Behar-Bechukotai 5775

Creating Blessings Amidst Life’s Difficulties

The final portion of Leviticus may well be the most difficult to read.  In Bekhukotai, we read a series of blessings following a long list of “Tochechot” curse-like punishments.  There is a tradition that when the “Tochechot” are read on Shabbat morning, the reader is instructed to read them as quickly as possible so as to not overwhelm the congregation. It is not simply the terrifying descriptions of “Tochechot” that make them so disturbing; there is also the fact that the blessing section is so much shorter in length. Why are the blessings outnumbered by almost three to one?

The great commentator Ibn Ezra suggested that while the blessings are in fewer sentences, they are actually more numerous as they, unlike the curses, are written in general categories. In this sense, they are far more encompassing.  This may be true and evident to someone who has the luxury of sitting and reflecting on passage but for one enduring the suffering of “Tochechot” it can be very difficult to focus on the blessing.   But that perspective can make all the difference at a challenging juncture in one’s life.  This is why I believe the Torah put the blessings before the “Tochechot”.  As hard as it is blessings should be our starting point.

Over the years I have sat in admiration watching people faced with great physical challenges choose to see the blessings amidst the “Tochechot” of illness.  One of those people is Shelby Lerner who has endured a number of surgeries in the past six years.  Yet, when speaking with Shelby what you will hear about are the blessings in his life beginning with his remarkable wife, Michal.  In addition, Shelby speaks glowingly about our community which has rallied around him and his family driving him to treatments, making play dates for the kids, visiting, and sending over meals.  For this family the kindness and caring of a community has made a significant difference, allowing them to see the larger blessings in the midst of the challenges.  

This Sunday, May 17, 2015 in Chicago’s Lincoln Park at Diversey Harbor, the 3rd Annual Join the Voices! Chicago Run/Walk, organized by Voices Against Brain Cancer ("VBAC") will be held. A 5K run/walk will begin at 9 AM.  A team entitled Shelby’s Shining Stars will be amongst the participants.  They are committed to VABC’s mission to find a cure for brain cancer and brain tumors by advancing scientific research, increasing awareness within the medical community and supporting patients, their families and caregivers afflicted with this devastating disease.  

We want to encourage the members of our community to participate.  You can contact the synagogue office for information about registering and where Shelby’s Shining Stars will be gathering. 

If you cannot be there, please consider making a donation in Shelby's honor and visit http://www.voicesinmotion.org and search under team name “Shelby’s Shining Stars”.

We have an opportunity to make a powerful lesson of the Torah come alive by helping to create the blessings that others can focus on amidst the vicissitudes of one’s life.  

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Michael Siegel

Achrei Mot-Kedoshim 5775

Shabbat Shalom. My name is Gabrielle Xilas and I am a senior at Walter Payton College Prep. I will be attending The University of Michigan in the fall. The last time I was here on this bimah delivering a D’var Torah on a Shabbat morning, it was for my Bat Mitzvah almost 5 years ago on June 12, 2010. On that morning I was one shacharit prayer away from fainting on the stage, so let’s hope this D’var goes a little smoother than that.  In this week’s portion, K’doshim, God gives the Jewish people a list of things they must do in order for them to be holy in His eyes. As some of you already know today’s Shabbat service is honoring all of Anshe Emet’s high school seniors going off to college next year. And so, this week’s Torah portion, K’doshim, acts as our “packing list” of what Jewish values and ideas we need to bring with us on our journeys next year and beyond.

To start off, we really are all who we are today thanks to our parents. Our success in life is due to their nurturing, lessons taught, and sometimes overbearing involvement in our lives. The very first thing on God’s list of what we must do to be holy, in Leviticus Chapter 19, verse 3 is: “Every person shall revere their mother and father.” The fact that this commandment opens the chapter is not at all arbitrary; respecting our parents is the most important thing we can do. For many of us, next year will be the longest time we will be apart from our parents. Regardless of the physical distance, their influence on us will remain. I am going to sound like my mother when I say this, but it is vital that we check in every so often to let them know that we are making good choices, and that we continue to make them proud. It’s the least we can do.   

In life, we have the choice whether to help others or not. Core to God’s list of how to be holy is the importance of consistently choosing to help others. Leviticus 19:14 says: “You shall not insult the deaf, or place a stumbling block before the blind.” It can be tempting to take advantage of other people’s weaknesses, and exploit them to make yourself better off. Not only is that a selfish thing to do to someone else, but hurting others also hurts yourself. In life there are two versions of success. There is success through cheating, manipulation, and disrespect, and there is the second version of success which is a whole lot sweeter where you get somewhere honestly and can take full credit for earning it the right way. All of the seniors sitting in this sanctuary are very familiar with this second version of success, as we all have achieved our goals of getting into amazing schools as a result of a lot of hard work and being committed to helping others through our involvement and commitment at Anshe Emet for all these years. It is really self- punishment to not allow yourself to feel that pure joy that comes with true success by taking advantage of others to succeed. Next year, those temptations are going to arise, but I am confident in all my peers, that we will rise above, and follow our strong Jewish values which teaches us otherwise.  

