israel? Is it the tents or the dwelling places (assuming they’re different) that are good? It’s a pretty ambiguous for someone presumably articulate.

To understand this, we need to analyze the context of the three blessings he imparted in the following Pessukim (verses): 1) You should stay near water (reference to Torah), 2) G-d will help you crush your oppressors, and 3) Those that bless you will be blessed, and those that curse you will be cursed. It seems that there is a natural progression throughout these blessings: If we 1) stay close to the Torah, 2) G-d will help us defeat our enemies, and 3)we will be blessed upon blessings. That’s why the blessings start with the statement that it’s all because of our homes (tents), that leads to our communities (dwellings), from Yaakov as an individual to Israel as a nation. If we introduce the Torah in our own controlled-environment homes, it will not only help ourselves and our communities, and lead to the many blessings that follow!

Pinchas:

Parshat Pinchas relates a story (27:1-12) about the daughters of Tzlafchad, descendants of Yosef (Joseph). These daughters wanted and loved the Land of Israel so much that they wanted a piece of it. As Rav Moshe Feinstein asks, why do they have to have a claim in the land, just because they love it? Wouldn’t entering or living in the land be fulfilling enough?

Rav Moshe thus concludes that if a person truly loves something, they’d want it to be theirs, and no one else’s. This is why the daughters wanted to actually own a piece of the land, rather than simply living in it. This logic applies to marriages, as well as the Torah’s preference that every Jew writes their own Torah (or a portion of it). In our terms, it’s not enough to borrow and read Jewish books. We need to love the Torah we read SO much that we feel the need to own it! As this week’s Parsha urges, we should not only seek, read and enjoy words of Torah, but we should OWN those books, and live those words!

Matot:

Talk about scary Deja vu’s! After Moshe lost an entire generation of Jews because they resisted entering the land of Israel, in Parshat Matot they seem to be doing the exact same thing! As they prepare to enter the land, the shevatim (tribes) of Reuven and Gad approach Moshe with a similar request. This time they claim to want to “build for their flocks and cities for the small children” (32:16). After warning them not to make the same mistake as the previous generation, Moshe agrees to let them live outside of the Promised Land, but appears to bargain with them by getting them to agree to help the others fight for the land first. Why did Moshe agree to let them live outside of the promised land, and what did he bargain from them?

A closer inspection of the dialogue helps us answer these questions, and can help us understand the importance of setting priorities. When Moshe responds to them (32:24), he tells them to “build for yourselves cities for your small children and pens for your flocks”, exactly the opposite order of the way they asked him. What Moshe was really telling them was that if they’re really looking out for the well-being of their children, then look after them (i.e. their perspectives) first, BEFORE you build yourselves buildings and flocks. The can also be why he allowed them to settle outside the Land altogether: Moshe understood that it wasn’t that the tribes lacked faith in their destiny because they were willing to fight for it with everyone else, but rather that from their perspective living right outside the Land would be better for THEM. Being able to accept other perspectives, despite initial fears and uncertainties, is the true test of being a thoughtful Jew and an understanding person.

Maasei:

While introducing Parshat Maasei, which recounts the travels and trials of the Jews in the desert the Passuk informs us that Moshe “wrote their goings according to their journeys, and these were their journeys according to their goings”(33:2). Why does the introduction reverse its terminology, and why does it repeat itself? Rav Bachya explains that the first part refers to the past, while the second part refers to the future redemption. That helps, but maybe the first one refers to the future and the SECOND to the past? How do we know, and what does it teach us today?

The missing clue is that the Hebrew word that means “goings” (Motze’hem) comes from the root word that means, “find”. What the Torah could be alluding to here is that when things are bad it seems like you find faults in everything you do and everywhere you go. But the Torah then urges us not to despair, for your journeys will one day bring you findings! In the world of psychology it is known that depression breeds more depression, and it’s easy to feel despair when nothing goes your way. The solution for then, and anytime we feel down, is to live our “journeys” with an eye for the “findings” that will find us in the future! Rather than looking back with regret, look forward with hope!

