A thought on פרשת נח

"...tzadik tamim haya b'dorosav...""...a purely righteous man in his generations..." (6:9)

There are some well known interpretations of the term here "in his generations." We know that Noach was regarded as a great and righteous man and the ambiguous form of the word "b'dorosav" can imply different nuances.

The Ralbag interprets the word quite literally: Noach's life spanned many generations! He lived during the antedeluvian period, survived the deluge, witnessed the scattering of civilization and in that sense, he was a man who lived during a number of historical eras. The Torah asserts that his righteousness was apparent during each one of those generations. He was a tzadik in all of his generations.

The Ralbag's commentary analyzes and defines words, and it also examines the episodes and events in each parsha. One area of focus he takes is in deriving concepts as well as lessons to improve our understanding and our conduct as we struggle at our own level with the challenges which faced our ancestors and patriarchs.

What are we to derive, queries the Ralbag, from the incident after the flood, when Noach became intoxicated and defiled? What happened to the notion of him being a pure and righteous man? How could he fall so low and end up in such a vile and tragic predicament?

The lesson the Ralbag sees here is that even when a person is great enough to save, literally, an entire planet, his righteousness may not suffice to protect and save him from his own devices. The effect of wine on him led to deep personal shame, and had a lasting impact on some of his descendants. His righteousness did not suffice to inhibit the effects of intoxication.

How are we to understand this? Of course, one sobering message here speaks to the risks of addictive substances. The Ralbag takes us further. It is accurate to say that Noach was a righteous man, and that he had influence on people who lived during his long lifetime. The key is that he was a "role model" for others. As for himself, he had no role model! He outlived his peers and was truly alone among the righteous during much of his life. The Ralbag observes that it is very difficult for one to step outside of himself and become self-aware, self-monitoring, if there is no one in his life from whom to obtain guidance and musar. Noach had no one to look up to, no one to learn from. He could influence others but did not succeed in influencing himself. (He became "under the influence!")

Each of us has an obligation to set a healthy example for others. That is the Torah way. Yet, each of us also has an obligation to abide with consistency by our own healthy values, and for that, one must find a wholesome peer group, a caring mentor, and an attitude of integrity so as to seek and accept emes. I am responsible for others. I am responsible for myself.

Good Shabbos. D Fox

A thought on פרשת בראשית

This year, I have selected the Torah commentary of Rabbeinu Levi ben Gershon, known as the RalBag. In secular sources he is often referred to as Gersonides which is a way of saying "son of Gershon" (just as the RamBam is called Maimonides, son of Maimon, and the RamBan is callled Nachmanides, son of Nachman.) One problem with this is that some traditional sources cite his father's name as Gershom, which would make his secular title Gershomides. Be that as it may, let's talk about the man himself.

The Ralbag lived in France in the end of the thirteenth century, and died there in 1344. This places him in the same time frame as the Recanati, whose writings we studied last year. He was a contemporary of Rabbeinu Bachya as well. In the secular world, he was known for his expertise in astronomy, and even today, at least two of his inventions are in use and a crater on the moon is named after him. His work on Chumash focuses on a careful analysis of the words used in the Torah, as well as on detecting the themes and lessons implicit within the events described in each passage.

Let us begin this year's study of the Ralbag, and may HaShem guide me in my efforts to put forth some of his words each week, with clarity and understanding.
* * * * *
"...la'chen kol horeg Kai'in shivasaim yukam...""...therefore anyone who kills Kai'in, punished seven times as much..." (4:15)

Kai'in killed his brother. This was a very new world and there was a single family on Earth, and Kai'in killed his only brother. HaShem engages him in a dialogue and seems to negotiate with him as to the consequence of his misdeed. When He sentences him to a life of wandering, Kai'in worries that whoever finds him will murder him. The Divine response, as translated above, appears puzzling. HaShem responds to Kai'in's worries with what sounds like a vague and dangling threat. The response does not address Kai'in's fear but rather implies that "if anyone kills you, he will get punished." This hardly seems like a fitting response to his worries. How would it console Kai'in to know that in the event that he in fact gets killed that his murderer will get some type of punishment?

The Ralbag puzzles over this, as do a number of the other rishonim. The wording of the verse needs careful analysis. This is the approach of the Ralbag: Kai'in was scared that HaShem's sentencing him to a life of wandering would endanger him. He feared that he would be vulnerable to a murderous attack.

HaShem's response was not one of reconsidering the sentence nor a hollow "reassurance" that in the event of his death that He would avenge his murder. Rather, HaShem "reality tested" by confronting Kai'in with some irony --- "kol horeg Kai'in" means, "the only murderer on earth is Kai'in himself." HaShem observed to him that "there is no one else alive who has ever committed a murder but you. I have sentenced you to permanent exile and in due time, after seven generations have passed, you and your descendants will cease to exist. But meanwhile, you have nothing to fear in the immediate future from other people because, simply said, no one else goes around killing other human beings."