Speaking of manipulation and temptation, I had the opportunity this year to get my real first taste in politics, and fortunately my experience was not filled with either of these things. I, and my good friends Meredith Leon, Emma Siegel and Bryson Shelist, were lucky enough to travel to Washington DC with Rabbi Russo for the AIPAC Schusterman Advocacy Institute High School Summit. We got to sit down in the office of Congressman Danny Davis and discuss the importance of Iran not gaining nuclear power. I wish I could tell you that our chat resolved that very complicated and controversial issue, but as we all know, the talks and negotiations between Iran and the US continue.  However, as we walked through Davis’ office, I did take notice of all his Israel themed paraphernalia that he had displayed. While the district he represents isn’t very Jewish, he made a point to tell us that it was people like us who reinforced his love and support for Israel and all it stood for. He reminded me how honesty and respect is just as successful a way of achieving ones goals than manipulation and cheating.  Rather than putting stumbling blocks before those who are vulnerable, we can reach the “finish line” simply by speaking our truths, about Israel and our values for example, plainly and honestly.

I also sort of had an epiphany at that moment which was, whether we realize it or not, we are all representatives of the Jewish community, and how we act shapes how others consider that community. It is extremely important that we all keep that in mind as we venture off into our brand new college communities where Judaism may not be as accepted as it is in our current communities. Perhaps on our packing list of values, we need to include a sense of pride and awareness in how our behavior and our choices will reflect on the wider Jewish community.
   
When the sage Hillel was asked to summarize the Torah in one sentence he turned to this week’s Torah portion and said “What is distasteful to you, don’t do to another person.” “Love thy neighbor as thyself” is found in Leviticus 19:16. That value is also one of the first things you learn in Hebrew School at the Synagogue, or at The Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School. I was fortunate enough to attend BZAEDS for 10 years from junior kindergarten through 8th grade. And now that I am involved as a madricha in the Religious School, every Sunday I get to be reminded of all of the things I learned in my decade at BZAEDS. As a Madricha for first graders, I believe that by far the most important things they learn are the Jewish values that can be taken with them from the stories they hear in the Torah. Next year, we are all going to be living in very different much more diverse communities than we are a part of now. The number one rule we must follow is to be respectful of other people’s differences, and give them the same respect that we expect from them. In other words, “Love thy neighbor as thyself.”

Welcoming strangers into our community is something that makes the Jewish community so special. Leviticus 19:34 adds this value of welcoming the stranger to our packing list: “The stranger that journeys among you shall be unto you as the home-born, you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” My dad, Peter Xilas, isn’t Jewish. However, before I was born, he and my mom decided that their kids were going to be raised Jewish, and that is exactly what they have done. My dad has been welcomed into the Anshe Emet community with open arms, and had that not been the case, I would not be able to stand before you today as a young woman with all of the Jewish values that are now such a huge part of my identity.

Another time, I felt the power of being welcomed in my own life here at Anshe Emet was in the fall of last year when Aaron Fogelson came up to me in AP Biology class and told me that I “absolutely had to go to USY Lounge Night on Tuesday.” I was a little nervous to go because I thought I was a bit too late to the party, and that people would be unwelcoming. The second I walked in I realized that that would not be the case, and that SHMUSY was a group I was meant to be a part of. Coming to SHMUSY gave me a time to reconnect with my Jewish peers and at the same time allowed me to stay connected to the larger Jewish community. Since I know how good it feels to be welcomed I have no doubt that I will continue my involvement in these types of groups and organizations in the years to come. “Welcoming the stranger” is a value I hope we all take with us on our journey.
   
In K’doshim, God says that if someone is going down the wrong path and making incorrect choices, it is our job to show them the right way and get them back on the right track. Literally the parshah says, in 19:17 “You shall rebuke your neighbor.” Many, anti Israel movements, amongst them BDS campaigns, are gaining popularity on more and more college campuses every day. . It is our responsibility as Jewish students on campus to stand up for our beliefs, and defend the honor of the state of Israel by teaching the truth.  Sometimes, we will have to rebuke our neighbors. However, it is emphasized in the Torah that this must be done in a respectful manner that doesn’t belittle the person or bring them embarrassment. Rather, God tells the Jewish people, we must do so in a manner that reflects positively on the State, on the Jewish people, and on our own dignity and integrity.

It is truly my honor to accept the Rabbi Seymour Cohen Award for Youth Leadership on behalf of this senior class, and I am so beyond thankful to have had my experiences at BZAEDS, teaching at the religious school, reading Torah at Rosh Hashana services for the past 4 years, being a part of SHMUSY, going to an AIPAC convention, and being raised in a loving Jewish household.

For all of those amazing reasons I would like to thank my parents, the Anshe Emet clergy, my teachers at BZAEDS, and all of my friends who I have gotten to share these experiences and memories with.

At our Bar and Bat Mitzvahs we “officially” became adults within the Jewish community, however now we are adults in the real sense of the word because we are about to go off on our own for the journey of our lives.