This week’s Parsha, Behar, relates that G-d spoke to Moshe (Moses) on Mount Sinai, saying that for six years you may plant your fields, but the seventh year is a Sabbath for the land. Why does the Torah specify that G-d is speaking on “Mount Sinai?”

The answer is because the Sabbatical year is one mitzvah which proves that only G-d could be the Author who gave the Torah on Mount Sinai, because it is there that He promises that the year before the Sabbatical will provide enough crops for the next three years (25:20-21). No human being would ever write this law because it would be disproved within six years! The fact that G-d chose to display his control using this commandment also teaches us a lesson about our accomplishments. If G-d chooses to give us more (crops, money or otherwise), He can do so by having us win the lottery where it’s obvious that He intervened, or he can make our companies and crops suddenly produce better where we can be tempted to take the credit for the increase. It’s up to us to see the bigger picture, and recognize the value of G-d’s commitment to those that appreciate Him.

Bechukotai:

This week’s Parsha, Bechukotai, clearly states that good people will be rewarded, and bad people will be punished. But is that really true? Don’t some people excel even though they’re clearly evil? Don’t good people sometimes suffer? Lastly, when the Torah describes these rewards and punishments it does so in the plural. Why?

There is a Talmud (Kiddushin 39b) that states that there is no reward for doing a mitzvah in this world, and that it all comes in the next world. What, then, is our Parsha referring to? Rabbi Avi Weiss offers that in this world reward and punishment only operate on a collective level. That is, when one does something positive, the larger community benefits. And when doing something negative, the community suffers. That would explain why our Parsha uses the plural in describing rewards and punishments. As for good people suffering and bad people enjoying, that has a lot to do with free will. For example, if we saw immediate dividends when giving charity, who wouldn’t give?

It turns out that our faithful positive actions pay interest to our local communities, and pay handsome dividends to our personal accounts.

Shabbat Shalom

Subject: Torah Portion for Shabbat
Emor:

Among many things, Parshat Emor lays down instructions for the Kohanim (Priests) to remain holy. Instructions include not coming in contact with dead bodies, and growing their beards and hair (21:1-5). Recanati points out an interesting difference between the instructions for the Kohamin to remain “holy”, and those of the Levites to be “pure”. What is the difference, and why?

Recanati goes on to explain that being pure is simply a result of avoiding anything unclean, while being holy is an active quality of setting yourself apart. The Levites had to shave their hair, while the Kohanim grew it because ridding yourself of impurity requires shedding the past, while being holy requires working on yourself for the future. As a people charged with the task of being holy, we need to be both pure AND holy, and learn to merge the past with our future!

Shabbat Shalom

Acharei Mot:

Did you know that the airline safety announcements were taken from this week’s Parsha, Acharei Mot? When the Torah says that the Kohen Gadol (high priest) worked for forgiveness of himself, his family and of the nation as a whole (16:17), one should wonder why he couldn’t just work on forgiveness for everyone, which would clearly also include himself and his family.

The answer is that before we can think about fixing the world, we need to fix ourselves and our immediate surroundings. As the airlines say, “secure your mask before assisting others”! What’s even more interesting in the wording is that the word “forgiveness” is only mentioned once, and yet it affects himself, his family and the entire nation. It seems that a single positive action can have the affect of improving ourselves, our families AND the nation! It’s clear from this that finding ways to improve ourselves has a cumulative affect far greater than the improvements themselves, an important concept which should motivate us to find us a mask to secure!

Kedoshim:

Parshat Kedoshim is one of several that tries to instill “Jewish Values”, one of which is the commandment not to steal. In an effort to drive home the point, the Torah uses several terms that seem redundant, when it says “Do not steal, do not deny falsely, and do not lie to one another” (19:11). Other than making sure we get the point, what is the significance of these specific forms of honesty being listed?

The Gemara in Makot (24a) sheds some light by saying that the Torah is telling us to speak the truth in our hearts, like Rav Safra did. The Gemara goes on to tell the story of Rav Safra who was Davening (praying) when someone came to buy something from him. When Rav Safra didn’t respond because he was praying, the buyer raised his price several times, until finally Rav Safra finished praying and responded. Rav Safra insisted on selling the object at his original price, even though the man offered more because in his heart Rav Safra agreed to the first price.

