Parshat Eikev - A Manna Mentality

“Every commandment that I command you this day you shall keep to do so that you may live... (Devarim 8:1)”

Moshe in the opening words of Chapter 8 of our Parsha admonishes Klal Yisrael to observe and to guard the mitzvot in order that they may live and that they may prosper in the Land of Israel. The challenges that await Klal Yisrael are great as they stand at the threshold of territorial acquisition and eventual sovereignty. To lead a life that is guided by moral rectitude within the solitude of the desert is one matter but to do so within the hustle and bustle of cities, towns and marketplaces is an entirely different matter altogether. Hence, as Moshe is in the midst of delivering his final sermon to the Jewish people, as they stand at the threshold of entering the Land of Israel, he is especially concerned with the continuity of religious purpose and moral vision.

This is something that I think many of us are concerned with lately as well. With images of political corruption, money laundering and Ponzi schemes etched into our minds from the front covers of so many newspapers over the past year there seems to be a severe breakdown in the moral character of our society.
 
What did Moshe choose to emphasize when cautioning Am Yisrael? “He afflicted you and let you hunger, then He fed you the manna that you did not know, nor did your forefathers know, in order to make you know that not by bread alone does man live, rather by everything that emanates from the mouth of God does man live (8:3).” Moshe decides to conjure up the memory of the manna as an illustration to why the Jewish people on the verge of becoming free, with all of its trappings and temptations, should continue to observe the precepts of the Torah.
 
The manna, as Nahmanides explains, vividly teaches the dependence of humanity on God and that all of human life is woven within the plans of God. In other words, the manna educates us about the humility of life. It puts all of our grand plans, our desires and our wants within the infinitely larger framework of God.
 
When one is reminded that even the most basic commodities like bread to eat and water to drink is dependent on God, it makes the lure of an unethical behavior just that bit less attractive. I think society at large, and the Jewish people in particular, could benefit from a little more of a manna mentality. The cautioning of Moshe to Klal Yisrael as they stood in that wilderness all those years ago remains as relevant today as it did then.
 
Therefore, it is my prayer that the next time we open up the Boston Globe or the New York Times and we read articles of communal leaders, both in general society and in the Jewish community, it is a depiction of just and upright work and not the reverse. 

Statement of Principles on the Place of Jews with a Homosexual Orientation in Our Community

We, the undersigned Orthodox rabbis, rashei yeshiva, ramim, Jewish educators and communal leaders affirm the following principles with regard to the place of Jews with a homosexual orientation in our community:

1. All human beings are created in the image of God and deserve to be treated with dignity and respect (kevod haberiyot). Every Jew is obligated to fulfill the entire range of mitzvot between person and person in relation to persons who are homosexual or have feelings of same sex attraction. Embarrassing, harassing or demeaning someone with a homosexual orientation or same-sex attraction is a violation of Torah prohibitions that embody the deepest values of Judaism.

2. The question of whether sexual orientation is primarily genetic, or rather environmentally generated, is irrelevant to our obligation to treat human beings with same-sex attractions and orientations with dignity and respect. 

[Full article can be found here.]