I am speaking for all of the Seniors, when I say that the lessons we have been taught through our Jewish education and experiences, the same ones spelled out for us in K’doshim (honoring our parents, not placing stumbling blocks, loving our neighbors as ourselves, welcoming the stranger, and speaking Truth to those who are straying from the right path), have prepared us to move out into other communities and to be the best versions of ourselves and represent the Jewish community the best way we know how.

Shabbat Shalom,
Gabrielle Xilas

Emor 5775

In this week’s parasha, Emor, we read a verse that is critical in both ancient and modern Jewish discourse (Lev. 22: 32):

וְלֹא תְחַלְּלוּ, אֶת-שֵׁם קָדְשִׁי, וְנִקְדַּשְׁתִּי, בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל  אֲנִי יְהוָה, מְקַדִּשְׁכֶם

“Do not profane My holy name, that I may be sanctified in the midst of the Israelites, I the Lord who sanctify you.”

Beginning in the late Second Temple period, Israel battled the Seleucid Greeks and Antiochus IV, and later the Roman Empire, both of whom sought to outlaw Jewish practice.  Rabbi Jonathan Sacks identifies that this is the first time that martyrdom became a significant feature in Jewish life. The question arose: under what circumstances were Jews to sacrifice their lives rather than transgress Jewish law?

While Jewish tradition affirms that saving a life takes precedence over most of the mitzvot, and that the preservation of life supercedes almost anything, Judaism simultaneously holds sacred the lives of Jews who have been murdered by virtue of the fact that they are simply Jewish. We remember all of our brothers and sisters who have given their lives under this overarching category of Kiddush hashem, of sanctifying God’s name, as found in this week’s Torah portion.

Rabbi Sacks explains that central to Jewish self-definition is the notion that while God is the God of all humanity, that God has chosen Israel to be God’s witnesses, God’s ambassadors, to the world. When we fulfill this role, we are sanctifying God’s name.

We at Anshe Emet are honored to host the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, as we fulfill this command of sanctifying God’s name as being witnesses to one of the greatest tragedies in world history. Next week, you can join us for a riveting presentation by Dr. Wendy Lower entitled Some were Wives, Some were Mothers. Dr. Lower, a former Museum fellow, will speak about the research from her chilling book on the role of female perpetrators during the Holocaust.

I hope that you will join Michelle and Glenn Holland, our co-hosts, as we fulfill this week’s parasha’s affirmation to stand as God’s witnesses in our world.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi David Russo

Emor 5775

A New Pair of Spectacles for the Guide for the Perplexed

The expressive nature of the Hebrew language is revealed in its sound, its cadence and in the remarkable connection between words.  Because Hebrew words are constructed from three (3) letter roots there is an interconnectedness between a vast array of words.  Consider the word for eyeglasses: "Mishkafayim".  The same root word is used to form "Hashkafat Olam": world view.  The internal lesson is that our "Hashkafat Olam", world view, is a form of spectacles through which we view the world.

I was reminded of this notion of spectacles and worldview while reading the opening verses of our Torah reading this week.  In Parshat Emor the Torah offers us an in depth look at the reality of the Priesthood.  Who can offer a sacrifice, who amongst the Priesthood can participate in the holy rites of the Mishkan and who may not.  The list of those forbidden  to partake and the causes are disturbing to the modern ear.  Physical challenges render Kohanim unfit for duty in the most important rituals.  While we can attempt explanations the fact is that the entire system of sacrifices, of ritual purity and impurity appear so foreign for the vast majority of the Jewish community, as well as a God who demands such worship appear difficult and foreign to a significant number of Jews in the world today.

What are the proper "Mishkapfayim" to view such passages in order to gain a perspective that speaks in a meaningful way to those who live in a different world than that of the Torah.  One person who understood this dilemma was Rambam.  Amongst Moses Maimonides' writings was an extraordinary book entitled “The Guide for the Perplexed” in which he offers a bold, rational and thoughtful approach to an array of some of the greatest Jewish philosophic and theological issues of his day.  The problem is that the "Moreh Nevuchim" proves too difficult for most readers to penetrate.  It does not help that at times Maimonides writes in code to his reader.  One would do well to have a pair of Jewish "Mishkafayim" in order to gain some understanding of The Guide for the Perplexed!

Recently, Micah Goodman published a book to address this exact issue entitled: “Maimonides and the Book that Changed Judaism: Secrets of the Guide for the Perplexed”.  As a precocious young boy Micah Goodman began reading the guide and set about mastering its contents.  He fully appreciated its importance and relevance for Jews living today and so he wrote a book for the modern Jew.  The book became an immediate best seller in Israel with secular and religious Jews alike.  The book has now been translated into English and it is a remarkable accomplishment.  

I am so pleased that Micah Goodman will be our scholar in residence this Shabbat.  Please join us on Friday night at 8:00 pm when he speaks about his book, or on Shabbat morning when his topic will be "The Judaism of the New Israel".  At 1:30 pm I will be joined by Rabbi Shoshana Conover and Rabbi David Wolkenfeld as we respond to his thinking on Jewish leadership.  During my studies at the Shalom Hartman Institute I have had the privilege of studying with Micah and can tell you with a true sense of surety that he has offered me a new "Haskafah", perspective,  on whatever he has taught.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Michael Siegel