The Torah is driving home that we should not steal in actions or words. That means not manipulating people to get what you desire, not distorting words to fit your opinion, and not frivolously demanding from others. If we live by these Torah values, we’ll hopefully fully value them!

Tazria:

In this week’s Parsha, Tazria, we’re told about the discoloration (leprosy) that occurs when people, and sometimes even their property, get for speaking negatively about others (Lashon Hara). One interesting rule, however, is that even if it’s blatantly obvious that one has leprosy, the laws pertaining to it do not apply until the Kohen (priest) declares it impure. Why would we need an ‘official’ to see and declare it if it’s obvious what it is? Also, the Torah says that leprosy that’s partially healed is considered as if it’s clean (13:6). Why would a partial healing be adequate if there’s still discoloration?

If we think about it, we can discover a great lesson from the Torah: the concept of having someone to go to for guidance. As Rabbi Twerski explains, showing your flaws to a Kohen should help you want to change them, because of the embarrassment. Another advantage is that if we have challenges that are hard for us to overcome, it would help if we talked to someone who might be able to guide us. In this case the expert was a Kohen, but if a suit of ours got dirty we would take it to professionals to clean, and we may even point out the stains. By the same token, we should treat our souls the same when cleansing ourselves of bad habits (both Halachic and personal), and a Rabbi happens to be the expert in the Biblical field. And the truth is that a partial healing is enough to purify the stain because it shows that there was effort to change. The lesson of the Kohen and the leprosy is just as our sages advise us in Pirkei Avot: find yourself a Rav (Rabbinical authority that you’re comfortable with). In the end, we shouldn’t be ashamed of our weaknesses unless we’re doing nothing about them!

Metzora:

Parshat Metzora starts off very awkwardly for the casual reader. The Torah tells us that once a Metzora (someone who spoke negatively about another) is qualified to become pure, which is after 7 days of being impure, then he is brought to the Kohen (priest). But the very next Passuk (verse) says that the Kohen then goes out to greet the man, and inspects that the leprosy is gone. But if we read further, we learn that the man has to bring two birds as an offering to Hashem for his sins, but only one of the birds is killed while the other is released. Commentaries explain that birds don’t stop chirping, and the man also didn’t stop speaking when he should have. Cute. But why does he bring TWO birds, if only one gets killed?

The Lekach Tov explains that if there was only one bird offering, and that bird was killed, one would think that talking was never good, when in fact that’s not true. The bird that is released shows us that there is as much good that one can do with his/her mouth as there is bad. Talking about Torah, helping others with anything, be it with work or with homework! We often don’t realize what an impact we can have by the things we say. If a smile can do so much to brighten someone’s day, just think of what a simple friendly conversation can do (even for strangers)! Focusing on all the good we CAN do will hopefully distance us from the bad we shouldn’t do.

Shabbat Shalom

Pesach
Here’s one:

As we sit down on Pesach (Passover) night at the Seder, we make a transition that we wouldn’t realize unless we think about it. All day we prepare the food, making sure we don’t have Chametz (leavened bread), making sure we have all the Marror (bitter plants) and eggs ready. The unleavened bread is to remind us that we’re still poor, the Marror to remind us of the past exile, and the eggs dipped in salt to remind us that we’re still in exile. Then, we start the Seder, and the first thing we say is how this is the “time of our freedom”. We continue by telling the story of how we were freed, and we even act like we’re kings by leaning when we sit! Are we slaves, or are we free kings?