So many times, in our own struggles with people and with rough situations, we are quick to point the finger and contend that we are afraid about what others might think or say or do in reference to us. Much of the time, it is our own insecurity or our own personal conflicts which prompt us to project what someone else might do, when the deeper reality is that the things we claim to fear most about others are in reality the matters which we wrestle with ourselves.

This was the rebuke given by HaShem to Kai'in. He was anxious and preoccupied about someone else's misdeeds when in fact, it was his own shameful secret which he was attributing to others. When we search for whom to blame, the search must start within, and often, the search ends within as well.

Good Shabbos. D Fox

A thought on פרשת וזאת הברכה

This is the final parsha of the year and, sadly, I have come to the close of this past year's study of Rabbeinu Menachem Recanati's commentary. Of the many great rishonim whose works I have studied in looking deeper into the Torah, the Recanati was much more demanding. It was a difficult task, as his writing is deep and his thinking intricate. At times I would pace back and forth as I do when struggling with a complex gemara, laboring to understand his words. I hope that I have not strayed far off course in my efforts to present some of his ideas in these weekly parsha thoughts. I will miss him. He has changed my life. I say goodbye to the Recanati with sadness.

It is also sad that the Recanati did not live to complete his commentary on Chumash. In fact, his writings end with last week's Torah portion. He did not write on this week's parsha, which adds to my sadness.

However, some months ago the Recanati did write about some elements of our final parsha, in discussing the passing of Moshe Rabbeinu. Let us look at how he develops his ideas.

"...ki chelek HaShem amo...""...His nation remained His portion..." (32:9)

In the poetic song of which this verse is a part, Moshe proclaims to us that our nation is HaShem's portion, whatever that means. The rishonim debate the translation and meaning of those words. The Recanati has an original thought: HaShem "is" Rachamim, compassion, as we have mentioned so often this past year. We are identified with Him, for He calls us His children. We cling to Him by imitating His attributes, as we have also said in the last year. As such, the words "ki chelek HaShem amo" mean that we, the Jewish nation, actually are a chelek, a virtual "part" of HaShem in that we aim to embody and personify and enact compassion and kindness as a total life mission and soul purpose. The Recanati translates the words as "for we, His nation, are a part of Him."

This is why, says the Recanati, we are accepting of death. We trust that when events befall our nation, our selves, which trouble and hurt us, that there is a deeper reality, a rachamim,
which is operating in our relationship with HaShem. This is why mourning practices are not extreme and dramatic and grotesque as they are among some cultures. We trust in the Higher Compassion, and this is why Jews temper their mourning ritual, as opposed to showing unbridled alarm and horror the way one might do were he to feel that he was confronted with abject din.

But with this premise, asks the Recanati, why do Jews have any mourning? If our ideal is to envision all things as a sign of Divine compassion, why not transcend all grief and sorrow when difficult times arise? He answers that it is not good for us to ignore and obscure the fact that there is a middas din emanating from Above. As we have learned in parshios past, despite the exclusive purity of HaShem's Rachamim, there are times when mortal events below foster a response from Above which is intended as a din experience. Hence, difficult times must be acknowledged as difficulties. There is still din in the world, alas.

The Jew's overriding attitude, though, is that we accept that Rachaimim is paramount, and we strive to perceive the rachamim amidst the apparent din. We walk a straight and level path, mindful that there are two sides to every circumstance, rachamim v'din, and we cling with tenacity to our trust that Compassion will always prevail. This is how we manifest the words which say, we are a part of HaShem.

May the times ahead allow us to see the rachamim. May the merit of our studying the holy writings of the Recanati continue to enrich us in vivid and apparent ways.

As we prepare to begin a new cycle of Torah study, to whom will I turn in my parsha thoughts? We have learned from the writings of

Rabbeinu Sa'adia Gaon
RaDaK
Ibn Ezra (short version)
Ibn Ezra (long version)
Rashbam
Rabbeinu Efraim
Rabbeinu Yona
Rabbeinu Avraham ben RamBam
Seforno
Chezkuni
Rabbeinu Bachya
Recanati

Stay tuned for Parshas Bereishis coming your way soon b'e'H.

Good Shabbos and good yom tov. D Fox

A thought on פרשת האזינו

"...Tzur yolad'ta teshi...v'tishkach El mechollelecha...
"...you ignored the One who brought you to life...forgot the Lord who formed you"
...astira Ponai me'hem...banim lo emun bam..."
"... I will conceal my Presence from them... children lacking a Guide..." (32:18,20)

The Song of Ha'azinu depicts the events which will befall our nation in exile after exile. HaShem forecasts for us our straying, our defiance and the reciprocal dimming of our sense of His Presence.

