Akhrey Mot - Kdoshim 5757

This week’s Torah portion is a combined portion, Akharey-Mot/Kedoshim, from Leviticus 16 to 20. The first portion contains the verses that are read on Yom Kippur afternoons, concerning the purity of the family and proper family relationship, and the second portion, Kedoshim, begins with the words, "The Lord spoke to Moshe, saying: Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them: You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. You shall each revere your mother and father, and you shall keep my Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God."

This seemingly simple passage is actually a revolutionary world outlook articulated by Moshe Rabenu at Sinai to the People of Israel. It is beautifully simple and streamlined, free of extraneous protocols and cult rituals. "You shall be holy because I am holy." You want to relate to me -- be holy, be lofty, idealistic, seek to rise above yourself. How will you do it? All of you, the adults, must have true reverence to your parents, and you must set aside time to study and improve your minds -- keep My Shabbatot, my Sabbaths. Don’t run after false idols, don’t sell yourselves short. Be considerate of the orphan the widow and the stranger. Live by the rules of common decency -- and you will do fine. The Book of Psalms gives us the following conclusion, "O that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways! Then I would quickly subdue their enemies, and turn my hand against their foes. Those who hate the Lord would cringe before him, and their doom would last forever."

Akharey Mot 5858

This week’s Torah portion is Akharey-Mot, from Leviticus 16 to 18:30. The portion contains the verses that are read on Yom Kippur afternoons, concerning the purity of the family and proper family relationships. However, the first words of the portion read, "And the Lord spoke unto Moshe after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the Lord, and died; And the Lord said unto Moshe, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat." [Lev. 16:1-2]

There is a very important lesson in this first subject that the Torah deals with: you may recall that the two sons of Aaron died because they brought a "strange fire" to the altar. When they perished Moshe forbade his brother and his remaining sons to mourn -- they had to stay in the Tabernacle and continue to function as priests. They had to live with their loss and learn to get over it -- before they took time out to think about it and draw lessons from what happened. What do we learn from this?

A story is told of the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate. It seems that he came to Jerusalem, placed the Roman eagle above the entrance to the Temple, and walked through the entire temple, including the Holy of Holies. He was wearing his sword at his side, and as he walked through the Holy of Holies it began to drip blood -- the blood of those innocent victims who were killed by Pilate for no reason. Yet Pontius Pilate walked out of the Temple without harm and continued to rule over the Jews and torture them.

The sages asked, "why did God have no pity upon Aaron's sons, and upon their father, when he took their lives for a "small infraction" -- while on the murderer Pilate, who was reputed to have crucified three thousand Jews on the road from Caesarea to Jerusalem, He did not place even a little blemish?" They answered and said, "it is because Aaron's sons should have known better! Pilate was a killer -- it was his nature, his character, his essence of being. He was going to be punished through the eyes of history -- in what we call "Olam Haba – the world to come." Aaron's sons were kohanim – priests. They should have maintained the holiness of the place and lived by God's teachings, by His mitzvot.

One asks, how did Aaron and his sons cope with their loss? How does one live on after the death of one's dear children, or one's siblings? Why did God do this to them? How could they continue to believe in Him, to serve Him? Obviously, they did not ask such questions. Obviously, they did not allow themselves to ask such questions. Life goes on -- and the dead cannot be brought back. If we lose faith as a result of their death then the death becomes even more damaging. Moshe told his brother, "give it some time" and life went on.

As soon as this Shabbat of Akharey-Mot is over, we shall begin to commemorate the martyrs of the Sho'ah -- the Holocaust. Yom Hasho'ah is an internationally recognized day of remembrance for the victims of the most heinous crime ever committed by men. Many people refuse to recognize the existence of God -- because of the Holocaust. They state categorically that "if there ever was a God, he died in Auschwitz." They continue to query the "justice" of a God that allows innocent children, as well as men and women, to be swept away from life into a vortex of death and oblivion at the hands of human butchers whose image and manners are similar to that of the victims. What is the "image of God" in which man was created? Is it that of the martyrs or is it that of the perpetrators? If it is the first, how could the perpetrators look their victims in the eye? If it is the latter -- how can we continue to support the image of these horrible men and women who gave a new meaning to bestiality?

When the Second World War was over, when the camps were opened and exposed for all to see, the world recoiled in absolute and total horror. Soldiers who had fought battle after battle, who had seen their buddies killed by their side and who suffered privations brought about by battlefield conditions stood speechless at the sight of the few remaining victims. The film news media came in and reported to the world, and people chose to forget what they had seen as soon as they could. It is not as if the crime did not occur -- it is not as if it was not properly documented -- it is just that we needed time to put it into perspective. It was only in the fullness of time that we began to examine the event and its ramification. It is only "Akharey-Mot" -- after the death was a historical fact -- that we can begin to examine the cause and effect. It is only in the second generation that we can draw lessons from what happened and determine that we shall never again allow it to happen. We shall always be on guard from now on, we shall mingle a little sadness into every joyful celebration, we shall feel a void even when we are most complete -- we shall not forget.