R’ Yerucham of Mir explains that the “time of our freedom” means that not only was it when we were freed from slavery many years ago, but it’s the time when we can do the same TODAY! What does that mean? Aren’t we free? And if we’re not, how does Pesach ‘free’ us? That’s where Pesach, Matzah and Marror come in. Those are the 3 things that remind us, especially when we’re feeling like kings, that we were slaves, and that we’re still in bitter surroundings. If you think about it, because we were saved from slavery by G-d, we are now indebted to Him, which means that we’re still not, and never will be, really free! The point we have to take from all this is that although we’re free to do as we wish, it’s only worth something when we use that freedom to do something good, and be constructive with our lives. Pesach teaches us that “freedom” used just for the sake of being “free” is pretty “dumb”!

Tzav:

Parshat Tzav includes a Passuk (verse) scarcely commented on, describing how the Kohen (Priest) needs to remove the clothes he wore when he gathered the ashes of the Olah offering, put on “other clothing” (6:4) and remove the ashes. Why would a change of clothing be required for simply walking ashes?

Rashi explains that it’s not proper to mix a cup of wine for one’s superior in the same clothing in which one cooked a pot. Rav Moshe Feinstein points out how the Torah considers the rules of proper decency and etiquette so important that it included laws to that effect in the Torah. Being decent and acting properly isn’t just a good idea, it’s the law!

Vayakhel:

In this week’s Parsha, Vayakhel, we learn about Moshe gathering the Jews (on G-d’s command) to tell them about keeping Shabbat. Describing the laws of Shabbat, G-d says that ordinary work should “be done” for six days, and Shabbat should be holy, and should be used for rest. Two questions emerge: 1) Why gather the Jews for this particular law? And 2) why the strange wording of work “being done”?

One possible answer is that we have to realize that work shouldn’t be for the purpose of doing it, but rather so that it gets done. Too often people get caught up in their work, and fail to realize what it is they’re working for. That’s why we have Shabbat, to keep us focused on what our real goals are and should be. Furthermore, even when the work is building the Mishkan for G-d to dwell in (a holy and noble cause on its own) G-d made sure everyone heard first-hand that the main goal is not to work or build it, but the completion of the work so we can focus on its function and purpose. We too should train ourselves to take time out every Shabbaton to reflect on what we’re really hoping to accomplish in the future rather than what’s being done in the present.

Ki Tissa:

This week’s Parsha, Ki Tissa, includes the unfortunate sin of the Golden calf, and includes Moshe’s negotiations on the Jews’ behalf. While there are many things one can learn about the art of negotiations, what seems out of place is that after things are smoothed over and G-d is appeased, Moshe asks to see G-d’s presence (and was denied) (33:18). While there are varying explanations as to what Moshe really wanted to see (from G-d’s attributes to His essence), why would Moshe ask such a question right after G-d had gotten so angry that he threatened to destroy the world?

One possible answer lies in the very nature of struggle and challenge. When we are faced with a challenge, whether we overcome it or succumb to it, the most valuable aspect of the challenge is the “WE”. Not if, but WHEN a couple, a family, a community, a people is faced with a challenge, they naturally become more attached to each other, and grow more cohesive. This is often the point of life’s challenges, although this is frequently overlooked. Moshe worked out a reprieve for the Jews with G-d, and as a result they became close enough that Moshe thought he had a chance to see G-d’s essence, and although he was denied his request, Moshe was granted other insight. We too can gain insight into each other, as long as we focus on each other when faced with life’s challenges.

In Parshas Tetzaveh, G-d tells Moshe, to in turn command the Jews, to bring Moshe oil for the Ner Tamid, the candle that would burn all day and all night. This is in sharp contrast to the last two Parashot, where G-d lists all the commandments the Jews must follow. Yet the way the Torah phrases it, it looks like MOSHE should be commanding the Jews, and not G-d. Why is it different here?

The Or Hachayim explains that it is in fact to be a commandment from Moshe, and not from G-d. Hashem was telling Moshe to have the Jews voluntarily give oil for the candle to burn, as a sign of respect and love for Him. But Hashem was sending Moshe and the Jews a message with this: The following chapter talks about Moshe bringing Aaron close to MOSHE, in order to teach him to serve G-d properly. So after all the rules we’ve been commanded, it’s now up to us to find new ways to show respect, and to fulfill the will of G-d. Let’s find our own oil, and bring the world more light!