Words are essential building blocks for all communication. They can be used for good as well as not-so-good. I believe it is fair to say that words, or d’varim in Hebrew, are necessary to communicating and perhaps even to survival.
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One of the more common critiques leveled against the Bible is that it does not fairly adjudicate in the battle of the sexes. When we remove the lens of 21st century modernity, however, we can see in this week’s reading several key Jewish principles that govern familial and authoritative relationships.
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Seven things distinguish a fool and seven things distinguish a wise person. . . . If there is something the wise person has not heard, the wise person says, “I have never heard.” The wise person acknowledges what is true. The opposite of all these qualities is found in a fool. (Pirke Avot 5:9)
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As I read the Scriptures, I’m struck by how much of it relates to my childhood in the 50s and 60s. The TV show “Father Knows Best” and the game of “Pin the Tail on the Donkey” come to mind. In this week’s double portion, however, it’s a tale that the donkey realizes first.
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One can only wonder what it must have been like for Moses to be challenged with open mutiny by the very people he called friends. Did this betrayal take Moses by surprise?
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The ten spies could only see the challenges, but the two faithful spies saw the promises of God fulfilled in the elaborate and large produce of the land.
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One of the high points of our Shabbat morning service comes as we arise, open the ark to display the Torah scroll, and chant together, “Vay’hi binsoa ha-aron vayomer Moshe . . . And whenever the ark went forward, Moses would say: ‘Arise O Lord!’”
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Everyone gets counted in Numbers. And everyone counts! Many people skip over this portion with long lists of names and details. But this detailed ancient history should fascinate us! Here, the world of our ancestors is miraculously preserved for us.
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As we prepare for this year’s celebration of Shavuot, we are reminded again in this week’s reading of the affectionate nature of our God. He calls his chosen “li segulah,” “my treasured possession.” It’s a phrase reserved for the Lord’s relationship to his bride, Israel.
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Lest we think that creating order in our inner lives is easy or unimportant, Pirkei Avot 4:1 tells us: “Who is mighty? One who subdues their [evil] inclination, as it is said: ‘One that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and one that rules their spirit than one that takes a city.’”
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