Signed by the following as of July 22, 2010:
Rabbi Yosef Adler
Rabbi Elisha Anscelovits
Rabbi Hayyim Angel
Rabbi Marc Angel
Rabbi Maurice Appelbaum
Mrs. Nechama Goldman Barash
Rabbi Avi Baumol
Rabbi Dr. Shalom Berger
Rabbi Dr. Joshua Berman
Rabbi Todd Berman
Dr. David Bernstein
Rabbi David Bigman
Rabbi Yitzchak Blau
Dr. Erica Brown
Rabbi Yuval Cherlow
Rabbi Mark Dratch
Rabbi Ira Ebbin
Rabbi Rafi Eis
Mrs. Atara Eis
Rabbi Yitzhak Etshalom
Rabbi Dr. Shaul (Seth) Farber
Ms. Rachel Feingold
Rabbi Jeffrey Fox
Rabbi Aaron Frank
Rabbi Aharon Frazier
Rabbi Avidan Freedman
Rabbi Shmuel Goldin
Rabbi Mark Gottlieb
Rabbi Barry Gelman
Rabbi Benjamin Greenberg
Rabbi Zvi Grumet
Rabbi Alan Haber
Dr. Aviad Hacohen
Rabbi Tully Harcsztark
Rabbi Nathaniel Helfgot
Dr. Daniel Kahn
Rabbi Yosef Kanefsky
Rabbi Jay Kellman
Rabbi Aryeh Klapper
Mrs. Judy Klitsner
Rabbi Shmuel Klitsner
Rabbi Jeff Kobrin
Dr. Aaron Koller
Rabbi Barry Kornblau
Dr. Meesh Hammer Kossoy
Rabbi Binny Krauss
Mrs. Esther Krauss
Rabbi Dr. Benny Lau
Rabbi Zvi Leshem
Rabbi Dr. Martin Lockshin
Rabbi Dr. Haskel Lookstein
Rabbi Asher Lopatin
Rabbi Chaim Marder
Rabbi Dr. Adam Mintz
Rabbi Jonathan Morgenstern
Rabbi Dr. Yaacov Nagen (Genack)
Mrs. C.B. Neugroschl
Dr. Caroline Pyser
Rabbi Daniel Reifman
Rabbi Avi Robinson
Rabbi Jeremy Savitsky
Rabbi Noam Shapiro
Rabbi Yehuda Seif
Rabbi Adam Schier
Ms. Lisa Schlaff
Rabbi Yehuda Septimus
Rabbi Adam Starr
Rabbi Chaim Strauchler
Rabbi Yehuda Sussman
Rabbi Mordechai Torczyner
Mrs. Dara Unterberg
Rabbi Michael Unterberg
Rabbi Dr. Avie Walfish
Dr. Dina Weiner
Ms. Sara Weinerman
Rabbi David Wolkenfeld
Rabbi Elie Weinstock
Rabbi Alan Yuter
Dr. Yael Ziegler
Rabbi Dr. Stuart Zweiter

Tisha b'Av and Personal Loss

The Talmud (Gittin 58a) relates the following story:

Rav Yehudah said in the name of Rav: It is related that the son and the daughter of R. Yishmael b. Elisha were carried off [and sold to] two masters. Some time after the two met together, and one said, I have a slave the most beautiful in the world. The other said, I have a female slave the most beautiful in the world. They said: Let us marry them to one another and share the children. They put them in the same room. The boy sat in one corner and the girl in another. He said: I am a priest descended from high priests, and shall I marry a bondwoman? She said: I am the daughter of a priest descended from high priests, and shall I be married to a slave? So they passed all the night in tears. When the day dawned they recognized one another and fell on one another's necks and bemoaned themselves with tears until their souls departed. For them Jeremiah utters lamentation, For these I am weeping, my eye, my eye pours forth water.

This tragic story is transformed into one of the most evocative of the kinnot, the liturgical poems, recited during Tisha b'Av. The kinnot written by a variety of authors throughout the history of Jewish exile relate the diverse ways the Jewish people have suffered in the last two millennia. They weave through the destruction of both Temples, the exile by Babylon, the exile by Rome, the havoc and destruction caused by the Crusades, the persecution of our religious leaders and guides and eventually the utter obliteration of European Jewry that was the Holocaust.

It is within this spectrum of death and destruction, of tears that know no end, that we relate the loss of two individuals. These individuals, the children of Rabbi Yishmael the Kohen Gadol, were not particularly remarkable or notable. They were two people amongst throngs of suffering, humiliated, ridiculed exiles. Yet, the Talmud and later the composer of the kinna, chose to highlight their particular form of humiliation and eventual death. In so doing the mourning transitions from events of national calamity, of places and great personalities, and moves to the individual and the personal. On Tisha b'Av we sit on the floor and cry. We cry for the loss of our spiritual and national centers of life. We cry for the loss of our teachers and role models. We also cry for the loss of every individual, every person who was made to suffer throughout the two thousand years of Jewish wandering and exile.