However, we shall also not fall victim to the sad memory. We shall not become perpetual mourners. We shall refuse to accept a life of morbid sadness and regrets. We shall not mark our lives by the deaths of another epoch. We shall live, we shall continue to grow, to learn, to create, and to celebrate life. We shall also continue to believe in God -- even as the martyrs believed. They knew that God had not neglected them, nor did he leave them. He was with them in their suffering, and He delivered their souls out of their suffering unto a world where death itself was vanquished. He shall, in His mercy, comfort us and heal our spirit -- and he shall give us the wisdom to make this world into a better place for the coming generations -- a place where holocausts cannot happen ever again. Amen

Akharey Mot Kdoshim

This week’s reading in the Torah is a double portion -- Akharey Mot-Kdoshim, from Leviticus 16 to 20. The portion contains the verses that are read on Yom Kippur afternoon, concerning the purity of the family and proper family relationships. However, the first words of the portion that we read are, "And the Lord spoke unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the Lord, and died; And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat." [Lev. 16:1-2] Then, the second half of the reading has this passage, "And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel, and say to them, You shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy. You shall revere every man his mother, and his father, and keep my Sabbaths; I am the Lord your God. Turn you not to idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods; I am the Lord your God." [Lev. 19:1-4]

There is a very important lesson in this combination of the first subject that the Torah deals with in the first and second segments: you may recall that the two sons of Aaron died because they brought a "strange fire" to the altar. When they perished Moshe forbade his brother and his remaining sons to mourn -- they had to stay in the Tent of Meeting -- the first place of Jewish worship -- and continue to function as priests. They had to live with their loss and learn to get over it while "life went on." It was a priestly obligation, since "the show must go on," even when the show is the honor and service of God. Now Moses is to inform Aaron of the need to establish a distance between himself and the "presence of God" -- lest he die.

Then we are told that the entire people Israel, in a manner of speaking, must consecrate themselves before God. Because He is holy, His qualities are, indeed, great qualities -- not quirks, or idiosyncracies as in the character of the idols of the ancient world! What God demands of man is not blind fear and sheep-like obedience -- but rather learned reverence. Should one wish to relate to this God -- one should be holy, be lofty, idealistic, seek to rise above oneself.

You do not bring God down to your level, to the "lowest common denominator" -- you rise to His level, aspiring to the highest and loftiest possible communion with Him.

We Jews have lived for three thousand years suspended between the loss of our children to the demands of our faith, as in Akharey Mot, and learning to come to terms with the concept of consecration to a God which is all holy and all pervasive within and beyond everything in His creation. We had an age of glory in the kingdom of David and Solomon, and we have been aspiring to a return to that glory ever since. We came close a number of times -- and I firmly believe that God wants us to get there. But our human nature prevents it time and again.

It was so in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, when the vassal Jewish state had such a degree of autonomy that Ezra could proclaim an edict expelling all the foreign wives, and Nehemiah could arm the Jewish builders of the walls of Jerusalem to fight off marauding Samaritan and other unwanted bandits who sought to benefit from Jewish labor and our hope to reclaim our lost glory. Dare we compare this to our days and "Har Homa," the neighborhood by the walls of the old city that we are barred from up-building and settling? It was so in the days of the Maccabees, when the faithful could not stay united to defeat conclusively and completely the Greek Assyrians and their fellow travelers, the Hellenized Jews. Dare we compare this to those amongst us these days who wish to rewrite our recent history and take blame for an 'anti-Arabism' that makes the youths who put their lives on the line in the War of Independence soldiers of fortune out to carve an empire in a land that was definitely not theirs?

It looks like it is the same these days! After two millennia of exile and persecution brought about (at least partially, we must admit) by our own divided house in the days of the revolt of the zealots of Jerusalem, Masada and Beitar – we have come back to establish an independent Jewish nation in the Promised land -- Israel. Anyone, be he an ultra-orthodox fundamentalist or a secular Jew, who thinks that the State of Israel was created against, in spite, or without, Divine blessing -- has to be a totally blind and mindless fool. No national endeavor ever came about against as many insurmountable odds and powerful oppositions and survives! When one considers the enmity shown to the seed of Abraham by every people, every creed, every nation and every culture -- one is forced to conclude that by all the laws of nature Judaism should never have survived to arrive at the gates of modern times, at the end of the nineteenth century.

And yet it did. And yet we, the scions to the prophets and the sages, the remaining ember of the fire that consumed our people from the destruction of Jerusalem through the fires of burning synagogues in the time of the crusades to the fires of the Inquisition to the hell fires of the pogroms in czarist Russia, we, the men and women who espoused every worthy cause for the dignity of mankind, to serve and suffer and pay the penalty of opposing the regimes that discriminated against us and persecuted us -- only to end up betrayed by the causes we brought to victory; we who contributed more to the advancement of civilization, of modern technology and science, to a better and deeper understanding of the nature of man -- we stood on the threshold of Modern times and claimed: we are here, and we refuse to die! We must live and we shall live.

