This past summer, Janet and I had the privilege of spending
a few weeks in Israel. It was a glorious experience. On one of the Friday
nights we walked to the Kotel, stood in the plaza and watched as the area
pulsated with the full spectrum of the Jewish people. Young and old, representative of every
religious stripe, and location were bringing in the Sabbath today. Janet and I stood together and sang the
Kabbalat Shabbat service and then went and offered our own personal prayers
standing before the Wall. The emotions
that were generated and the sense of gratitude that we both felt in that moment
touched us more deeply than words can adequately describe.
How different was my first visit to the Kotel in 1976. That summer I traveled to Israel to begin my Rabbinical
studies as part of a group of students.
When we landed in Israel the first place that we were taken was to the
Kotel. I remember standing in that very
holy place somewhat bleary eyed from the trip and feeling nothing. Getting back on the bus and hearing some of
the other students talk about the power of the experience made me feel even
worse.
There is a verse in this week’s Torah reading that speaks to
my experience at the Kotel 37 years ago.
The people are preparing to enter the land and Moses was preparing them
to go forward. At one point Moses was
reflecting on the miracles that accompanied the Israelites as they left Egypt
and added these words: Yet until this day, the Lord has not given
you a heart to know, eyes to see and ears to hear (Deut. 29:3). In other words, while
the people witnessed the signs and wonders that God performed in Egypt, they
could not fully appreciate what had happened to them. There are times when we can only fully grasp
an event after the fact. Time offers us
the perspective that is needed for our “hearts to know, our eyes to see and our
ears to hear”. Certainly that was the
case for me at the Kotel.
As we prepare for a New Year we are given the opportunity to
reflect on the happenings of the past year.
All of us would do well to take Moses’ words to heart and reflect on our
experiences since last Rosh Hashanah so that we might fully appreciate their meaning
for our lives. Often times we can only
gain that “heart to know” with time and experience. May we all have the wisdom to gain a deeper
appreciation of the past so that might gain a fuller appreciation of our
present and future.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Michael Siegel