This Tisha b'Av afternoon, during Minha, I will recite the mourners kaddish as I do every year. I have spent some time over the years researching my family history and piecing together the history of my family through Europe. I think of my family in Austria, the Ukraine and Lithuania amongst other places that perished in the Holocaust. I think of my cousins who did not persevere through the torment of Stalin's Russia. I think of my family who suffered untold horrors during the Kishinev Pogrom of 1903. I also think of all the family members of whom I will never know their name who suffered degradation, torture and persecution and with all those memories I stand and recite kaddish in the merit of their neshamot.

Each individual is precious and priceless. Each individual is made in the image of God. On Tisha b'Av we reflect on both the loss of our communities; our autonomy, our religious centers and leadership and on the loss of every person - from the son and daughter of Rabbi Yishmael to the members of our own extended family.

May we who mourn for Jerusalem and all of her offspring merit to see her complete rebuilding with compassion.  

Parshat Devarim - The Destructive Power of Hatred

"These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel..." (Devarim 1:1)

This week we cross the threshold from the Book of Bamidbar to the Book of Devarim, the last book of the Torah. Devarim is unique in the constellation of the five books in that it is less a vehicle for introducing new legislation or a record of what is happening as it is the last great speech of Moshe to the people. Not much longer from the opening words of the book of Devarim will Moshe take his last breath and leave the world of the finite and entire the world of truth. 


In his last days on earth, Moshe offers advice and counsel to the Bnei Yisrael as they are poised to enter the Land of Israel and take hold of their destinies. As someone who knew his people extraordinarily well and had an intimate understanding of their nature, he feels confident in rebuking them for their past failures and reminding them of where they fell short so as not to repeat those errors of judgment again. 

The Sifrei, a classic compilation of Biblical exegesis, narrows in on the addition of the words "all of Israel" in the first verse and explains that these words are crucial to Moshe's objective at that moment. Moshe made sure that all of Israel was present for his offering of rebuke for if even one person was not they could claim naive innocence if they fell into their old habits. Improvement hinged on all of the people being present to hear and integrate Moshe's last teaching. In other words, ultimately the collective success or failure of the group depended on everyone being held accountable; everyone responsible for themselves and each other. 

As we enter this Shabbat let us appreciate the moment in our year that we are fast approaching. This coming Monday night we commence an intensive 25-hour mourning period for all the national calamities that befell our people during the last two millennia. on Tisha B'Av we reflect on the disasters that have struck the Jewish people, internalize the memory of collective pain and draw ourselves closer to the often tragic but also tremendous past of our people. 

However, Tisha B'Av is not just a moment to think about the past but it is also a time to reflect on the present and where we are going as a people. In the past few weeks there has been a lot of difficult and complex testing moments for the integrity and unity of the Jewish people. To name but a few: the disagreement transpiring in Syracuse, New York between a small Orthodox congregation and the National Council of Young Israel; the bill in front of the Knesset that would change the landscape of conversion throughout the world; the arrest of a woman carrying a Sefer Torah through the path adjacent to the Kotel and the protests and arrests as the Israeli Supreme Court weighed in on allegations of racism in a Beis Yaakov school in the city of Emmanuel. 

All of these events try our ability to think compassionately and about the best interests of the Jewish people. Every new moment of tension makes it more difficult for us to see from the balcony perspective and to not get bitter and cynical. The Talmud (Gittin 56a) relates the well known story of two individuals, Kamtza and Bar Kamtza. The story goes that Bar Kamtza was delivered an invitation to a party meant for Kamtza. The host of the party can not stand Bar Kamtza and when he arrives demands that he leaves. Bar Kamtza, in an effort to prevent being humiliated, offers to cover his costs at the party but his offer is refused. He keeps on upping the offer until he eventually offers to pay for the whole party and once again he is refused. All the while the rabbis are seated at the party and remain silent. Bar Kamtza enraged leaves the party and makes his way to the Romans instigating what would lead to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple.