In that era, at the beginning of the twentieth century, which was called 'la belle epoch' -- the beautiful time -- we believed with all our might and all our reasoning powers that history was about to redress the wrong that was done to our people. Some of us became totally involved in the life of the nation in the midst of which we lived, many choosing to take the path of assimilation and even conversion. Some came to the conclusion and realization that no future existed for the Jews in Europe -- and they cast their lot with the multitude of humanity that migrated to the "new world." They come to America and becoming a part of the American nation, the American dream and the American reality. We did well in America, and we contributed much to its grandeur. Some, a precious few of us, chose the path of Zionism and Jewish nationalism in the old, lost and forgotten, Promised land -- a land that was totally neglected and abandoned at the time -- not a land of milk and honey but a land of thistle and lizard, and land of swamps and bare hills, stripped of their flora and swept clean of their fertile soil.

And, "akharey-mot," after the death, in our own age, of a third of our people, after we had been betrayed by Great Britain and the League of Nations; after anti-Semitism showed itself in the differential treatment of the Jewish state in the courts of the nations of Europe, and after the Moslem world waged a war of annihilation against our Jewish nation for fifty years, we are now coming up against a new resolve of the American government to pressure the government of Israel to make concessions and to act against its own best interest, and turn over more land than it feels safe to do -- to placate an intractable enemy who states openly that his aim is the destruction of the Jewish state. If Israel is to survive, we must unite all our forces, we must assemble all our friends, and we must consecrate ourselves, to be resolved to do His bidding, to stand firm and trust in Him. We shall persevere, even as we have in every age. It is His promise, and He shall not fail, especially if we do not fail.

Amen

Akhrey mot-Kdoshim 5759

This week we read a double portion in the Torah -- Akharey Mot-Kedoshim, from Leviticus 16 to 20. The text contains the verses that are read on Yom Kippur afternoon, concerning the purity of the family and proper family relationships. However, the first words that we read are, "And the Lord spoke unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the Lord, and died; And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat." [Lev. 16:1-2] Then, the second half of the reading has this passage, "And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel, and say to them, You shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy. You shall revere every man his mother, and his father, and keep my sabbaths; I am the Lord your God. Turn you not to idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods; I am the Lord your God." [Lev. 19:1-4]

I think it is very significant that we read these two portions as we celebrate this Shabbat the fifty first anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel. We have come a long way since that warm day in May when the Jews living in Israel, myself among them, stood guard to protect their homes and lives, and the leaders of our establishment came together in the Tel-Aviv Museum to hear, bear witness, and sign their names to the proclamation of the independence of the Jews who live in their ancestral homeland.

Why is it significant, you ask – because the Torah text we read speaks of the twin issues of the founding of the state. Akharey-mot – after the death, not of the two son of Aaron, but of the martyrs of two thousand years, the dead of the two major disasters to hit the Jewish people in this century – the Holocaust and Communist anti-Semitism. Kedoshim, holiness – this is the matter of the unique and different nature of the Jewish people, for we have been, for the four thousand years of our existence, a special and different people, a people that lives apart, that consecrates itself to a life of love for God and for His creation, even in the face of hate and persecution.

We have a twin reason for being – for surviving and thriving as Jews all over the world, and recreating a national center in our ancient homeland. This twin reason is our shared history and our unique character, Jewish character, which is at its core the covenant of Abraham, the teachings of Moshe, the interpretation of a thousand years of prophets, sages, teachers and commentators. Yet, in a world that is becoming ever smaller with the advancements in communications and transportation, we are forgetting our history, neglecting our culture and alienating ourselves from our heritage. Giving up on the suffering of the past we try to reshape ourselves as ‘a simple, normal people like all the others.’

As a result of this attempt to be “kekhol hago’yim” – like all people – we are tearing ourselves apart in a cultural and religious war that pits Israel against the Diaspora and those who define themselves as Orthodox Jews against other Jews who deviate from the norms of these Orthodox Jews – be they Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist, Humanist, and secularist. There has also been a great loss of interest in Israel among many Jews in the diaspora. Fund-raising for the United Israel Appeal and Israel Bonds among diaspora Jews is going down and requires a much greater effort. Israelis resent any intrusion in their internal politics by Jews abroad, and those, in turn, decry the politically corrupt system in Israel, calling it at one and the same time a theocracy and a secular society which disclaims its Jewish heritage and treating diaspora Jews without any consideration for compromise.

The Children of Israel who came out of Egypt and became the nation of Torah in the experience of Sinai, were molded in the experience of Egypt, where they prepared for Sinai by keeping their families Jewish. Allowing their sons and daughters to marry only within the twelve families of the sons of Jacob, insisting on the use of Hebrew as the language of family communication and of transmitting the folk-tales of their common ancestry of Avraham, Ytzkhak and Ya’akov. Similarly, the Jewish people who became the founders and first citizens of Israel shared a common bond in the Zionist movement and its precursor – the Khibat Tzion movement. I am talking of the last decade of the nineteenth century, when the Jews were suffering from utter destitution caused by centuries of shattering poverty and deadly Christian hostility that was turning lethal in the wake of war after war, revolution and counter revolution and widespread economic collapse.

