“The Exact Moment”
Pinchas the grandson of Aharon knew just what to do. How? In a situation where anarchy reigned, sexual deviance and idolatry fused together in a Dionysian orgy, and a plague mysteriously killed in the tens of thousands, how is it that Pinchas knew what was needed to save the day?
I believe that the juxtaposition of personalities—Bilaam and Pinchas--points to a common trait they shared but then utilized in very divergent ways. Chazal wondered how it was that Bilaam received prophecy. Such a rasha and worthy of prophecy? Chazal explained the verse יודע דעת עליון in terms of his ability to know the one moment of God’s anger. Apparently, according to Chazal when God gets angry He is (as if to say) most vulnerable. At that infinitesimal instant Bilaam was able to use and perhaps abuse God’s will and power.
Pinchas perhaps was capable of the same divination. He also was a aware of God’s moment of wrath and understood that there was an opportunity to be grasped at that moment. Yet, in an heroic display, Pinchas used that knowledge to return, assuage God’s anger, to cool down the wrath of God.
This selfless action, the exact opposite of Bilaam’s, is worthy of distinction—הנני נותן לו את בריתי שלום, here is my covenant of peace. “Pinchas, you contaminated yourself and rendered yourself seemingly unworthy of serving God on high, know that your service in theTemple will be eternal, your covenant of peace ageless.
I can’t imagine what it means to know the moment of God’s anger but I know the moment of my wife’s anger! I know when my close friend is most vulnerable. At that moment I have one of two responses—Bilaam’s or Balak’s.
I can either find ‘just the right time’ to get what I want, ‘just the right moment’ to prey on their vulnerability for my own benefit. Or I can take the high Pinchas road and use that knowledge to ‘return their wrath’, assuage their anger and try to make peace.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
We are Kaporet!
Rabbi Avi Baumol
Every vessel has one purpose; the menorah to light up, the Mizbeach for korbanot, the Shulchan for lechem, the Aron to house the luchot and the Kruvim to be the symbol around where the shechina speaks.
One vessel is a mystery: the Kaporet. What is its purpose? On the one hand it seems clear that it is a covering for the Aron; on the other hand it seems to be a base for the Kruvim. It is possible that it has two purposes? Which one takes preference?
Naftali Bennet has been courted by two distinct political parties; each one representing a segment of society, each one aiming to convince Bayit Yehudi that its natural home is with them. Shas and Yahadut Hatorah say, you are shomer mitzvot like us, believe in the supremacy of Torah, halakha, come join us and we will be strong. Yesh Atid says, you are Zionist, believe in the army, all encompassing to Jews, tolerant, women’s rights, economic policy and unity. Come join us and we will be strong.
What should Naftali Bennet do? As I am his constituent, I feel I may weigh in on his thought process.
The Rogotchover answers that while Kaporet may be seduced by the Aron into thinking that its purpose is to cover and protect the Aron which encases the Luchot (Torah existence) and it may be seduced by the more all-encompassing Kruvim who see God in all areas (Zionist existence), it is not an fifth wheel of either vessel; instead the Kaporet is its own unique entity. A vessel entirely of pure unadulterated gold which has it own unique purpose in the Mishkan.
What is that purpose? I propose it is a bridge. To at once be a cover for Torah and at the same time be a base for Israel. To function as a vital link between two worlds and to teach there is no contradiction between the two. One can cover and protect the Aron while acting as a base for the Kruvim. That is the essence of being in the middle. But not as a compromise to that which is beneath and that which is above; rather as a strong, confident proud vessel in the Mishkan, serving God in its unique capacity.
Mr. Bennet, be the Kaporet, teach the country about the beautiful synthesis that is a religious Zionist Jew in Israel. Stand firm in your ideals of preserving Torah and shining a light of responsibility to the land and people of Israel. Be the bridge letting both worlds access you and each other. And ultimately, teach the world what it means to embody the synthesis which is authentically Jewish, ‘tzu Gott un Tzu leit” to God and to the people, Torah and nation, land and Mitzvot, open and committed, lover of peace and protector of Zion!
