Tu B’Shevat 5784 Musings

 

Tu B’Shevat 5784 Musings

Every year on the spring holiday of Tu Bishvat, the Knesset traditionally holds a festive event, open to the public, to celebrate both the holiday and the Knesset’s founding in 1949. This time, however, the ceremony began with a moment of silence in memory of the 24 soldiers who were killed in two incidents in the Gaza Strip on Monday.

Knesset Speaker MK Amir Ohana stressed the diverse backgrounds of the soldiers who were killed, including Elkana Vizel, who was evacuated from Gush Katif in the Gaza Strip in 2005; Nir Binyamin, from Givatayim; and Ahmad Abu-Latif, from the Bedouin city of Rahat.

 

The modern celebration of Tu B’Shevat is tied to the modern state of Israel. This year, Tu B’Shevat is overshadowed by the war in Gaza. In honor of our recent celebration of Tu B’Shevat, I want to share three stories of hope and resilience that relate to Israel, agriculture, and October 7:

 

From Reuters January 21:

Some of the bereaved families whose loved ones were killed in a Hamas rampage at the Nova music festival joined an Israeli Jewish nature project group on Sunday for a special tree-planting event at the site.

Around 1,000 people planted about 200 seedlings in the scorched earth of the Re'im parking lot where thousands of young people were partying in the dawn hours of Oct. 7 when armed Palestinian infiltrators swept in.

“I still can’t believe that we are planting a tree instead of hugging our child,” Ela Bahat, whose son Dror was killed at the festival, told Reuters.

Family members wept while planting trees with the Israeli Jewish National Fund, hoping to bring new life to the scene of death and desecration.

 

From the Times of Israel, November 5, 2023

The owners of a small plant nursery in Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the worst devastated communities in the October 7 Hamas onslaught, thought they had lost their business when they were forced to evacuate. But then they returned, only to discover soldiers had broken in to water the plants.

“Be’eri had a thriving nursery for household plants, a little blossoming paradise that made everyone happy,” owner Avivit John wrote on social media Saturday.

“When we were forced to evacuate, it was clear that all the plants would dry up. Rain does not get inside and the watering was done by hand. After two days without water, the plants start to wither,” she said.

 “Now we found a small miracle in Be’eri,” she wrote, posting a video of the thriving nursery they found when they returned several weeks later and a sign explaining it.

“Sorry we broke into the nursery, we had to water the plants. With love, the soldiers,” the sign said.

 

On October 7^th a tank entering Kfar Azza ran over an orange tree as it was responding to the terrorist attack. The tank was part of the Israeli response that was ultimately able to kill 100 terrorists in the kibbutz. Three weeks later, those who were in the tank came back to Kfar Azza to plant a new orange tree to replace the one that they had destroyed. See picture above of the planting, with the old tree in the background.

 

When I was a high school senior I applied to Yeshivat Har Etzion and was interviewed by the great Rav Aharon Lichtenstein zt’l. In the second part of the interview Rav Lichtenstein asked me why I thought the founding fathers of the United States idealized the agrarian lifestyle. The torah also idealizes an agrarian lifestyle and a connection to the Land.  Perhaps that is because Jews, like farmers, value hard work, patience, resilience, and prayer.

 

 

Kiddush Hashem Doesn’t Always Have To Be Difficult

 Rabbi Simcha Zissel Ziv, better known as the Alter of Kelm, once wrote a letter of gratitude to a great Jewish philanthropist whom we assume was Baron Edmond Rothschild. Here is a quote from that letter (recorded in the book Ohr Rashaz):

“I am writing to thank your exalted honor to give thanks and to bless you for all the kindnesses you constantly do for Hashem’s flock by choosing to follow the advice of the Holy One Blessed is He: ‘Choose life.’

“Do not suspect me, chas v’shalom, of seeking my own benefit; Heaven forbid I should do that. But in my humble opinion I am obligated to give thanks to you and to bless you for the wonderful things you do for Klal Yisrael for when a person as respected as you stands before kings and upholds the fortress of our religion the ordinary people take note and learn from you. That is a great kiddush Hashem which you have brought about and spread throughout the world and your reward will be very great.”