For centuries Jews escaped their fate and found solace in messianic fantasies and dreams of a miraculous gathering of exiles. At the turn of the twentieth century young Jews joined the radical socialists because socialism seemed devoted to prophetic Judaism's quest for justice. When Zionism was envisioned and then born, a preponderance of Jewish young people were already committed to socialism. Even among the Zionist minority that was dedicated to Jewish revival, many were radical socialists. They strove to create in the ancient homeland a refuge where Jews could shed their ‘typical’ Jewishness of the ghetto and the shteytle, to be transformed into universalist free men and women toiling to produce bread out of the earth, proving how very wrong the Gentile claim was – that Jews were capitalist parasites set on a mission to control the world.

The Zionists were a new breed of Kedoshim, dedicated to creating a society founded on the concepts of equality and equanimity. These European Zionists had no idea of the facts of Jewish existence: they were totally unaware that there were millions of Jews in Arab lands and other non-Christians, non-Western nations, whose nature and acculturation was quite different from what they considered the norm. They were also oblivious to the existence of a Moslem opposition to Jewish nationalism. Given their ignorance of so much of what went into making Israel a state in its ancient place – it is difficult to understand how they achieved what they did. I would venture to propose that they did it because of their heritage, because of their history of keeping faith with the covenant of Abraham and of Sinai.

Our heritage taught us at one and the same time the unique attributes of community and individualism. Each Jew is a universe unto himself, an individual created by and in the image of God. And yet, the sense of community has been paramount in keeping Judaism alive. These characteristics of individualism, ingenuity and a sense of community that can only be called patriotism made the Zionist enterprise a success. My grandfather, single handedly and alone, often shunned by his Jewish neighbors and isolated, revived the Hebrew language and created the tool that others would use to build a distinct culture to drive and make viable a nation.

The Zionist enterprise is as yet unfinished. Throughout the century of its existence in has been continuously threatened by the fanatic elements within and without who threaten its continued growth and prosperity. The Zionist enterprise's most important accomplishment is that it gave the Jewish people a new lease on life. When we also remember that this has been achieved during the most horrendous historical period for the Jews and the rest of humanity, and assess it in this context, it is truly nothing less then miraculous. So, there it is – We have changed, and are still the same. We are divided, and still are united as universal Israel. Despite all our flaws, all our shortcomings, our great achievement is the miracle of regained vigor and confidence, which gave us independence and may eventually bring about the true Jewish renewal that must and will come! Netzakh Yisrael lo yeshaker, the eternity of Israel will not be a lie. Amen

Akhrey-Mot 5760

This weeks reading from the Torah begins with the words, “And the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they came near the Lord, and died; And the Lord said to Moses, Speak to Aaron your brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place inside the veil before the covering, which is upon the ark; that he die not; for I will appear in the cloud upon the covering. Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place; with a young bull for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired; these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on.” [Lev. 16:1-4] I would not blame anyone who would ask, “what are they talking about?” We have every right to wonder about the tradition of the priests’ behavior some thirty five hundred years ago. And it would not matter at all if it was not for the fact that we were charged by our God to be a nation of priests and a holy people. Is there something we can glean from the text to give us some kind of an idea of how to be a “nation of priests?”

I think that there is an answer in this very short text that I presented to you above. It begins by reminding us that Aaron’s two sons were killed. We may be interested to recall the why and wherefore of their untimely demise. We may remember that the two sons were serving God in the Tabernacle, where they were "performing" over and above the instructions of God for their duties. In so doing, they performed rituals that were not prescribed - nor desired - by our God. The lesson is clear: God does not wish the "over-play" of the zealot. The clothing of the priest prescribed in our text teaches us another lesson: simplicity is grace and holiness is achieved not in the spectacular but in the absence of commotion. The plain linen garments, which were holy, were totally devoid of excitement to the eyes - they were white, signifying God’s purity and serenity.

This week’s portion begins the teaching of Holiness to the people Israel and to their servants the priestly family of Aaron. It speaks of atonement and of holiness, of the service of the priests that was conducted first in the tabernacle and then in the Temple in Jerusalem, and of the offerings that were made by the people. It speaks of the sanctity and holiness of the family. It sets down the law of family relationships and the proper etiquette to keep the family pure and united. It concludes with words of instruction, “Defile not you yourselves in any of these things; for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you; And the land is defiled; therefore I do punish its iniquity upon it, and the land itself vomits out her inhabitants. You shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; nor any of your own nation, nor any stranger who sojourns among you; For all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled; That the land should not vomit you out also, when you defile it, as it vomited out the nations that were before you. For whoever shall commit any of these abominations, the souls who commit them shall be cut off from among their people.

Therefore shall you keep my ordinance, that you commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that you defile not yourselves in it; I am the Lord your God.” [Lev. 18:24-30] We must learn from the mistakes of the past, our own and those of others, to insure our success and our survival. Let us hope that we do, and let us hope that we make our lives holy through God’s mitzvot. Amen.