The rabbis understand this story allegorically to teach us about the destructive nature of hatred and animosity. When we can no longer see each other as made in the image of God, as fellow members of the brit, of the covenant, we lose the ability to think rationally and we perform actions that have deep negative consequences. The rabbis by connecting this Talmudic story to the collective losses we recollect on Tisha B'Av are demanding that we grow in our sense of love and respect for each other and try to find the common good that benefits all. 

Moshe in his final speech to the Jewish people chose to offer constructive rebuke. He did not admonish for the sake of admonishment but rather so that we would learn and grow. Our people faces significant challenges now both here in the States and abroad. As we reflect on Moshe's rebuke this Shabbat and later sit and recollect the tragedies of our people on Tisha B'Av, let us learn the lesson of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza. Let us lessen our rhetoric, open our eyes and see those who we disagree with as members of the same large family. Let us not see disagreements, whether they be here or in Israel, as opportunities to feed our cynicism and scorn but rather as chances to come to better solutions and to work cooperatively for the good of all the Jewish people.

Jewish Summer Camp and Jewish Continuity

To say that I grew up not as a camping sort of person would be an understatement. When I look back at my childhood I never wanted to leave the confines of a city and was more comfortable around computers than climbing walls. I am still very happy within city limits but I have come to realize a powerful truth about imparting Jewish values and tradition to the next generation - the key is Jewish summer camp. Many of you might know that my wife Sharon is a Jewish summer camp rockstar. She spent the majority of her life attending Camp Stone in Pennsylvania, eventually becoming the head of camp for two summers and is now doing her doctoral research for NYU on the topic of gender studies in the Jewish summer camp setting. Sharon introduced me to Jewish summer camping and allowed me to see firsthand the profound impact it has on young Jews.

Imagine close to 400 people gathered around together in concentric circles. All of these people are under the age of 30 and the overwhelming majority are between 8-15 years of age. It is hard to conceive of any situation in which 400 young people are all refraining from chatter and are focused on the activity at hand. Yet, this is precisely what I observed, not once but every time I have been to camp for Shabbat: A chorus of voices rising together singing during Seudah Shlishit as the sun was beginning to hide itself amongst the treetops. Remarkable moments involving hundreds of children of devotion and spirituality do not occur in a vacuum. They are the result of living daily in a community infused with a love for Judaism. They are the result of being surrounded by a community that does not only observe Judaism but celebrates a life of Torah and mitzvot.

It is rare indeed to be situated, at any point in your life, in a place of sustained rejoicing and celebration of Judaism. We may gather a small glimpse of that utopian life but then it escapes us and leaves behind only a faint imprint in our hearts and minds. The search for the cloistered and serene life though is not the purpose of living Jewishly. The raison d’être of the Jewish life is to make the profane sacred, to transform the world and lift it up to holiness. It is not to escape from the mundane to the holy but rather to bring holiness down into this world and suffuse our environment with the Divine. Nonetheless, from a pedagogical perspective the effect of a summer of sustained positive Jewish living as a young person can never be underestimated. Jewish summer camp provides for children the opportunity to be an active member of a mini-society that wholly and unequivocally loves Judaism, where one could find that they are even dancing at a Tuesday morning Shacharit minyan.

My observations may be obvious to many of you but for me they are a hiddush, a novel idea. For those of you with young children I urge you to consider the option of Jewish summer camp. It is, in my opinion and without exaggeration, a crucial key towards the transmission of positive Jewish identity to the next generation.

Parshat Massei - The Reflective Life

"... but he was not his enemy and bore him no malice." (Bamidbar 35:23)

Revenge is one of those things that can take over a person's life and utterly consume their every waking thought and action. The impulse to take action against those who have wronged us can be absolutely overwhelming. Shylock in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice famously defends his basic humanity with the well known words, "If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?" In other words, revenge is as basic to humanity as our very mortality. 

