Author: Eve Posen

Laundry List – Parshat Balak 5776

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Laundry List

I can’t let things pile up. The first drafts of my High Holy Day sermons were done this spring. When I get home after a trip, I unpack immediately. I do laundry before the hamper is stuffed to overflowing. I don’t wait until the challah is finished baking before I start washing the measuring cups. If you know me, you know this is not to brag about any organizational skills. Rather, it’s about knowing myself well enough to know I don’t do well under pressure, and the fear of that stress keeps me checking things off the list before the list becomes unmanageable.

There’s a message in this week’s parshah about overwhelming tasks, but it usually takes a back seat to the more, shall we say, whimsical elements. This week we read a narrative filled with opportunities to do the right or wrong action and say the right or wrong words. Yes, you’re remembering correctly, this is the parshah with the talking donkey. Parshat Balak is the story of Balak, son of Tzipur and king of Moav, who solicits Balam the “prophet” to curse the children of Israel. God allows Balam to go to the land of Moav, but only if he will speak what God tells him to say.

On the way there, Balam finds himself frustrated with his donkey, which refuses to move. As it turns out, the donkey sees an angel of God in the road. The donkey can see the angel; Balam cannot. So Balam gets angry at his stubborn animal and beats the donkey. The donkey acts out, and ultimately rebuke is received.

As Balak is trying to get Balam to curse the nation, he says to him, “Come with me to another place from which you can see them – you will only see a portion of them; you will not see all of them.” One interpretation of this passage suggests that Balak knows how intimidating the entire Israelite nation would be, so he tries to help Balam see them piecemeal.

The Kotzker Rebbe, the great Polish Talmudic scholar, teaches that ordinary people combine to create extraordinary communities – sites of holiness and charity. The Jewish people, perhaps ordinary as individuals, are perceived by other religions and cultures to be extraordinary based on our commitment to each other, to doing good, and to healing our world. That perception is perpetuated today not because of our numbers (we are a minority by far), but because as a whole we are committed to the same ideals. May we continue to see ourselves as greater than the sum of our parts, and may that always lead us to strengthening our world by letting goodness and mercy shine from our hearts.

Heart and Soul – Parshat Chukat 5776

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Heart and Soul

As my dad wrote to me after I began my first year of rabbinical school:

You have to know that my love is unending whether I am physically present or in God’s hands.   You don’t have to be scared for me – this is our expression of faith. You don’t have to be scared for you – the material is easier or harder but you will find ways to reach your goals. Let us all learn to spend our time and our conversations expressing our love, respect, admiration and remember that we are indeed betzelem Elohim, created in God’s image. I will always be in your “inbox” and if the words are the same or similar it is because we always try to reduce all we know and feel into these funny bullets (hearts). The down side – it isn’t just a 45 minute ride to give you a hug.

This was an email in which my dad laid out what he hoped would be his legacy to me: a willingness to face fears and a determination to reach goals. He wanted me to know that who I am is largely because of where I came from and because I learned and grew in a house with values that shaped me.

Our parshah this week, parshat Chukat, is full of plot twists and new experiences for the Israelites. The lands of Sichon and Og are conquered, both Miriam and Aaron die, and we learn that Moshe will not be allowed to enter into the land of Israel. When Miriam dies, we are given one more water miracle on her behalf, with water flowing from the rock. We also learn that the reason Moshe and Aaron are not allowed to enter the land of Israel is because of the incident in which they struck the rock out of frustration instead of speaking to it as God had commanded. The text concludes with praise and thanks sung to God for the water of the well.

As Aaron dies, the text in chapter 20, verse 24 reads, “Let Aaron be gathered to his kin: he is not to enter the land that I have assigned the Israelite people, because he disobeyed my command about the waters of Meribah.” What does it mean that Aaron was “gathered to his kin”? Perhaps it’s suggesting that Aaron’s good qualities “enter” and be gathered into the souls of the living who knew him. Perhaps gathering to his people means being brought in so as they are forever a part of the lives of those who continue to love him and remember him after he is gone.

Like my father’s email to me, the Torah teaches us that the inherited qualities and shared love that came from those before us are always a piece of us. When we lose a loved one, we lose their physical presence, but not the unending guidance and love in our lives. Our job, like the Israelites with Aaron, is to carry on those lessons.

Give and Take – Parshat Korach 5776

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Give and Take

“Need a penny, take a penny. Have a penny, give a penny.” I’m sure you’ve seen the little sign at a grocery store. It’s anonymous charity. The idea is that there exists a pair of strangers at any given time, one who needs the extra penny and one who has the extra change to supply it. But the change dish is open and accessible to all. In other words, everyone is presented with the same three options: give a penny, take a penny, or simply walk away. Everyone is equal in relation to the penny dish; it’s possible that a wealthy person is short of exact change for a purchase and just as possible that a poor person happens to have an extra penny to leave behind. After all, it’s just a penny. It’s not the status of the person on the giving or receiving end that matters; rather, it’s the participation in this simple, yet effective system that keeps things balanced.

This is not unlike a lesson we learn in Judaism. Our religion suggests that there are moments in which we must take care of one another regardless of our standing in society. Regardless of what you have individually, Jews are required to take food to mourners and to comfort the grieving. Regardless of your monetary standing, we are urged to make regular donations, even for a few dollars at a time, to support our various institutions.

This week we read parshat Korach, the narrative detailing the revolt of Korach. Korach breaks apart the priesthood and prepares a revolt, while Datan and Aviram, two other troublemakers, begin a revolt of their own. Chaos breaks out in the camp, and those who don’t see a purpose to the fight pull away, which turns out to be solid decision making as the earth opens up and swallows Korach and his followers.

In chapter 18, verse 26 we read “When you receive from the Israelites their tithes, which I have assigned to you as your share, you shall set aside from them one-tenth of the tithe as a gift to the Lord.” Specifically, every Israelite was expected to give 10% of his income to the Levites because the Levites had no other form of income. They were only expected to work with and assist the priests. However, the Levites themselves, who were living on gifts from others, were also required to tithe a tenth of what they received to the priests.

The lesson is that even those who rely on public support for their livelihood must give part of what they receive as tzedakah. The act of giving is one that can nourish the soul of the giver as well as sustain the receiver. The Torah in our text this week reminds us that, like the blind nature of the sign by the pennies, we may not all be equal in fortune or position, but we are all equally obligated to each other.