 Akharey-Mot/Kdoshim, 5762

This week's reading in the Torah is a double portion -- Akharey Mot and Kdoshim, from Leviticus 16 to 20. The .first words of the "first half" of the portion that we read are, "And the Lord spoke unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the Lord, and died; And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat." [Lev. 16:1-2] Then, the second half of the reading has this passage, "And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel, and say to them, You shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy. You shall revere every man his mother, and his father, and keep my Sabbaths; I am the Lord your God. Turn you not to idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods; I am the Lord your God." [Lev. 19:1-4]
There is a very important lesson in this combination of the first subject that the Torah deals with in the first and second segments: you may recall that the two sons of Aaron died because they misunderstood God's teaching and exceeded their obligation to serve God. They brought a "strange fire" to the altar. When they perished Moshe forbade his brother and his remaining sons to stop their holy work to mourn -- they had to stay in the Tent of Meeting -- the first "synagogue" – and continue to function as priests. They had to live with their loss, mourn in silence and learn to get over it while "life went on." It was a priestly obligation, since "the show must go on," even when the show is the honor and service of God.
Then, in the second part of the text we are told that the entire people Israel, in a manner of speaking, must consecrate themselves before God. Because He is holy. What God demands of man is not blind fear and sheep-like obedience – but rather learned reverence. Should one wish to relate to this God – one should be holy, be lofty, idealistic, seek to rise above oneself. You do not bring God down to your level, you rise to His level, aspiring to the highest and loftiest possible communion with Him.
How do we consecrate God? Since the days when the Temple stood, we have had a concept called "kiddush hashem" - the consecration of God's name. It was a teaching that when you are pushed to the limit, you are going to willingly put your life on the line for His glory and for the honor of the people Israel. In the difficult times of the battle against Rome, our brothers raised the banner of God's love high and died to keep their faith alive. It may sound like a contradiction – but it is not! They died, and with the hindsight of history we know that they have succeeded.
Different times, different tactics. In the dungeons of the inquisition the order of the day was to stay alive, lest the last of the Jews would disappear off the face of the earth. Many a Jewish family accepted conversion as a feign, and maintained their Judaism alive in secret. In the ghettos of Eastern Europe, our brethren took a detour on the road to death, to attack the enemy and take some of the wicked foes into the nether world with them.
In 1948, my fellow Israelis were called on to pay the ultimate price for the glory of God and the future of Israel. They were the silver platter upon which the nation was offered a homeland. Danny and Yitzkhak, Shim'on and David, who was called Dudu, paid the highest price. They gave their lives to make the state a reality. The rest of us lived on, and continued to consecrate His name day after day. We engaged in reviving the desert, building cities, inventing new ways to bring bread from the earth, and taught ourselves to be the best soldiers, too, to defend our young, our women, and our elderly. I am not sure who paid a higher price!
Last Sunday we celebrated Israel's 54th anniversary with those of Jacksonville's Jews who chose to come to the JCA to see and be seen. On Monday I took an early morning flight to the Washington DC airport, to join all those who heeded the call to come and show our solidarity with Israel. With 34 other Jews from our area, I came out of the Metro and walked the short distance to the front lawn by the steps of the U.S. Capitol. Thousands of Israeli and American flags and pro-Israel, anti-terrorism placards swelled the West Front of the U.S. Capitol Building, as supporters of Israel gathered to express their solidarity with our Jewish state and demonstrate support for the war against Palestinian and global terrorism. It was unusually warm for mid-April, the sun was bright and unobstructed by shade or clouds, and ambulances were forever removing the ones who did not plan ahead by having head-covering and water to hydrate – and fell victim to the heat of the day. The next day I read in the Washington Post that this was the largest public gathering ever in support of Israel – more than 100,000 people – from Los Angeles to New York, from Maine to Florida – who came by plane and cars, and in caravans of buses that left in the middle of the night from as far away as Texas, Wisconsin, Indiana, Kansas, Cleveland, Rochester/NY and Tennessee. Dozens of chartered flights came from Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, and Toronto. You could not charter a bus in New York – the rally took all 700 that were available!
The most amazing aspect of this gathering was the fact that it was organized in seven days! From the first idea to the moment the Hatikvah was sang by Dudu Fisher, star of Les Mis and a cantor of renoun – seven days of "kiddush hashem." The political pundits said it could not be done – but it was, and it was attended by Jews, evangelical Christians, Catholics, Protestants, Moslems – all people of conscience who wished to proclaim 'long live Israel now and forever.'
The original purpose of the rally was to show the people in Israel that the U.S. population, Jewish and Christian, is with them. The people who convened it asked for a major national mobilization of American supporters of Israel; day schools and synagogues, federations and Hillels all sent contingents. The event, attended by United States and Israeli government officials, leaders of world Jewry and representatives of Christian groups, sent worldwide a message of solidarity with the Jewish homeland as it and its citizens endure near-daily attacks by Palestinian suicide bombers with the support of the Palestinian Authority.
The historic gathering was addressed also by a bipartisan line-up of U.S. Congressional officials, including House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt (D-MO), Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), House Majority Leader Richard Armey (R-TX), Senator Arlen Spector (R-PA), and Senator Harry Reid (D-NV). The chaplains of both the U.S. House of Reprsentatives and the U.S. Senate also spoke. Other speakers included Deputy U.S. Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz; former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani; AFL-CIO President John Sweeney; Hugh Price, president of the National Urban League; New York Governor George Pataki; and Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel.
"We are here to defend a people, a democracy and a friend," Gephardt said. "Israel's strength and America's leadership have been essential in advancing our common goals . . . To join us, the Palestinians must turn, unequivocally, against terrorism."
"Israel has joined the mountains of Afghanistan as the frontline in the war on terrorism," said Mortimer Zuckerman, Chairman, Conference of Presidents. "We are here, figuratively, to be with the people of Israel in the foxhole that they are in."
Natan Sharansky, Israeli Minister of Housing, declared: "We will not compromise on our rights to live with security and in freedom. We cannot accept moral equivalence between those who use human lives to shield terrorists and those who fight terrorists ... if we let the world know that the Jews of the Diaspora and the Jews of Israel are united, we will succeed."