It is within this understanding of the nature of revenge that the Torah decrees that cities of refuge shall be constructed throughout the Land of Israel. These protected spaces are meant to serve as safe havens for those who have unintentionally killed another human being. The threat of revenge from family members enraged over the loss of their loved ones is just too great to risk exposure for these individuals and for their own safety they must remain within the confines of these cities.

The Torah though does not allow all murderers refuge in these safe spaces. The act of murder must have been done within a certain set of parameters for the individual to be granted asylum.  The Parshadescribes in great length the specifications and it is within the context of that description that we come across a fascinating statement: 

"But if he pushed him accidentally, without malice, or threw an object at him without premeditation, or, with any stone which is deadly, and without seeing [his victim] he threw it down at him and it killed him, but he was not his enemy and bore him no malice (35:22-23)."

In describing some of the parameters that define an unintentional murder the Torah specifically points to the intent of the murderer (e.g. "without malice," "without premeditation," "was not his enemy" and "bore him no malice"). I have been told by trial lawyers that one of the most difficult elements to prove beyond a reasonable doubt is the actual intent of the defendant. One can reasonably demonstrate based on various pieces of evidence what the intent most likely was but as long as the defendant denies malicious intent, it is very difficult to absolutely and unequivocally prove. 

The Torah serves as both a judicial roadmap towards creating a just society and as a living document that challenges us religiously, spiritually, morally and ethically. In its judicial capacity this text needs to be understood in a way that is manageable and doable for human courts and a human justice system. Thus, the Gemara in Makkot 7b learns a basic principle from this verse that those who while throwing things down kill someone can claim refuge, the same is not true for those who heave heavy objects upwards. The assumption is that throwing a heavy object up requires more focus and attention and thus one should notice if someone is standing right in your direction while throwing an object downwards is relatively easy and one can easily just drop an item without realizing who is standing below. 

Simultaneously, this pasuk is challenging us to live a life of self-awareness and honesty. When one throws objects around one should look before they throw. The same is true for when one does any action in this world - one must be aware of what they are doing, be in the moment and also think about the consequences of that action. A person must also be honest with themselves and with others. It takes great courage to be truly honest with one's self and that is even more true when it comes to others. A person could only rightfully claim refuge when they really bore no malice or bad intentions towards their victim. Knowing one's own intentions and feelings towards others is a critical piece of being part of community and towards greater self-understanding. The Parsha challenges us to live up to a life filled with moments of self-reflection and a life of honest interactions with our own self and with the rest of humanity.

International Rabbinic Fellowship Press Release

Press Release

Contact: Rabbi Jason Herman, Executive Director Phone: 917.751.5265 Email: jlherman@jlherman.net

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 9 A.M. EDT, July 2, 2010

ORTHODOX JUDAISM’S NEWEST RABBINIC GROUP, INTERNATIONAL RABBINIC FELLOWSHIP (IRF), CONVENES CONFERENCE TO FORGE ITS FUTURE, ADOPT CONVERSION POLICIES, OUTLINE ROLE OF WOMEN AS SPIRITUAL LEADERS

The International Rabbinic Fellowship, an organization of over 150 American, Israeli, and world rabbis met this past week at the Pearlstone Conference and Retreat Center outside Baltimore, Maryland to strengthen collegial relationships, study torah, and discuss ideas that impact rabbinic practice.  The group voted on and adopted several policies and resolutions that will guide Orthodoxy’s future.  

A highlight of the conference was the presence of Rav David Stav, Rabbi of the Shoham community in Israel, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Hesder Petach Tikva and founder of Tzohar, a large Israeli Rabbinic group.  Conference attendees were privileged to discuss at length with Rabbi Stav critical issues facing the State of Israel and the Jewish people.   

Resolutions that were discussed in depth and adopted by the IRF included the official establishment of the IRF’s conversion committee (Va’ad Giur) that will oversee, guide, and ensure the thoroughness of conversions performed by IRF members.  The committee consists of several American and Israeli well known rabbinic scholars and has been constituted as a body not to centralize conversions but to help guide the group’s members in conversions that they may effect for their own congregants and constituents. 

