MATTOT MAS'EI 5776
CLEAR BEFORE GOD AND US ALL

August 4, 2016
29 Tammuz 5776

Moses at the culmination of his forty years of leadership was suddenly confronted with a difficult request. The tribes of Reuben, Gad and half of Manasseh petitioned for permission to settle on the eastern bank of the Jordan River. He took a dim view of this request, arguing that the conquest ofEretz Yisrael was obligatory on all the tribes. Moses reluctantly relented when the petitioners assured him that they would join the rest of the tribes in the battle to conquer the Land. His final word was that if they did as they promised, they would be "clear of their obligation before God and Israel."(Numbers 32:22)

Many of the mitzvot or commandments set before us touch on our relationship to God e.g. Shabbat observance, kashrut, the daily regimen of prayer. The other categories of mitzvot are designed to order our relationship with one another, e.g.  honoring one's word, honesty in the marketplace, and lending a helping hand to one in need.

The moralists seized upon Moses' caveat and taught that it was incumbent upon us as individuals and as a community is do what is right both in the eyes of God and people. This theme of dual responsibility is reflected in the insistence of our tradition that on Yom Kippur God will not forgive us sins toward Him unless we have repaired our relationship with those whom we have hurt, spurned, libeled, or sinned against in any way.

Life being what it is there are inevitably situations when we are challenged to balance these two obligations. In essence it comes down to deciding on whether our primary responsibility is to God or to one another. . The issue becomes even more complicated when our perception of God's will comes down to a human judgment call.

The Torah is silent on a contemporary hot button issue: conversion. There is no mention of the requirements to be fulfilled by one who seeks to become a Jew by choice. During the course of centuries this void  was filled by the Rabbinic tradition that legislated a period of study, immersion in amikveh (ritual bath), circumcision for males, and a clear commitment  to monotheism that specifically rejects any belief in Jesus. All of these steps were to be monitored by – and attested to – by a Beth Din (religious court) comprised of three Rabbis. The proponents of this model insist that they are fulfilling the will of God.

The mikveh is an important institution in the Orthodox world whose married women immerse themselves at the conclusion of their menstrual period. While Israel's many mikva'ot are publicly funded, they are under the control of the local Rabbis who consistently reject the requests of non -Orthodox Rabbis to make the mikveh available for the ritual immersion of their converts. This policy reflects the assertion of the State recognized Rabbinic establishment that it is the true guardian of God's wishes and intents, and it is its mandate to deny the legitimacy of the non-Orthodox rabbinate.

Following a lengthy court battle, the Supreme Court recently ruled that since mikva'ot are publicly funded, they must be available for use by the non-Orthodox prepared converts. Nothing less is expected of a democratic society.

Predictably the Orthodox Rabbinic authorities contested this ruling, and flexed its politically fortified muscles to submit a bill before the Knesset to overrule the High Court's ruling. The need to keep the religious parties in the coalition makes it inevitable that any attempt to create a level playing field for all religious streams will be thwarted.

This new mikveh bill reflects the insistence of Israel's entrenched Rabbinate that it is doing right by God and fulfilling His dictates. Whether this be so is a matter of debate, but what is not debatable is that legislation that denies the non-Orthodox equality before the law, is a policy that is  not  clear either before God or "man."

Hopefully this current mikveh bill will not deepen the wedge between American Jewry and Israel. What is of real concern, however, is the power granted the "recognized" rabbinic establishment to hold the country hostage to its claim to be the authentic repository of God's word and will.

Many have speculated whether Israel can be both Jewish and democratic. The real question is whether it can be democratic while being submissive to a rigid Orthodoxy that has been granted the power to deny equal rights to all its citizens. To my mind this regrettable status quo runs counter to Moses' clearly stated caveat to the breakaway tribes at the banks of the Jordan that our actions be clear before both God and all of Israel.
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From the holy city of Jerusalem Rae joins me in wishing you a Shabbat Shalom u'Mevorach– a Shabbat of peace and blessing.