"An enemy that sends children to die and to kill other children cannot be placated," said former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to thunderous applause by those gathered. "With such evil there can be no concessions."
I believe we have done well. We have consecrated Israel and gave glory to our God. As a follow up to the rally, there was a two-hour Special Order in the House of Representatives on April 17th, organized by Representatives Peter Deutsch (D-Fl) and Jack Kingston (R-GA). Members of the House had an opportunity to voice support for Israel by participating in this special colloquy at the conclusion of the legislative day. Laboring together tirelessly under the most challenging circumstances, we have demonstrated collectively what the American Jewish community can accomplish when we come together. Our message was heard in Washington, in Jerusalem, around the nation, and around the world.

Akharey-Mot, 5763

This week's Torah portion is Akharey Mot, from Leviticus 16 to 18:30. The portion contains the verses that are read on Yom Kippur afternoons, concerning the purity of the family and proper family relationships. However, the first words of the portion read, "And the Lord spoke unto Moses ‘akharey mot' after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the Lord, and died..." [Lev. 16:1] After this matter is put to rest, the Torah teaches us concerning the "sin offering" – and the goat that is sent into the desert – the so-called "scape-goat."
I think it is interesting and significant that the Torah deals with the issue of atonement after speaking of the death of those who transgressed against God. And it is interesting that the cycle of reading the Torah is such that we read about the Rosh Hashanah atonement process on the "flip-side" of the year, at about the time of the feast of the exodus from Egypt. You see, there is a certain equilibrium or symmetry in time – fall and winter are the flip-side of the coin of spring and summer. There is also a symmetry between the Rosh Hashanah festival, with its judgement and decision, and the exodus from Egypt, with its commitment and departure from old and familiar paths to new and untried ones.
Now that the Festival of Freedom is over, we count the days to the celebration of "Khag Matan Torah" – the Festival of the Giving of the Torah, also known as Shavu'ot or Pentecost. The counting is literally done: it is called the counting of the Omer, and is rooted in the anxiety of farmers in the days before the harvest is ready. For us, in modern time, it has become a particular time of awe and reverence – with the establishment of three new holidays of our recent history: Yom Hashoah, Yom Hazikaron l'khaleley Tzahal, and Yom Ha'atzma'ut – Holocaust memorial day, memorial day for the casualties of Israel's wars of survival, and Israel's Independence Day.
Yom Hashoah, the first, and saddest, day falls on Tuesday of next week. In Israel, our precious reborn homeland, there will be public mourning. An alarm siren will sound throughout the land, and life will come to a stand-still. Religious Jews, non-religious Jews, agnostics and Christians and Moslems will stop in their tracks and observe a moment of silent communion with the martyrs of Nazi brutality. During this day there will be no frivolity in Israel – no parties or dances, no comedy on television or on the radio – the day will be one of subdued retrospection on what has been lost: the great men and women, Rabbis, doctors, lawyers, authors, musicians, comedians, architects and engineers, college professors and school teachers, housewives and children. One and a half million children! Here is the greatest loss – for who knows but that some of those children could have found the cures for all the diseases that are besetting the world today, and that will beset the world in time to come.
If there is one thing above all else that disturbs me personally about the holocaust, it is the pedantic banality in which it was conducted – the utter stupidity of those who planned and executed what they so blatantly called "the final solution of the Jewish question." Had they been monsters – real monsters, with eyes bulging out of grotesque heads – we could somehow understand their aberrant thinking and inhuman machination. "Of course," we could say, "anyone who looks that way and suffers the ridicule of the general population is bound to grow up twisted and end up a mass murderer." The perpetrators, however, were average citizens of a nation that was amongst the most civilized on earth at the time. Maybe that is what insults us most of all. Ignorance may be wedded to cruelty and inhumanity – but if genteel college professors, enlightened judges and sophisticated artisans can become as beasts of the jungle... Well, how far have we come from the first carnivorous homo sapiens?
Here we are, fifty eight years after Hitler and his cohorts were put down. We have seen the first reaction of Europe and of the world to the worst crime committed against humanity – no, let's not allow the world to claim our martyrdom. We have seen the first reaction of Europe and of the world to the worst crime committed against the Jews. And we are witnessing just how meaningless was their protestation that they did not know, did not realize just what was going on. Today, they know. Today they must realize that such crimes are possible, and will recur – if we are not vigilant enough to prevent it.

