Sue Swartz
June 2nd – Naso (Numbers 4:21-7:89): How should a man’s jealousy be addressed? A priest, a fake sacrifice, and the drinking of “bitter waters” by his wife – a mix of water, dirt from the Tabernacle floor, and ink dissolved from a written curse – are all involved in this strange and somewhat humiliating ritual. The Rabbis were so uncomfortable that they outlawed its practice. Despite its flaws, the ritual raises an interesting point: what steps can we take when jealousy or other negative feelings about someone consume us? How might we heal the rift? We can re-connect with G-d through confession and sacrifice, but our fellow human beings are more complicated.
June 9th – Beha’alotcha (8:1-12:16): Lots of action. The people cry out for meat, Moses despairs, G-d tells him to appoint 70 elders to share the burden, 2 speak in tongues, Joshua complains, Moses says “Would that … G-d put the divine spirit upon all!” Miriam and Aaron speak out against Moses for his leadership style and his choice of wife. For this, Aaron’s priesthood is tarnished and Miriam is forced outside the camp for 7 days, stricken with leprosy. The Torah’s shortest prayer is then uttered by Moses – “El na refa na la "–"G-d, please heal her!” and the people wait for her to heal before moving on.
June 16th – Shelach Lecha (Numbers 13:1-15:41): Twelve men are appointed to scout out Canaan before the Israelites attempt to take it over. After 40 days, they return – ten in fear of the inhabitants and their power, and two arguing for Divine power. The people revolt, and ask (once again) to be returned to Egypt. Understandably, G-d is angered and threatens death. Instead, after arguing with Moses, another decree is issued: forty years of wandering in the desert. The Rabbis taught that it was far easier to take the people out of Egypt than it was to take the ways of Egypt out of the people.
June 23rd – Korach (Numbers 16:1-18:32): Korach challenges his first cousin Moses – isn’t everyone in the community holy? Who made you above us? Moses calls upon G-d to arbitrate, and the earth swallows up all Korach, his supporters, and their families. Do these people deserve this punishment? Aren’t they justly arguing for more democratic rule? Possibly. Or are they making a claim to holiness when no individual is holy by virtue of existence, but can only aspire to holiness through their acts? Also possible. What would you decide?
June 30th – Hukkat (Numbers 19:1-22:1): Deaths. First Miriam's then Aaron's. And Moses is given a death sentence by G-d after he strikes a rock in anger to produce water (the people are kvetching again). Finally, God sends a plague of fiery serpents when the people complain about the lack of water. From this last fact, the Rabbis taught that as long as Miriam was alive, her Well sustained people in the desert. We are taught that on Shabbat Miriam’s Well fills all wells and gives the waters special curative powers.
STEPS FORWARD AND BACK
July 7th – Balak (Numbers 22:2-25:9): Toward the end of this incredible parsha/portion are familiar words: Mah tovu oholecha Ya’akov, mishkenotecha Yisrael, How good are the tents of Jacob, the dwelling places of Israel! This blessing, sung at the beginning of many worship services, comes out of the mouth of the Moabite prophet Balaam. Why would he say such a thing? It’s a long story, well worth the read for its humor and irony – so briefly…. Balak, the Moabite king, asks his prophet Balaam to curse the formidable Israelite enemy as they approach his land on their journey. Balaam refuses, citing the power of YHWH. Later, on the way to visit the king, an angel with a drawn sword blocks the roadway. Only Balaam’s talking donkey sees the angel and tries to warn him, but Balaam is blind to the danger and responds in anger. Finally, the angel makes itself visible and the story comes to its “happy” conclusion as God speaks to and through Balak.
July
14th – Pinchas (Numbers 25:10-10:1):Unfortunately, at the end of
the last parsha, the people answer this blessing by consorting with the
“daughters of Moab” and offering sacrifices to Moabite gods.
God gets angry and demands a change.
An Israelite man and his foreign lover are then speared through the
mid-section by Pinchas -- which brings us to this week, where Pinchas is
rewarded for his action with the post of high priest.
There is another plague and after that, another census.
At the conclusion of the census, Moses is approached by the daughters of
Zelophechad. They petition him to
inherit their father’s land, as there are no sons. Moses brings their case to God, Who rules in their favor,
establishing a first in Israelite law for women’s rights.
July 21st
– Mattot-Masei (Numbers 30:2-36:13): Then we take one or two steps back.
This parsha begins with the
details of rules governing oaths and vows – “a man shall do it according to
everything that comes out of his mouth”.
It is clear that Israelite men are expected to recognize the power of
their words and follow through on their promises.
Women, however, can only fulfill their vows freely if they are widows and
divorcees; unmarried daughters and married women must have the appropriate
approval. The text then goes on to
describe all-out war against the Midianites.
The Israelites kill all adult males (including the prophet Balaam), burn
down the cities, and proceed – on Moses’ order - to kill all the male
children and women “who have known a man”.
July 28th
– Devarim (Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22): This week begins the final book of the
Torah, Devarim/Words.
Moses assembles the people together for the first of 3 long addresses on
the east side of the Jordan River. There,
in view of the Promised Land, he reviews their 40-year journey in the wilderness
as preparation for their next steps without him.
He begins with Sinai, highlighting their military defeats and triumphs,
their steps forward and back. Out
of compassion for these people he has guided, he assures them that not only will
God continue to fight for them, but will also continue to “carry them as a man
carries his son.”
A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD
August 4th – Va’etchanan
(Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11)
August 11th – Ekev (Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25): What should this relationship with God look like from the Israelite side?
