Shalom from the Hillel that was before there was Hillel

17 Elul 5770

During the Summer Months, the weekly parashah appears at irregular times.

The title for this week's Torah portion could not be more appropriate for coming back to school. Called, Ki Tavo (When you come), you will find it in the Book of Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8. Although it begins with the blessings that one is to offer for the first fruits, the section emphasizes the blessings the people will enjoy if they keep the commandments, and the punishments they will suffer for disobeying them.

In Chapter 27: 9 we read an interesting and almost untranslatable verse. The verse reads: "VaYidabber Mosheh v'hacohanin haliviim el col Yisrael lemor hascait ushma Yisrael haYom hazeh nihyeta l'am laAdonshem Elokeicha. Loosely translated it means: "Moses and the Levitical priests spoke to all Israel, saying: Silence! Hear, O Israel! Today you have become the people of the Lord your God (or perhaps a better translation might be: "You are a people who belongs to G'd") This verse leads us to ask multiple questions. First, why does Moses need to tell people to be quiet and then to listen? Secondly, is belonging to G'd a blessing or perhaps a burden? Finally, What does the act of active listening have to do with the notion of belonging?

In our modern societies we tend not to listen. We are concerned with expressing ourselves, with hearing ourselves talk, with telling others what we think. The reality is that we speak a lot more than we listen and because we listen so poorly we often have no idea what the other person is truly saying to us. It is interesting that Moses connects the idea of listening with that of "owning".

In modern society we push for independence. We want to do what we like and it matters little who may be hurt in the process. The Biblical idea, however, was different. Owning did not mean slavery but love. We take care of those things that our ours, that we own. To "own" someone was to be responsible for that person, to care for that person, to show that person that s/he matters to us. To "own" someone in Moses' sense of the word is to accept the other for whom he or she is, and to be there for that person in time of need. To "own" someone is to be honest with that person, to be up front with that person. Perhaps it is for this reason that doing something behind someone's back is so grievous a sin in Judaism.

Moses understood clearly that we cannot be with and for the other if we do not hear the other. Thus, Moses emphasized the need to first stop talking and then start listening. It is only when we choose to listen that we make the other person our own, when we accept ownership and responsibility for our own actions and how they impact the other.

Ki-Tavo is a perfect parashah for the start of the new year, school is all about learning to listen, to accept ownership for our errors and also our successes, of learning to be quiet and to listen, so that we produce blessings rather than curses. What do you think; do you agree?

Shalom from the Hillel that was before there was Hillel

3 Elul 5770

During the Summer Months, the weekly parashah appears at irregular times.

With the start of the month of Elul, we begin the final month of the Jewish year. This week we also read one of the more beautiful and profound weekly sections. The portion begins with the development of many of the principles upon which the Jewish judicial system is based. The assumption being that without fair and impartial laws, no society can long endure. Thus, the text addresses such topics as laws and definitions of: theft, the removing of a landmark, exemptions from military service, and in case of war, the laws of engagement.

Perhaps Parashat Shoftim (Deuteronomy 16:18-20:9 is best known for the extremely powerful verse found in chapter 16:20. The verse begins with the words: "Tzedek Tzedek tirdof l'maan techyeh...Justice, Justice you shall pursue so that you may live..." Those words have become so much a part of Jewish culture that were Judaism to have a mission statement, these words "Justice, Justice You Shalt Pursue" might very well be that statement. A simple review of Biblical history reveals that from Abraham to Moses and the Ten Commandments, from the Prophets to Proverbs, the idea of developing a just society has dominated Jewish history

Not only is the idea of tzedek (justice) emphasized but the text also employs an unusual Hebrew verb "tirdof" when speaking about justice. The verbal root r.d.f means: "to go after, to seek" and often has a legalistic connotation, such as a police officer pursuing a murder. What is the text teaching us by using this verbal root? Is it teaching us that justice does not come easily, that justice is something that we must go after? Is the text teaching us that justice is not handed to us on a silver platter? To be a rodef (a pursuer) one has to be aware of the world, one has to develop careful listening skills, one has to leave the idealized world and become part of the real world.

Interestingly enough this verse has become a center piece for Jewish generosity. Jews do not give charity, but rather tzedakah (a related word to tzedek). To give tzedakah is to work to make the world a better place, to be active in it, to pursue righteousness even in places where righteousness is in very limited supply. To be righteous is to be generous rather than simply being charitable; it is to help one's neighbor to live without the need for charity.

Is this entire parashah a lesson in life? The parashah deals with the good and evil of life. It tells us that life is not always fair, that there are good and bad people in this world, that our task is live in life, to pursue it, to understand that reality is composed of both good and bad, and that we have to learn to adjust to the bad, even as we celebrate the good. What do you think?

Shalom from the Hillel that was before there was Hillel

26 Av 5770

During the Summer Months, the weekly parashah appears at irregular times.

This week's parashah is called Re'eh (See!) and you can find it in the book of Deuteronomy 11:26 - 16:17. The parashah begins the third of Moses' great discourses. According to ancient Jewish tradition, Moses gave this soliloquy as the Children of Israel were about to enter the land of Israel.

Biblical scholars have called this speech Moses' "discourse of transition". It appears that Moses' primary goal was to prepare the children of Israel for their future by reiterating some of the central themes that have appeared throughout the Torah. In this speech we read about Moses' warning to the nation that it needs to live by the moral and ethical laws as found in the Torah. There is also a theological subtext that runs throughout the text: that there is a relationship between following G'd's commandments and being blessed. Throughout history many people have disagreed with this assumption and point to numerous examples that seem to emphasize a contrary position.

Perhaps a second reading may present us with an alternative way of reading the text. For example in chapter 15 verses 7-8 we read: "If there will among you a needy person from one of your brothers within any of your gates, in the land which G'd is giving you, you should not act obstinately, or close your hand to your needy brother. Rather, you should certainly open your hand to him, and lend to him on pledge sufficient for his need that he lacks."

At first the text almost seems to indicate the need to establish a welfare state. A closer examination of the text, however, forces us to ask if the text is referring to economic needs or perhaps to psychological needs. Is it possible that the text is teaching us that we need to be more sensitive to each other, that we dare not humble those we love or humiliate our fellow citizens? Is the text sensitive to the fact that we often overlook the needs of those we care about the most or love us the most?

If we read the text from this perspective then perhaps what Moses is teaching us is that a society that cares about its citizens' total being is a society that is blessed, and a society whose citizens live in a world of egocentricity and greed is bound to become a "society in conflict" and a society that is cursed. Might Moses have been teaching us that our collective future is not preordained but is contingent upon the choices and actions we take in our relationship to each other? What do you think?

Jewish Heritage Trip to Portugal, May 24 - June 1 2011

TAMU Hillel is organizing a Jewish Heritage Tour to Portugal in May of 2011. To learn about this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity please go to our TAMU Hillel Website at www.tamuhillel.org

On your left side (the page's right side) you will see travel. Click on travel and then scroll down until you see the Portuguese flag. Click on the flag!

L'Biddurchem/The Humor Section

Expert Advice

On a flight to Florida, Mary was preparing notes for one of the parent education seminars she conducted. The elderly Jewish woman named Rivka sitting next to Mary explained that she was returning to Miami after having spent two weeks in New York visiting her 6 children, 18 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

Then Rivka inquired what Mary did for a living. Mary told her that she was an educational psychologist, fully expecting Rivka to question her for free professional advice. Instead Rivka sat back and said, "OK. If there's anything you want to know, just ask me.