Rabbi Arnold M. Goodman

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PINCHAS 5776
DISENFRANCHISED

July 28, 5776
22 Tammuz 5776

R. Johanan said "Wherever you find [mentioned in the Scriptures] the power of the Holy One, blessed be He, you also find his gentleness mentioned. … It is written in the Torah, For the Lord your God, He is the God of gods and Lord of Lords, 31" and it says immediately afterwards, "He does execute justice for the fatherless and widow…" [BT Megillah 31a]

In the early days in the desert lower judges ruled on virtually all cases except for those that were particularly  difficult and complex. These were brought  before Moses, the final arbiter, and the only one who was  privileged  to speak to directly to God.

The system functioned well, and most cases were adjudicated without any great difficulty. The Torah, however, records two instances when Moses, the designated High Judge, was also stymied, and had to turn to God for an answer. Both instances concerned the status and the rights of disenfranchised individuals.

The first occurrence concerned a group of men who were charged with the responsibility of burying the dead (Numbers 9: 9-14). This rendered them tamay (ritually impure) and disqualified them from sharing in the Passover sacrifice. The men contended, given that they were engaged in the sacred task of caring for the dead, it was unfair to set them apart from their families and communities. They thus turned to who amazingly had no answer for them.

This week's Torah portion introduces us to the five daughters of Zelophehad. They complained that their father had no sons, and the tradition of only males having the right to inherit property would result in their father's estate passing on to other male relatives (ibid 27: 1-11). They thus challenged what they insisted was a discriminatory policy. Here too, Moses turned to God for an answer.

In both instances God demonstrated great sensitivity to the disenfranchised. The impure were told that they could offer the Passover sacrifice one month later. This privilege of Pesach Sheni (Second Passover) was also extended to anyone who, on the Festival, found himself too far from the Sanctuary and thereby could not offer the Pesach sacrifice.

The Divine ruling with regard to the five sisters was even more revolutionary. In their case, and in all future instances when there were no sons, daughters were to be the heirs next in line. In an era when women's rights were severely restricted, this promised them extraordinary relief.

The Torah clearly affirms the responsibility to support the vulnerable and the disenfranchise; those with lesser power are to be strengthened and helped.

The Talmud passage quoted above expanded this teaching. Citing appropriate Biblical verse, the Rabbis portrayed God as the interlocutor of the widow, the orphan, the stranger – all of whom were at the mercy of others. Obviously in our day the vulnerable, are also the homeless, the poor, and any and all with very limited resources and low social status.

America today continues to grapple with the consequences of the color barrier. We may not be comfortable with the Black Lives Matter's agenda, but it's very existence challenges our society's commitment to equality before the law.

The hue and cry emanating from significant numbers in our midst that all Muslims are terrorists or that all "foreigners" are criminals and rapists, runs counter to our tradition of being sensitive to the disenfranchised.

To be sure we have no Moses who directly receives the final word from God, but we do possess his teachings that challenge us to be sensitive to those who are vulnerable. In some instances it is the LGBT community; in other instances it is the person of color or the immigrant; and in other instances it is the individual whose limited education and talent consigns him/her to menial entry jobs with minimum pay and minimum hope of advancement.

Jewish history is a painful record of our sufferings as a vulnerable minority.  Today we rightfully rejoice that in the United States we are an integral part of society. Given our resources, our social standing, our political power; we are challenged to respond to the commands of our Torah and the demands of our  tradition regarding the disenfranchised and vulnerable in our midst. Are we willing to engage in the tikkun olam to widen the circle to enable those on the outside to share in the blessings that God has lovingly bestowed upon us?
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From the holy city of Jerusalem Rae joins me in wishing you a Shabbat Shalom u'Mevorach – a Shabbat of peace and blessing.

Rabbi Arnold M. Goodman