Moses assures the people that God will continue to care for and support
them, to scatter their enemies and bring them into the land.
For their part, the people must keep in mind not only the laws and
regulations, but remain vigilant of their own pride.
He says (paraphrasing): “Don’t get too comfortable!
Don’t convince yourselves that you are responsible for what God has
provided you with! Don’t say God
did this for us because of our righteousness!
Remember the Golden Calf incident. You
are no more inherently righteous than other peoples are – but you are the
descendents of Abraham with whom God made a pact. That’s your good luck.”
August 18th – Re’eh
(Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17) : It is not an easy path, keeping up our end of the bargain.
Moses relates rules on where we might make sacrifices and in what manner
– in those places where God has chosen. We
must be careful not to be led astray by a “dreamer of dreams” who would
speak to us of false prophecies or other deities.
This is a test of our faith. We
need to keep the laws of kashrut / separation of forbidden and acceptable foods.
We must tithe our land for the Levite, stranger, orphan and widow; and
release the land itself from production every 7 years.
All this we must do because God has blessed us in all our doings, by
taking us out of Egypt and into the land.
August 25th – Shoftim (Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9): Justice, justice – the people are told - you are to pursue. Why? “In order that you may live and possess the land that YHWH your God is giving you.” We can take this as a literal formula – that long and good material life will come to those who do the right thing. Or we can understand it as a formula for a life filled with inner peace. For justice to exist, our elders and priests must consider multiple reliable witnesses before passing judgement; have a ruler who keeps a copy of Torah by their side and is not concerned with accumulating wealth or going back to Egypt; and strive for peace before going to war. In this parsha, we are instructed not to destroy the trees of our enemies, as no tree can defend itself against human weapons.
EVERY DAY IS A CHOICE
September 1st – Ki Teitze (Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19) “When you go out” to war against your enemy, what should be done with a woman captive you desire? Marry her, but do not rape her; if you change your mind, do not sell her as a slave, but set her free. This parsha is full of guidelines for living a holy (and orderly) life in ancient Israel. Return oxen or sheep that do not belong to you. Build a railing on your new home so no one will fall from the roof. Do not mix wool and linen in your clothing, or prostitution and sacred rites in your Temple. Some of the mitzvot are troubling (men and women may not wear each other’s clothing) and some are well worth adoption (a man should not insult his wife’s moral reputation if he tires of her). All are worth wrestling with.
September 8th – Ki Tavo (Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8) “When
you come” into the new land, Moses tells the people, you will set up big
stones on which you will write these words of Torah (instruction).
Follow God’s commandments and you will be blessed in all you do.
If not, you will be cursed (53 verses-worth).
Your enemies will triumph, your children will be sold as slaves, and the
skies will rain down dust. Most of
us don’t believe that when we fail to observe the mitzvot,
crickets will take possession of our trees or we will be sent back to Egypt.
But perhaps…. if we do not allow the land to rest every 7 years as
commanded, our crops will shrivel, and dust (or acid rain) will fall from the sky (see www.coejl.org
).
September 15th
– Nitz’avim (Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20) This
parsha (“standing”) contains one
of Torah’s bottom lines -- the commandments are not in the sky and not across
the sea, “but very close to you, in your mouth, and in your heart…"
Each of us has placed before us “life and good, and death and bad."
Each of us can understand what is expected of us, and each of us chooses
- every day - which path to take.
September 22nd - Va’yeylech
(Deuteronomy 31:1-30) “And he (Moses) went” before the people to
tell them Joshua would lead them to the land of milk and honey.
Then he wrote down his final instructions and commanded the people to
read the text once every seven years on the festival of Sukkot (which has
changed to a yearly cycle, broken down into smaller readings).
Even as he is completing this project, God tells him that the people will
stray after his death. What a
disappointment this must be for Moses, and he composes a song.
September 29th – Ha’azinu (Deuteronomy 32:1-52) “Listen!” begins this song. Moses calls on the skies and the earth as witnesses to his teaching about the fate of the Israelites. They will get fat – full of themselves – despite what God has done for them. They will ignite God’s anger – “I will exhaust my arrows on them…with animals’ teeth I'll let loose at them…” To say the least, it is not a pleasant fate that awaits a people who ignore the covenant. “It’s your life," Moses tells the people. You can choose your own exile and your own homecoming.
THIS
IS THE BLESSING
On Simchat Torah, we read the last parsha/portion in the book of Deuteronomy -- and the entire Torah -- chapters 33:1-34:12. Like a parent blessing his children, Moses blesses each of the tribes of Israel with poetry and promise before his death. Then he goes up the top of the mountains facing Jericho to see it with his own two eyes. And the man whose eyes had not yet grown dim, whose vigor had not yet fled, who had known God panim el panim / face-to-face dies, and is buried by God in a valley in Moab. Though Joshua now becomes leader, we are told that "there arose no further prophet in Israel like Moshe."
The Midrash tells of Moses' mother who is still living at the ripe age of 250 when he dies. Yocheved refuses to believe that her son is dead, and retraces the 40-year journey, traveling to Egypt where she questions the Nile and the Red Sea, then the desert, Mount Sinai and the rock that Moses struck for water. Each says they haven't seen him since his performance of miracles. God chides Joshua, who has followed Yocheved on her journey: "How long will you seek Moses in vain? He is dead, but it is I that have lost him, not you."
At the conclusion of reading Deuteronomy we say:
Hazaak, hazaak,
v'nithazak.
May we be strong, strong, and strengthen each other in Torah