Said Rabbi Barry Gelman, IRF president, "The IRF's Vaad Giur will serve to ensure that each rabbi retains the proper ability to care for and guide their own candidates for conversion. The IRF Giyur process, which includes a very important mentorship component, guarantees that candidates for conversion will be well prepared and that the Rabbis are provided with ongoing guidance and support."

Orthodoxy’s broadest resolution yet outlining the role of and opportunities available for women working in Orthodox synagogues in Rabbinic capacities was also adopted at the conference.

The following is the text of the resolution as adopted by the International Rabbinic Fellowship:

IRF Resolution on Women in Communal Leadership Roles

 
The International Rabbinic Fellowship is thankful and grateful to the Almighty and to a cadre of visionary educators, rabbis and communal leaders of the Modern Orthodox community for the amazing growth of Torah learning for women, in all its forms, which has transformed the face of the Orthodox community for the better in the last fifty years.

We strongly support the work and efforts of the myriad of Torah learning programs and institutions for women, both long-established and new, both in the Diaspora and in Israel. We hope that these institutions continue to grow and that even more opportunities for talented women who would like to continue on to the next level of Torah scholarship, involving multi-year opportunities for serious Torah learning, will emerge in the years to come.

We express our support for the sincere desire of the graduates of these learning programs to contribute their spiritual talents to the Jewish people as teachers, spiritual guides and mentors. We also affirm the dedication and sacrifice of so many women in our community, and their desire to serve their congregations and their people in formal leadership capacities, while affirming the specific areas that Halakha delimits.

We strongly encourage communities and their rabbinic leaders to create opportunities to discuss this important phenomenon in an open and reflective manner, in order to enable continuing progress in a spirit of shalom and communal harmony.

In an effort to outline some practical guidelines that we believe our communities should consider – recognizing that each community and its rabbinic leadership retain the authority to determine what is appropriate for their communal context – we affirm that:

Observant and committed Orthodox women who are learned, trained and competent should have every opportunity to fully serve the Jewish community:

1. As teachers of Torah, in all its breadth and depth – Shebikhtav, Shebe‘al Peh and Practical Halakha – to both men and women.

2. As persons who can answer questions and provide guidance to both men and women in all areas of Jewish law in which they are well-versed.

3. As clergy who function as pastoral counselors – visiting the sick, helping couples work through relationship difficulties, taking care of the arrangements for burial, speaking at life-cycle events and giving counsel to individuals and families in distress.

4.  As spiritual preachers and guides who teach classes and deliver divrei Torah and derashot, in the synagogue and out, both during the week and on Shabbatot and holidays.

5. As spiritual guides and mentors, helping arrange and managing life-cycle events such as weddings, bar- and bat-mitzvah celebrations and funerals, while refraining from engaging in those aspects of these events that Halakha does not allow for women to take part in.

6. As presidents and full members of the boards of synagogues and other Torah institutions.

For more information about the International Rabbinic Fellowship or its conference contact any of the following IRF officers:

Rabbi Barry Gelman, tel. 713.723.3850, email

Rabbi Hyim Shafner, tel. 314.583.4397, email

Rabbi Nissan Antine, tel. 301.279.7010 x 209, email<rabbiantine@gmail.com>

Rabbi Yosef Kanefsky, tel. 310.276.9269, email

Rabbi Marc D. Angel, tel. 212.724.4145, email <mdangel@jewishideas.org>

Rabbi Jason Herman, IRF Executive Director, tel. 917.751.5265, email

The Orthoprax Rabbi and The Legitimacy of Struggling

I was introduced to a fascinating new blog thanks to Harry Maryles. This new blog is the work of a rabbi who calls himself "The Orthoprax Rabbi". The author is an ordained Orthodox rabbi with a pulpit position, and here comes the catch - he no longer believes in God or in the halakhic system. Essentially, he is a closeted atheist who is using his blog to discuss the topics that he has been thinking and pining over for an untold amount of time. As I was reading through the comments to his postings there was a consistent thread of people viciously attacking his integrity and his intellectual depth.

