BO 5777
ISRAEL IN EGYPT – TWO TAKEAWAYS

FEBRUARY 3, 2017
6 SHEVAT 5777

Like many Americans and specifically American Jews, I struggle with the travel ban ordered by the new Administration. I understand the impetus that led the thousands upon thousands of Americans to demonstrate at airports and other government venues. I am appalled by xenophobia, as are so many of us, being descendants of immigrants who came to these shores to build new lives, and in the process made significant contributions to the common welfare. Policies that target the stranger and the immigrant are anathema to me.

These values are deeply rooted in our tradition. They are in fact some of the takeaways of our experience in Mitzraim (Egypt). The Talmud notes that the Torah bans marriages with the Moabites and the Ammonites (Deut 23:4) because they refused to offer aid and provide hospitality to our ancestors during their journey through the desert. There is no prohibition, however, against marrying an Egyptian.

This glaring disconnect is explained away by noting that the Egyptians did welcome Jacob and his family with open arms when they sought refuge during the famine. This act of kindness was not to be forgotten; hence the constant refrain, be kind to the stranger, for you too were strangers in the land of Egypt. Do not forget how the Egyptians embraced Jacob and his family. The mandate is clear: welcome and assist the stranger, the new arrival, the immigrant, the refugee. Remember that we were strangers in the land of Egypt. Thus the airport demonstrations are consistent with our Tradition's teachings and also resonate with deeply rooted American values.

Yet there is the obvious tension created by a later generation of Egyptians that was alarmed by the increasing number of the Israelites and envious of their developing prosperity. Thus the new king, who did not know Joseph, contended that the Israelites' increasing power and growth threatened the safety and welfare of Egypt, set into notion the bitter enslavement that we recall so vividly on Pesach.

If indeed Egypt's leadership was convinced that the Israelites, who were, essentially, strangers in their midst, posed a clear and present danger, were their policies justified? What comes into play here is the basic Jewish teaching that steps taken to avert threats to life have precedence over all the commandments in Torah. In addition, even if this concern is misplaced, how are we to judge those who believe that they are seriously threatened by new immigrants from the Muslim world?

We are thus caught on the horns of a difficult dilemma. We know that xenophobia is not only anti American, it is anti Torah; hence the laudable decision to protest the travel ban that would keep Syrian refugees out of the country. Yet how do we allay the concern and the fear that, while not all Muslims are terrorists, a significant number of terrorist acts are perpetrated by Muslims? Does this fear to our safety justify the extreme response of our current administration and its supporters? How much weight should we give to the obvious tensions within Germany, France and other nations because of the emerging Muslim populations in their midst? Should these facts inform our response in this current crisis? Obviously one can marshal cogent arguments to defend either position, but the clear caveat imparted by our history is to be aware of the danger of stereotyping religious communities and ethnic groups. There is great wisdom in the proverb to be careful to not throw out the baby with the bathwater. The obvious challenge we face is to develop careful, but fair, vetting procedures that can substantially reduce the threat posed by any seeking, and deserving, refuge in our midst. May we ever be faithful to historic American democratic values and to our Jewish teachings.

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From Newton, my best wishes for a Shabbat Shalom u'Mevorach– a Shabbat of peace and of blessing.

Rabbi Arnold M. Goodman

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VA'ERA SHABBAT ROSH CHODESH 5777
THE URGENCY OF CONTEXT

January 26, 2917
28 Tevet 5777

So the Lord spoke to both Moses and Aaron in regard to the Israelites and Pharaoh . . . instructing them to deliver the Israelites from the land of Egypt. The following are the heads of their (the Israelites) respective clans. (Exodus 6:13, 14)

God commands Moses and Aaron to inform both the Children of Israel and Pharaoh that they (Moses and Aaron) will lead the Israelites out of Egypt. What has preceded is an ongoing exchange between God and Moses in which the Deity must contend with Moses' reluctance to step forth to lead the People.

Following God's final word on the subject, the Torah interrupts the narrative to record a partial genealogy that culminates with the record of Moses' birth. To my mind the purpose of this historical "detour" was to affirm the connection between the Patriarchs and Moses. He was challenged to perceive himself not merely as the champion of the currently enslaved generation but as the successor of the Patriarchs each of whom was blessed with the Divine assurance that his descendants would ultimately inherit the Land. The present moment of pain and suffering was to be viewed in the context of God's promise to liberate the Israelites, because of yesterday's promise to their ancestors.

History at its best provides a context to help us understand the present and then hopefully chart our future course. This is the thrust of Santayana's oft quoted observation that those who reject the lessons of history are doomed to repeat its mistakes.

The Zionist movement predated the Holocaust. Well before the rise of the Third Reich, there was a Jewish presence, the Yishuv, in Eretz Yisrael. From the beginning of the Twentieth Century this fledgling Jewish community strove to create an independent Jewish State in our historic homeland. Regardless of the legitimacy of this argument, it is highly debatable whether the international community would have helped bring Israel into being were it not for the Holocaust.

For the vast majority of Jews the establishment of an independent Jewish State was an affirmation that despite the horrors of the Holocaust, in which one third of the world Jewish population was destroyed, Am Yisrael Chai, we the Jewish people live on.

During its early years Israel was continually threatened by neighboring Arab States that refused to recognize the legitimacy of a Jewish presence in our ancient homeland. This was also the period of the large scale immigration of Jews from the Arab world, and Israel needed world Jewry's support to accommodate and integrate this vast influx of new arrivals. American Jewry thus mobilized its financial and political resources to assure Israel's survival. Central to this ongoing commitment was the affirmation of "Never Again." Never again would we be silent in the face of threats to Jewish survival. The Shoah thus continued to resonate in the ears and the hearts of American Jews.

In time, of course, a new generation arose for whom the Shoah was yesterday's or yesteryears' news. In addition, the Israel now before their eyes was not only prosperous but had enlarged its borders through the many settlements in what the world calls the West Bank but which many Israelis view as an integral part of the homeland God promised our ancestors. The Arab world, however, has succeeded in labeling Israel as a colonial empire that sits astride occupied Palestinian territory and exercises forcible control over its population.

Little wonder that younger Jews who, for the most part, are unaware of our ancient connection to the Land, and who are ignorant of the events that preceded and immediately followed the creation of the State, feel no obligation to support Israel. Survey after survey affirms that a significant number of this young generation supports major anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian initiatives. Their focus is solely on the "facts on the ground." They are unaware not only of the historical context of continued Arab opposition to the creation of Israel but also to our historical association with Eretz Yisrael.

The Birthright trip is a major effort to reach this young generation and sensitize its participants to the historical contexts, political and theological, through which today's Israel should be viewed.

Moses urged his generation of enslaved Israelites to view their difficult present in the broader context of their situation hearkening back to the Patriarchs. He assured them, the present painful enslavement was a temporary situation that was about to change – and change it did. Jews who are hostile, or at best neutral, to Israel are also urged to look past today's facts on the ground and view the present situation in the broader historical context. Santayana was correct: an ongoing disregard of history is a recipe for disaster.

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From Newton best wishes for a Shabbat Shalom u'Mevorach– a Shabbat of peace and of blessing, and a Chodesh Tov, a month of health, good tidings and fulfillment.

Rabbi Arnold M. Goodman