The Recanati explains how symbiotic and reciprocal interactions below and Above develop, based on these verses. The first words tell us that in the same way that our devotion to HaShem can impart a "strengthening of His majesty" as it says, "v'atoh yigdal na koach HaShem" - and now let us strengthen HaShem's might - (BaMidbar 14:17), so too can our ignoring Him lead to a lack of that sense of His might. The word teshi here, opines the Recanati, comes from the expression tosh koach, weakening the strength. In turn, our verses later word, v'tishkach, rather than meaning "you forgot", really hints at v'tosh koach - you weakened the sense that HaShem was the One who formed you.

When our ignoring HaShem leads to that diminution of our sense of His Presence, this is not a local phenomenon. The entire world loses touch with Him. We and the nations of the world obscure mention of Him, and forget Him. This is what the second verse says: Once HaShem's Presence is overlooked by us, when we no longer believe that He is our Guide and Source (when we have become banim lo emun bam, where the word emun means the One Who Guides and Cares for us), then astira Ponai me'hem, the Divine Presence in fact "hides" from us.

This is the reciprocal effect of a Jew's losing touch with spiritual values. As that sense weakens, its value begins to fade in him, in others and across the globe. Then we begin complaining that HaShem is "nowhere to be found" which is, experientially, somewhat true since He is not in our personal midst or part of our consciousness. That is when we start to function without drawing on His Torah as our internal guide. This, in turn, further distances us from that sense of the Above.

So, the Recanati explains, the verses should be read as, "you weaken the sense of HaShem being near when you weaken your commitment to Him. He seems hidden at those times, which correlate with the times that you stop adhering to His ways."

Perhaps this coming Shabbos, fueled by our uplifting surge of consciousness of HaShem as a product of Yom Kippur, we can reverse that process. Perhaps we can empower our selves to "empower" HaShem's might and majesty among us and throughout the world.

Good Shabbos. D Fox

A thought on פרשת וילך

"...kra es Yehoshua...va'atzavenu...""...call in Yehoshua...and I will instruct him..." (31:14)

In the above verse, HaShem has told Moshe to call Yehoshua to accompany him into the Tent, so that HaShem can command and instruct Yehoshua about his emerging role as Moshe prepares to die. We know that Yehoshua took leadership of our nation, crossed the Jordan into the Promised Land, and ruled us and fought our battles in the conquest of Israel.

However, something is missing. If we follow the verses here and throughout the remaining passages of the Torah, there is no trace of HaShem speaking to Yehoshua, instructing him, addressing or commanding him about anything at all! What is the intention of our verse, then, which might have said more directly "Moshe, I will instruct you about what to teach Yehoshua."? We do not have any direct contact or communication between HaShem and Yehoshua!

The Recanati address this with a Zoharic framework. There is a discussion in the Talmud about select verses in the Torah which can be read in ways which give very different meaning. One of them appears two verses later with the words, "hincha shochev im avosecha v'kam." In that the Torah contains no punctuation marks, this can be understood as, "Moshe, you will soon die and there will arise..." or "Moshe, you will soon die and arise."

Now, without exploring the nuances of that second understanding, let's understand it through the eyes of the Recanati. Moshe Rabbeinu has been compared to the sun. Yehoshua has been compared to the moon. We know that the moon gets its light from the sun. All of the Torah and knowledge which Yehoshua acquired was that which he absorbed from his great Teacher, Moshe. He reflected only that which had been given him, which was the great light of Moshe's wisdom.

The sun sets, and the moon continues to shine. That light which we spy in the dark heavens is not emanating from within a fiery moon, but is rather the glow of the sun which continues to shine long after the sun has been obscured from our sight in the nighttime sky.

This is also the relationship between Moshe and Yehoshua. The reason that the Torah leaves an opening to understand the second verse as "Moshe will die and arise" is because Moshe "arose" in the form of continuing to influence his disciple through his Torah teachings, even after his death. Moshe constantly "lived" in that it is Toras Moshe which led Yehoshua.

This is captured by HaShem in our verse as well. Whatever instructing that Yehoshua needed would come to him through Moshe. Whatever Moshe would instruct his disciple would come to Moshe through HaShem. Hence, Moshe was told to call Yehoshua over and teach him about this next stage in his life, that of taking the role of leader. Whatever Moshe taught Yehoshua was tantamount to being instructed by HaShem. In our verse, HaShem frames Moshe's imparting direction to his disciple as "I will be instructing him."

What would it be like for us if the teachings of our great masters and guides would radiate from us? If others would see and listen to us, observe our conduct, and say to themselves, "he (or she) reminds me so much of the great Rav (or Rebbetzin) _____________"?

Gmar chasima tova and good Shabbos. D Fox