And they are not vigilant!

New enemies are on the rise, and the population of Europe is silent.

But we are different. We Jews are no longer the sheep for the sacrifice. We shall not go willingly nor quietly – in fact, we shall not go, at all. Period. We intend to survive the madness! We put the world on notice: beware of the madness, for it is self consuming. Learn from history the lesson of the preciousness of life. Stand four square for every human's right to life, to a livelihood, and to an acceptable level of safety. Remember the lesson of the time of the exodus – that only those who dedicate themselves to God, and therefore to the common good, are truly free. Let us learn to live in peace and mutual respect with one another, and we shall yet usher the messianic age.

Amen

Akhrey-Mot/Kdoshim 5764

This week we read in the Torah a combined portion, Akharey mot-Kedoshim, from the third of the five books, Leviticus, chapters 16 to 20. The first portion begins with the words, "And the Lord spoke to Moshe after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they came near the Lord, and died; And the Lord said to Moshe, Speak to Aaron your brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place inside the veil before the covering, which is upon the ark; that he die not; for I will appear in the cloud upon the covering." [Lev. 16:1,2] This exhortation can be misread to appear as if serving God is a "risky occupation."
You may recall that the two sons of Aaron died because they brought a "strange fire" to the altar. When they perished Moshe forbade his brother and his remaining sons to mourn -- they had to stay in the Tabernacle and continue to function as priests. They had to live with their loss and learn to get over it -- before they took time out to think about it and draw lessons from what happened. One may ask, how did Aaron and his sons cope with their loss? How does one live on after the death of one's dear children, or one's siblings? Why did God do this to them? How could they continue to believe in Him, to serve Him? Obviously, they did not ask such questions. Obviously, they did not allow themselves to ask such questions. Life had to go on -- and the dead cannot be brought back. If we lose faith as a result of the death of our dear ones then the death becomes even more damaging. Moshe told his brother, "give it some time" and life would flow and heal you.
So, you see, serving God is not risky - actually, it is quite the opposite: given the right instruction, the priesthood, and being Jewish, is a great privilege and a positive life activity. The same "first" portion also contains the verses that are read on Yom Kippur afternoons, concerning the purity of the family and proper family relationship.
The second portion, Kedoshim, begins with the words, "The Lord spoke to Moshe, saying: Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them: You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. You shall each revere your mother and father, and you shall keep my Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God." [Ibid. 19:1,2] This passage in the text tells us that the entire people Israel, in a manner of speaking, must consecrate themselves before God to be like Aaron, priests. Because God is holy, His qualities are, indeed, great qualities – not quirks, or idiosyncracies as in the character of the idol-gods of the ancient world! What God demands of man is not blind fear and sheep-like obedience – but rather learned reverence. Should one wish to relate to our God, who is the Lord God Almighty, creator of heaven and earth, one needs to be holy, to be lofty, idealistic, seek to rise above his base, earthly qualities and character. One should not drag God down to one's level, to the "lowest common denominator" -- one must rise to His level, aspiring to the highest and loftiest possible communion with Him.
This message and lesson should not be lost on us and on all of Jewry in our own time. After two millennia of exile and persecution brought about (at least partially, we must admit) by our own divided house in the days of the revolt of the zealots of Jerusalem, Masada and Beitar – we have come back to establish an independent Jewish nation in the Promised land -- Israel. Anyone, be he an ultra-orthodox fundamentalist or a secular Jew, who thinks that the State of Israel was created against, in spite, or without, Divine blessing -- has to be a totally blind and mindless fool. No national endeavor ever came about against as many insurmountable odds and powerful oppositions and survives! When one considers the depth of hate and distrust of Jews by the people of Europe, the Moslem world and many in the New world as well, one is forced to conclude that by all the laws of nature Judaism should never have survived to arrive well and in full bloom in the twenty first century.
Our heritage taught us to hold steadfast at one and the same time the unique attributes of community and individualism. Each Jew is a universe unto himself, an individual created by and in the image of God. Each, as you all know, has at least two oposing points of view on every issue, so that one can disagree with others about every issue. You know what they say: "Two Jews, three opinions, three Jews – an unlimited number of opinions..." And yet, the sense of community has been paramount in keeping Judaism alive. So we believe in the concept of "Klal Yisrael – the entirety of Israel," one large family, not joined at the hip – but taking care of its own. These characteristics of individualism, ingenuity and a sense of community that can only be called "Yiddishkite" have made us a success whenever and wherever we were given half a chance to prosper and develop.
This sense of community, of sharing responsibility for our common roots, has brought about the building of this great sanctuary that holds us this evening, that inspires us to sing and praise our God, and give thanks to Him for His abundant kindness and goodness towards us. And if this is true for this small bunch of Jews in Ponte Vedra, Florida, how much more so for the entire House of Jacob, whose remnant was reprieved fifty-six years ago on the fifth of Iyar from exile and misery, allowed to reestablish its roots in the only place that has ever been our true and unquestioned homeland.
Two years ago, on Monday of the week of Akhrey-Mot/Kedoshim I took an early morning flight to the Washington DC, to join all those who heeded the call to come and show our solidarity with Israel. It was unusually warm for mid-April, the sun was bright and unobstructed by shade or clouds, and ambulances were forever removing the ones who did not plan ahead by having head-covering and water to hydrate – and fell victim to the heat of the day. More than 100,000 people – Jews and Gentiles from Los Angeles to New York, from Maine to Florida – who came by plane and cars, and in caravans of buses that left in the middle of the night from as far away as Texas, Wisconsin, Indiana, Kansas, Cleveland, Rochester/NY and Tennessee. Dozens of chartered flights came from Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, and Toronto. You could not charter a bus to save your life in New York – the rally took all 700 that were available!
The original purpose of the rally was to show the people in Israel that the U.S. population, Jewish and Christian, stand with them in spirit in this time of great danger. Since 9/11, we in America finally understand what Israelis are facing day after day. For Israel, every day is 9/11. And still, they must bear witness to the fact that God loves us and protects us. Akhrey not, after the death of our children, of our dear ones, here and in Israel, we are truly one people, consecrated to make life better for all.

