Rabbi Sacks cites several midrashim regarding the mitzvah of tzedakah: If anyone is poor among your fellow Israelites…be openhanded and freely lend them whatever they need. The concept of tzedakah is not “charity”. Charity is voluntary, whereas tzedakah is compulsory. Rabbi Sacks states that the nearest English equivalent is social justice, not charity.
DetailsRabbi Sacks cites several midrashim regarding the mitzvah of tzedakah: If anyone is poor among your fellow Israelites…be openhanded and freely lend them whatever they need. The concept of tzedakah is not “charity”. Charity is voluntary, whereas tzedakah is compulsory. Rabbi Sacks states that the nearest English equivalent is social justice, not charity.
DetailsRabbi Ruditsky introduces the parashah with the statement: “we need to look much more than just see.” We need to “see” as Adam and Eve did when they ate the fruit and “their eyes were opened”. Moses key point is to encourage Israel to perceive the role of Torah on a much deeper level than just words on a page.
DetailsIgael Gurin-Malous writes about the commandment to love—how does one fulfill a commandment to love another, especially one is is different, a.k.a., the stranger? He observes that the Torah recognizes an important truth: if we love those around us then we will ensure that as the laws change, they will do so according to love.
DetailsMoses teaches the new generation that the 40 years in the wilderness was not the ultimate challenge. That comes when everyone’s needs are met—when the spiritual challenges begin. Civilizations decline when the population loses its social solidarity and become weakened before potential enemies.
DetailsRabbi Robbins references Vayikra 19:32: “one must rise up…and honor the face of the old man.” She writes that respect and honor are at the root of our tradition, which attributes an elevated status to all who age. She critiques our culture that tends, instead, to isolate and humiliate our elders.
DetailsRabbi Bouskila considers the post-Tisha B’Av drash written by Rabbi Uziel in 1933, when Nazi Germany was in power. Rabbi Uziel wrote that it was the job of the rabbis—spiritual leaders—to lead the community in healing its divisions; only by healing our internal rifts could we strengthen ourselves against outside threats.
DetailsRabbi Sacks cites a number of recent American presidents who specifically referred to the covenant that is addressed in Va’etchanan as a basis for a democratic society. His point is that Moses was prescient in his belief that a nation founded on a covenant with God would inspire other nations to follow suit. He writes of the irony of the political culture of the United States being more Judaic than that of Israel.
DetailsAlter Feuerman approaches the relevance of Tisha b’Av from a different perspective. Instead of focusing on the millennia of historic tragedies, he considers the personal aspect – people need an opportunity to express their grief and emotions, whether for a lost Temple, or deceased relatives, or any other loss or fear.
DetailsRabbi Sacks addresses 3 questions: a) Why does the book of Devarim have the structure – a mix of history and law, recollection and anticipation? b) Why is it a “second law”? c) Why is this book included in the Torah?
DetailsRabbi Sacks wrote this article 10 years ago, yet the circumstances have commonality with the current situation. He asks the question: is Tisha b’Av relevant to our post-Holocaust generation? He writes that in the Torah, freedom without order was the world before the Flood, every person against every person. We see this anarchy in Syria, Iraq, and Somalia. The alternative world of order without freedom was the world of Egypt of the Pharaohs, who achieved greatness at the cost of turning humanity into slaves.
DetailsRabbi Posner writes about the 42 stops that are cited in the text. Why is this information so important? He analyzes the timing: 14 stops during the first year, before the people were punished; 8 during the last year; therefore 20 stops during the 38 years in between. In recounting our own journeys, we learn that things aren’t always as bad as we thought. Additionally, when we reach the goal, we find new meaning in the journey.
DetailsJill Levy writes about the difficulty in reading this text—the killing of the Midianite men, capturing women and children, plundering, and then killing all women of the age of intimacy. She proposes that a study of such challenging texts can enable us to navigate the disturbing realities of our own world. For instance, while Moses was angry at Reuben and Gad for choosing to remain on the east side of the river. However, they did not deny their responsibility to the people, but were traumatized by war and needed to protect themselves.
DetailsBlood vengeance, that can decimate an entire community, has plagued society for centuries. The cities of refuge were established to ensure that the blood vengeance ended when the legal authorities have ruled. The text stipulates that those who had committed manslaughter had to stay in one of these cities until the death of the High Priest in order to remain safe. Why is the death of the High Priest relevant? The Talmud holds the High Priest culpable in the act of killing since if he had prayed enough, it would not have happened. Suffering was necessary in order for the victim’s family to feel that justice was done. Maimonides wrote that the death of the High Priest caused a collective grief that allowed people to let go of their desire for revenge; no guilt or culpability was involved.
DetailsPinchas Shir addresses the complicated narrative on Pinchas’ murderous actions that resulted in God’s praise and the cessation of thousands of deaths. The emphasis should not be on the superficial elements of the narrative — a death sentence for idolatry – but the actions of one person, however gruesome, that resulted in the saving on many lives; God saw his actions as virtuous.
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