I do not want to add to the chorus line of rebuke of this individual. First of all, from a halakhic perspective one should only offer rebuke when the recipient is in a place to be able to hear it. It is far from apparent to me that this individual is looking for rebuke or that any offerings of such will resonate in his heart and mind. What I do want to discuss is the legitimacy of struggling with faith and the validity of doubt.

We as a community need to be able to create space for people to express concerns and struggles with Torah and halakhah. In many places it has practically become taboo for someone to think critically and wrestle with their emunah. This is true for the average community member but of course even more true for those in rabbinic positions. Rabbis must have colleagues and professional organizations that they can turn to for guidance and support. It is essential that every rabbi has his own rabbi that he can lean on; someone to call their rebbe. No individual and certainly no rabbi should be stigmatized for struggling and grappling with Torah.

I do believe there is a critical distinction though between those rabbis who are struggling and those who have definitively become convinced of a path that is contrary to halakhah. There are few things more disheartening to a community than discovering that their rabbi does not practice what he preaches. It is unethical to deceive one's community and a rabbinic position is not like any other job. Rabbis, and all clergy for that matter, are hired to represent and embody their faith and to teach and inspire others in that faith. A rabbi who has become absolutely convinced that faith in God is erroneous and that their particular faith is utterly misguided should and must resign his position at once.

In the end of it all, my heart truly goes out to The Orthoprax Rabbi. The challenges he is facing and will come to face in the future as he reveals himself to his community and to his family are going to be tremendous. It is truly commendable that he is now grappling with his new reality post-belief and demonstrates genuine integrity. I may not agree with his conclusions but I respect the quest for self that he has engaged in.

Parshat Pinhas - Radical Inclusion

"Why should our father's name be eliminated from his family because he had no son?" (Bamidbar 27:4)

There are rare moments in the entire narrative arch of Tanakh where the status quo is challenged and that challenge is subsequently upheld. Even more rare is the moment where a challenge lends way to an entire new application of halakhah. One example of this that comes to mind is the incident of the impure individuals and the creation of the Pesah sheini to facilitate their inclusion. Another incident is the one in this very parshah of the daughters of Tzlafhad. 

John Quincy Adams, one of the most accomplished men in American history, inherited his first residence from his father John Adams. The property that was bequeathed to him included a house on what was then the main road in Quincy, Massachusetts. That house was built by John Quincy Adams' grandfather, Deacon John Adams. He diligently saved and saved until he had enough to buy a piece of land because in his words "land was not going to run away from you." 

The ownership of land has and continues to be a vital ingredient in the financial portfolio of many families. The land deed more than so many other things grants families a sense of confidence and assuredness. It was no wonder than that Deacon John Adams throughout his life amassed a lot of land, about 200 acres in total because land, unlike many other forms of property, "is not going to run away from you."

The daughters of Tzlafhad understood that without the ability to inherit their father's land they would have been put in a vulnerable position. Ownership of land from the times of Tanakh through ancient Greece and up through the modern era means so much to the financial, psychological and political welfare of an individual and of a family. We have therefore a remarkable piece of Midrash from Yalkut Shimoni 27:

"When the daughters of Tzlafhad heard that the land was being divided to the tribes but not to the women, they convened to discuss the manner. They said, 'God's mercy and compassion is not like the compassion of mankind. Mankind favors men over women. God is not that way, His compassion is on men and women alike...'"

In what could only be called a forerunner to the convention in Seneca Falls, the daughters of Tzlafhad made a powerful plea and case for inclusion. Their plea remarkably did not fall on deaf ears and none other than God responded, "The daughters of Tzlafhad speak justly (27:7)." 

While the daughters of Tzlafhad made a poignant and sharp critique of the ability of humanity to unnecessarily privilege one group over the other, let us be cognizant of that fault and work towards the betterment of ourselves and all of humankind. May our compassion be on "men and women" and all groups and classes of people alike.