THIS WEEK'S TORAH READING
VA'ETCHANAN
: Deuteronomy 3:23 - 7:11
The first
Shabbat
following
Tisha B'Av
is called
Shabbat nachamu
, the
Shabbat
of comfort. It takes its name from the first words of the
haftarah
, "
nachamu, nachamu ami
, Comfort oh comfort my people, says your God." (Isaiah 40:1). For the next even weeks, leading up to
Rosh Hashanah
, the words of Isaiah provide the readings for the seven
haftarot
of comfort, following the mourning of
Tisha B'Av
.
Parashat Va'etchanan
continues the farewell discourse Moses began last week. Moses appeals to the people to observe God's laws, especially the rejection of idolatry and the belief in monotheism. In this context, the Ten Commandments are repeated, albeit with some minor changes in some of the wording. Following the Ten Commandments, the most famous words of Jewish history are spoken: "Hear o Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone." (Deut 6:4).
One might call this week's
parasha
"Judaism's greatest hits". Although the Ten Commandments were previously given in Exodus, they are repeated here along with the most well known verse for Jews in the Torah (even the most assimilated Jew knows
Sh'ma Yisrael Adonai Eloheynu Adonai echad
; Deut. 6:4), followed by a very powerful paragraph on loving God (often refereed to as "the
v'ahavta
"; Deut. 6:5-9). These verse show the world what it truly means to be a Jew, signifying the best of what we stand for as a people. It is with pride that we teach and recite them.
In contrast to the
parasha
, these past two days have shown us a side of Israel, and by extension the Jewish people, that does not represent the best of what we stand for as a people and religion. I am referring of course to the decision of the Israeli government to bar two (anti-Israel) members of Congress from entering the State of Israel. As I said to many of my colleagues, there is no doubt that Israel had the right to do this, but was it a wise choice? I am pleased that the two organizations that I am most closely associated with in terms of religion and Zionism, the Rabbinical Assembly and AIPAC, each separately came out with statements in opposition to this decision. AIPAC said, “We disagree with Reps. Omar and Tlaib’s support for the anti-Israel and anti-peace BDS movement, along with Rep. Tlaib’s calls for a one-state solution. We also believe every member of Congress should be able to visit and experience our democratic ally Israel firsthand.” Th Rabbinical Assembly's statement was similar.
As many of you know, I rarely make political statements in this forum or from the
bima
, because I want to teach about Judaism and a love for Israel
and the Jewish people. Yet I feel compelled to say something this week because unfortunately instead of showing our best side, the government of Israel has gone in the other direction. My teacher and friend Yossi Klein Ha-Levi spoke this week to the 70 or so members of Congress who were visiting Israel, both Democrats and Republicans. He felt this was a great moment for the Israel-American relationship. But his euphoria wore off when he heard of the decision to bar the two members of congress. He writes, "No prime minister has done greater damage to bi-partisan support for Israel, a precondition for a thriving American-Israeli relationship. In barring a minor politician from entering Israel, Netanyahu did not weaken our enemies; he humiliated our friends. Next time, how many freshman Democrats will risk the political fallout of coming to Israel?"
Let us hope we can repair the damage done, and once again share with the world the best of who we are, that which makes us both a meaningful religion and a people worth emulating.
Shabbat Shalom
,
Rabbi Steven Kane