Rabbi Avi Baumol
Every vessel has one purpose; the menorah to light up, the Mizbeach for korbanot, the Shulchan for lechem, the Aron to house the luchot and the Kruvim to be the symbol around where the shechina speaks.
One vessel is a mystery: the Kaporet. What is its purpose? On the one hand it seems clear that it is a covering for the Aron; on the other hand it seems to be a base for the Kruvim. It is possible that it has two purposes? Which one takes preference?
Naftali Bennet has been courted by two distinct political parties; each one representing a segment of society, each one aiming to convince Bayit Yehudi that its natural home is with them. Shas and Yahadut Hatorah say, you are shomer mitzvot like us, believe in the supremacy of Torah, halakha, come join us and we will be strong. Yesh Atid says, you are Zionist, believe in the army, all encompassing to Jews, tolerant, women’s rights, economic policy and unity. Come join us and we will be strong.
What should Naftali Bennet do? As I am his constituent, I feel I may weigh in on his thought process.
The Rogotchover answers that while Kaporet may be seduced by the Aron into thinking that its purpose is to cover and protect the Aron which encases the Luchot (Torah existence) and it may be seduced by the more all-encompassing Kruvim who see God in all areas (Zionist existence), it is not an fifth wheel of either vessel; instead the Kaporet is its own unique entity. A vessel entirely of pure unadulterated gold which has it own unique purpose in the Mishkan.
What is that purpose? I propose it is a bridge. To at once be a cover for Torah and at the same time be a base for Israel. To function as a vital link between two worlds and to teach there is no contradiction between the two. One can cover and protect the Aron while acting as a base for the Kruvim. That is the essence of being in the middle. But not as a compromise to that which is beneath and that which is above; rather as a strong, confident proud vessel in the Mishkan, serving God in its unique capacity.
Mr. Bennet, be the Kaporet, teach the country about the beautiful synthesis that is a religious Zionist Jew in Israel. Stand firm in your ideals of preserving Torah and shining a light of responsibility to the land and people of Israel. Be the bridge letting both worlds access you and each other. And ultimately, teach the world what it means to embody the synthesis which is authentically Jewish, ‘tzu Gott un Tzu leit” to God and to the people, Torah and nation, land and Mitzvot, open and committed, lover of peace and protector of Zion!
Thursday, November 1, 2012
A New Look at the Shabbat Morning Psalms
Shabbat Morning Psalms
The selection of psalms which are recited during the weekday morning prayer is expanded on Shabbat. An additional 9 psalms were chosen which add a new dimension to the Shabbat morning service. Why were psalms added on Shabbat? Why were these specific psalms (19, 34, 90, 91, 135, 136, 33, 92, 93) added by our Sages to the collection of 'pesukei dezimra'? In the next posts I plan on analyzing all these psalms and tying them together, hoping to understand why Chazal chose these to adorn the Shabbat service.
We begin with an analysis of Psalm 19.
There are several ways to divide the psalm: Amos Chacham in 'Daat Mikra' splits the psalm in two:
1-7--Nature's praise of God.
8-15--Praise of Torah and the desire to fulfill it.
I would argue that there are in fact three components to this psalm which represents three foci one should consider on Shabbat: Nature, Torah, Man!
Nature
"The heavens tell the tale of God's glory and the firmament tells the work of His hands". " Day to day . Each verse describes how nature, by its very essence, sings a song to God. Even without words, we still appreciate the awesome powers of nature--the day, night, firmament, sun. All of these primordial creations encompass the world and stand as a testament to their creator, an eternal praise.
Torah
"The Torah of God is all-encompassing, restores the soul". The psalmist depicts Torah in six different ways each one offering not only a unique description but also a functionality of that specific angle: All-encompassing--restoring the soul; truthful--wisening the fool; straightforward--gladdening the heart... The timelessness and timeliness of Torah affords one not only the enlightenment but also a roadmap for how to navigate the winds of modernity.