In that same letter Reb Simcha Zissel shares a lesson from Parshat Bo. The last of the ten plagues is the death of all Egyptian firstborn males. We read in Bo that the firstborn of the Jewish People, human and animal, will forever be sanctified due to the miracle of Makkat Bechorot. The Alter asked: What did the Jewish firstborn do in Egypt to earn this status of heightened sanctity? Also, being a firstborn is merely an accident of birth. Why should that warrant an elevated status? The Alter of Kelm answered that we learn from here that even passive participation in a Kiddush Hashem is a noteworthy accomplishment. It is meritorious if God chooses you to play a role in a Kiddush Hashem, even if it is only a passive role.

After sharing this Dvar Torah with the Baron, the Alter went on to write that if Parshat Bo teaches us that a passive participant in Kiddush Hashem is rewarded to such a great degree, then how much greater must the reward be for someone like Baron Rothschild who is an active contributor to Kiddush Hashem.

One of our major tasks in life is to bring a positive awareness and consciousness of God in this world. This is what we mean by creating Kiddush Hashem. Sometimes this is accomplished through hard and difficult actions. Sometimes it can be accomplished through passivity, like by just being a first born. Opportunities to create Kiddush Hashem lie along a continuum, and we should not underestimate the potential of creating Kiddush Hashem throughout our routine and normal activities. The Talmud teaches just how easy Kiddush Hashem can be accomplished 9Yoma 86a):

One should do so in that he should read Torah, and learn Mishna, and serve Torah scholars, and he should be pleasant with people in his business transactions. What do people say about such a person? Fortunate is his father who taught him Torah, fortunate is his teacher who taught him Torah, woe to the people who have not studied Torah. So-and-so, who taught him Torah, see how pleasant are his ways, how proper are his deeds. The verse states about him and others like him: “You are My servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified” (Isaiah 49:3).

The Talmud also warns us that it can be just as easy to create Chilul Hashem, a desecration of God’s name, if we are not careful with our actions nor with the perception of those deeds. With a little bit of attention and intention we have opportunities all the time to create Kiddush Hashem through relatively easy, normal and routine actions and behaviors. Let us take advantage of those easy Kiddush Hashem opportunities when they present themselves.

Rabbi Weinstock Goes To Washington

On Wednesday I was in Washington DC as part of a mission organized by OU Advocacy. Over 100 Jews from across the country traveled to our nation’s capital, on their own time and on their own dime, to advocate to our elected officials on behalf of causes important to our American Jewish community. The focus of our advocacy was support for Israel, support for the Non-profit Security Grant Program (of which our shul has been a beneficiary a number of times), and addressing antisemitism. At the White House we heard from Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt, Special Envoy to monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism. Ambassador Lipstadt explained that antisemitism is not only a threat to Jews, but also to democracy. She suggested that is why China has recently allowed anti-Semitic material to be disseminated through its government sanctioned internet and social media addresses. Historically the Chionese have had much affinity towards the Jewish People. But disseminating Jew hatred is a way to undermine democracy, which is something China is interested in accomplishing.

During lunch in the Senate office building we heard from a number of senators who expressed their strong support for Israel and their condemnation of Jew hatred. Senator Katie Britt from Alabama impressed me with her sincerity and her clarity when she said, “Evil cannot be defeated through equivocation or complicity. Good will win.” Senator Susan Collins from Maine reminded the audience that the protestors are not pro-Palestinian, but rather they are pro-Hamas.  Senator Collins told a powerful story of how after meeting her great aunt she carried a picture of Abigail Idan who was 3 years old when she was taken hostage by Hamas. After Abigail was returned to her aunt (her parents were killed on 10/7) the family sent Senator Collins another picture of Abigail which she keeps in her office.

Senator Kevin Cramer from North Dakota explained that his support from Israel originated with his mom who was a firm believer in the Bible, including the part in Genesis that says that those who bless the Jewish People will be blessed. Senator Josh Hawley from Missouri noted that October 7 was a “civilizational moment” for the world to understand the evils that exist in the world and the importance of combatting that evil and standing on the right side of history. Florida Senator Marco Rubio expressed dismay at the current state of elite universities and noted that we cannot have a strong country without stable communities and strong families.