Shabbat Shalom

Akharey-Mot 5765

This week’s Torah portion is Akharey Mot, from Leviticus 16 to 18:30. The first words of the portion read, "And the Lord spoke unto Moshe after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the Lord, and died; And the Lord said unto Moshe, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat." [Lev. 16:1-2] There is a very important lesson in this first subject that the Torah deals with: you may recall that the two sons of Aaron died because they brought a "strange fire" to the altar. When they perished Moshe forbade his brother and his remaining sons to mourn -- they had to stay in the Tabernacle and continue to function as priests, to serve God as emissaries of Israel. They had to live with their loss and learn to get over it – before they took time out to think about it and draw lessons from what happened.
The portion, beyond the story of Aharon and his sons, contains the verses that are read on Yom Kippur afternoons, concerning the purity of the family and proper family relationships. The issue of the Jewish family has always been very important to our people – from the time of Abraham, as you will recall that he commanded his servant to go to Aram and fetch a bride for his son, because he did not want him to marry one of the women of Canaan.
We are celebrating Shabbat Akharey-Mot on the eve of the Feast of our Liberation from Egypt. We believe that this was a seminal event for our people. God, in His own Selfhood, came down to punish the Egyptians through the killing of the first born, and he took us out “b’yad khazaka uviz’ro’a netu’ya – with a strong hand and an outstretched arm,” [Deu. 5:15] The Israelites were informed by Moshe that he had been sent by God to deliver them. “Vehotzeti – ...And I shall bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, v’hitzalti – and I shall deliver you from their bondage, v’ga’alti – and I shall redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgements, v’lakakhti – and I shall take you to Me for a people and I shall be to you God...” [Exodus 6:6,7]
It is with this four-fold promise, “Vehotzeti, v’hitzalti, v’ga’alti, v’lakakhti,” four words of action, “take out, deliver or succor, redeem and take” that God “purchased” our freedom from the physical slavery to Egypt – to become His people, and live by His teaching to become committed to His service.
The four-fold promise is the reason for the use of the four cups of wine that we consecrate on the Seder night. They are not the only foursome. Early in the reading, the innocent young child asks his father “the four question:” Why do we eat matzah? Why do we eat marror? Why do we dip twice? Why to we recline at the table? Actually, if you stop to think about it, the child who asks the questions cannot be all that innocent – or he would not know about these four features of the Seder night that sets it apart from all other nights.
However, this is a night of learning, a night of commemorating the events of the “First Passover,” the one that had been pre-ordained, before the event took place. The four cups relate to the four verbs that promised our freedom. The Four questions remind us of the four sons. The Torah tells us, “V’ha’ya ki yish’alkha vinkha makhar – and it shall be that when your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘what is this?’ That you shall say to him, by strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of bondage.” [Ibid. 13:14] So, one son asks the question, but there are others. Rashi, commenting on the verse above says, “‘what is this?’ Is a question of a foolish child.” He then reminds us that the Torah speaks of four sons; a wise one, a wicked one, a simple one, and who is not able to ask a question.
The wise son asks: “What is the meaning of the testimonies, statutes, and laws which the Lord our God has commanded us?” Explain to him the laws of the Pesakh: that “no dessert may be eaten after the Passover sacrifice.” The wicked son asks: “What does this service mean to you?” By the words “to you” he implies that this service is only for you — not for himself. By excluding himself from the community, he denies God. So tell him bluntly: “This is done on account of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.” For me, not for him; had he been there, he would not have been redeemed. The simple son asks: “What is this all about?” Tell him, “With a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt from the house of slavery.” As for the son who is unable to ask a question, you must open up the subject to him, as it is written: “You shall tell your son on that day: This is on account of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.”
Thus we see that on the occasion of the Night of Pessakh, Passover, we deal with “fours” time and again. We learn of the past, we celebrate the present, we prepare for the future, and we contemplate the days of Messiah, the “time to come” – again, four distinct epoches, seasons of our lives and the life of God’s creation.
Wishing one and all the most wonderful celebration of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and a sweet and tasty Seder at the end of a most blessed Shabbat.

Amen and Shabbat shalom

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