Two fundamental components in God's creation, indeed two pieces of the cosmic puzzle, are presented in the first part of the psalm--nature and Torah. But there is, in theory, a third component of creation: "And God placed Man in the Garden to work it and guard it"... Man was meant to guard and protect nature and through guidance of Torah to ultimately use the world to create a sublime civilization. What happened instead?
Man
"Even Your servant was warned in them in guarding them there is great reward". Yet the next two verses include three synonymous words for man's sins: 'shegiot', 'nistarot', 'pesha', and 'man' recognizes his fallibility, his incapacity to defeat urges, sons, negative influence. It is as if the first section of the psalm describes the grandeur and majesty of Bereishit while the latter half depicts the pathetic sins of man to the point of utter self-destruction!
'Man' destroyed the beauty and perfection of the world, yet it was intended for man to 'work it and protect it'. This contradiction is the existential plight of the human condition. We are mandated to take this beautiful world and create a wonderful society in it; we are beset by obstacles internal and external and fail all too often. Yet we keep trying.
The 'man' who is fraught with sin and fallibility, nevertheless offers a prayer at the end of this psalm:
May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer
The selection of psalms which are recited during the weekday morning prayer is expanded on Shabbat. An additional 9 psalms were chosen which add a new dimension to the Shabbat morning service. Why were psalms added on Shabbat? Why were these specific psalms (19, 34, 90, 91, 135, 136, 33, 92, 93) added by our Sages to the collection of 'pesukei dezimra'? In the next posts I plan on analyzing all these psalms and tying them together, hoping to understand why Chazal chose these to adorn the Shabbat service.
We begin with an analysis of Psalm 19.
There are several ways to divide the psalm: Amos Chacham in 'Daat Mikra' splits the psalm in two:
1-7--Nature's praise of God.
8-15--Praise of Torah and the desire to fulfill it.
I would argue that there are in fact three components to this psalm which represents three foci one should consider on Shabbat: Nature, Torah, Man!
Nature
"The heavens tell the tale of God's glory and the firmament tells the work of His hands". " Day to day . Each verse describes how nature, by its very essence, sings a song to God. Even without words, we still appreciate the awesome powers of nature--the day, night, firmament, sun. All of these primordial creations encompass the world and stand as a testament to their creator, an eternal praise.
Torah
"The Torah of God is all-encompassing, restores the soul". The psalmist depicts Torah in six different ways each one offering not only a unique description but also a functionality of that specific angle: All-encompassing--restoring the soul; truthful--wisening the fool; straightforward--gladdening the heart... The timelessness and timeliness of Torah affords one not only the enlightenment but also a roadmap for how to navigate the winds of modernity.
Two fundamental components in God's creation, indeed two pieces of the cosmic puzzle, are presented in the first part of the psalm--nature and Torah. But there is, in theory, a third component of creation: "And God placed Man in the Garden to work it and guard it"... Man was meant to guard and protect nature and through guidance of Torah to ultimately use the world to create a sublime civilization. What happened instead?
Man
"Even Your servant was warned in them in guarding them there is great reward". Yet the next two verses include three synonymous words for man's sins: 'shegiot', 'nistarot', 'pesha', and 'man' recognizes his fallibility, his incapacity to defeat urges, sons, negative influence. It is as if the first section of the psalm describes the grandeur and majesty of Bereishit while the latter half depicts the pathetic sins of man to the point of utter self-destruction!
'Man' destroyed the beauty and perfection of the world, yet it was intended for man to 'work it and protect it'. This contradiction is the existential plight of the human condition. We are mandated to take this beautiful world and create a wonderful society in it; we are beset by obstacles internal and external and fail all too often. Yet we keep trying.
The 'man' who is fraught with sin and fallibility, nevertheless offers a prayer at the end of this psalm:
May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer
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