In the afternoon I was part of a small group that met with the staff of Representative Jared Moskowitz and ended my day leading a meeting with our representative, Congresswomen Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Both Debbie and Jared are proud Jews and very supportive of Israel and the fight against anti-Semitism. Debbie recently returned from a trip to Qatar in which she pushed the country to do more to bring the hostages home.

My trip was brief but heartening. The Jewish People and the Jewish State have many friends in the halls of power in America. On my way out of the House office building I ran into Congressman Derrick Van Orden from Wisconsin. He told us that he went to Israel soon after 10/7 and was at the site of the Nova music festival massacre. He brought home with him drinking cups from the festival and sent them to members of The Squad in Congress to remind them of what really happened on October 7 and the difference between good and evil.

It is important to engage with our elected officials: to thank them, to encourage them to keep up the good work, to challenge them when we disagree. Even though all of the Senators that came to lunch were already pro Israel, it is important for them to reinforce that support by expressing it vocally as often as possible. It’s the same reason why we daven every day. Saying something once is not enough. Speech is the bridge between thought and action. We clarify and reinforce our beliefs by verbalizing them often. We ensure that we act upon those beliefs by committing ourselves to them in words.

What is in a Name?

 The Yalkut Shimoni quotes a tradition that Moshe had 10 names, in addition to Moshe. What was it about the name Moshe that made it his primary identity? There are at least three answers that speak to the essential character of Moshe and lessons we can learn from Moshe- the name and the man.

One, Moshe was a non-conformist. Rabbi Yehuda Amital pointed out that water, being a liquid, takes on the shape of the container into which it is poured. Having no shape of its own, water is constantly adjusting to its surroundings. Water represents the ultimate in conformity. Moshe was drawn out of the water. In a sense, he is the anti-water. Moshe did not conform to Egyptian society, nor to the norms of Jewish behavior in Egypt. He riles against the status quo- and when he is at first successful, he does not give up- rather he runs away to fight another day. The name Moshe alludes to the nonconformist behavior that our rabbis identify as the merit and reason Bnai Yisrael were able to maintain a unique identity even during the bondage of Egypt.

Two, Moshe was exceedingly humble. The Torah testifies that Moshe was the most humble of all human beings. It was this humility that allowed him to be so great- for God would have never allowed a person with ego to be the greatest prophet in history. Such concentrated power combined with ego would have been too dangerous of a mixture. What were the origins of this humble quality? There may have been a genetic predisposition, but it was surely his early life experience of being saved from the Nile River that solidified his emphasis on humility. Moshe lived his life with the acute awareness that he might not be alive at all had it not been for the grace of God and the kindness of the daughter of Pharaoh. When a person thinks that his very existence is a kindness afforded to him or her by others- it changes one’s whole outlook on life. No longer are we preoccupied with our rights- what we deserve and what we feel is coming to us. Rather everything that we get in life is now viewed as a gift. Nothing is taken for granted, and everything is appreciated.

Third, Moshe felt that the response to his gift of life must go beyond gratitude- and extend to responsibility. Many commentators have difficulty understanding the relationship between the name Moshe and the reason offered by the Torah for that name. The Daughter of Pharaoh claims that she named him Moshe because she drew him from the water. If that was the case, then his name should have been Mashuy, the passive form of the verb, one who was drawn from the water. Moshe is the active form- ie one who draws / saves others. Seforno explains Batya’s rationale. She said, “the reason why I named him Moshe is to indicate that he will rescue others.” Batya wanted Moshe to remember that he was saved from the waters, and that created a responsibility for him to go out and attempt to save others. Moshe’s name here was a call to action in the future. He was to realize that his blessings were meant to be used to create more accomplishments and more blessings for others.

We can learn much from Moshe the person, but Parshat Shemot introduces us to the man by teachings us lessons from his main name, the one that is associated with his role in the transmission of Torah from God to the Jewish People.