tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12418898006452717612024-03-06T10:53:16.094+11:00Social Issues & Torah (TFH)This blog is written by the National Director of Together For Humanity Foundation (TFH), Rabbi Zalman Kastel. It explores contemporary social issues as these relate to an Orthodox understanding of the Torah, (the Bible) and other Jewish sources. This blog which shares the personal thoughts and journey of an Australian Jewish man is part of the bridge building work of TFH and is written for readers of many faiths and none. It often references the Sidra, the weekly Torah reading. Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.comBlogger287125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-63231008558141881062024-02-23T12:34:00.001+11:002024-02-23T12:35:09.608+11:00Tolerance of Real Differences in Approach and the Cohens Contentious Belt<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Y-lgCGjXvXrS5t-JLMxgzfi2dFM6JHHV8kijiJjdLYfUbhF_kTuK5ym5jaAP17lUYdypzPLTlboGsmf6ldxt58gCV7fIRhWZ8dU_c1qI4o9aROykHTIwbuIspnQQEYp-lqjY7dc7lH2-LWruhlOHYZfn1uGawojULb4BWpiWhehknNP7bwFT4xgHU9o/s823/You're_not_listening!.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="559" data-original-width="823" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Y-lgCGjXvXrS5t-JLMxgzfi2dFM6JHHV8kijiJjdLYfUbhF_kTuK5ym5jaAP17lUYdypzPLTlboGsmf6ldxt58gCV7fIRhWZ8dU_c1qI4o9aROykHTIwbuIspnQQEYp-lqjY7dc7lH2-LWruhlOHYZfn1uGawojULb4BWpiWhehknNP7bwFT4xgHU9o/s320/You're_not_listening!.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: times; font-size: medium;">No! It
is not true that diversity is always delightful. Some diversity of belief and
approach is highly concerning, sometimes dangerous and infuriating. There are
instances where differences in approaches and beliefs are highly concerning,
infuriating, and sometimes even dangerous. Australians don’t kill each other
over religious differences these days, but there are other matters about which
Australians are prepared to inflict harm, not with physical violence, but in
other harsh ways. This post is a religious argument for tolerance – at least of
people- in situations involving real differences. To fight fairly about things
worth fighting for – playing the ball not the man - while also acknowledging
common ground with one’s opponent. <o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">I am
reminded of a passionate woman I will call Esther, standing at a polling booth
handing out ‘how to vote cards’ for a progressive candidate on election day.
Standing a few meters away were some women handing out ‘how to vote’ cards for
(Australian Politician) Pauline Hanson and her One Nation party. Esther was
curious about her opponents and engaged them in an honest, curious
conversation. She learned that they were motivated not by raging hatred, but by
love and concern for their families and their own understanding of what was
right. Neither she nor they changed their positions, and Esther continued to
advocate for what she thought was right, while also acknowledging that there
was common ground. </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">I was
inspired to write this by some teachings about the Torah reading this week. The
priest or Cohen was required to wear garments with very specific requirements
(i) These included a belt that was made of wool and linen (ii) This
mixture is normally strictly forbidden for Jews (iii) . When I buy a new
wool suit, I need to send the jacket to a Shatnez inspector in Melbourne to
tear open the collar to see if there is any linen in it that would make the
suit forbidden to me. </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">This
will all sound ridiculously technical to people unfamiliar with these matters.
Trust me, I am not interested in technicalities. This is going somewhere
interesting. </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">One explanation for the
prohibition of mixing wool linen is that doing so messes with God’s vast
eternal plan (iv). Every object on earth is linked to heavenly energies. Every
blade of grass has a dedicated angel (v). Wool is linked to kindness and linen
is linked to severity or judgement (vi) and these two should not be mixed
(vii). One prominent occasion of mixing these was when Abel brought an offering
of wool and Cain brought linen and a short time later it ended in murder
(viii). A literal version of what figuratively happens every day on social
media between the “woke” and their “enemies”. </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: medium; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">Yet,
difference does not need to end in fratricide. Those of us inclined towards
softer and kinder approaches don’t need to regard those with harsher approaches
as our enemies. This is the message of the priest’s mixed belt. That the same
elements that can tear us apart, that are like fire and water, can coexist in
humble recognition of that which is greater than all of us (ix). In the case of
the priest in the presence of God in the holiest place on earth, the submission
to God enabled fire and water to co-exist. In our families and societies, let
us advocate for all that we perceive to be good, and against all that we perceive
to be evil, but let us be humble enough to recognise that there is usually
common ground between us. As religious people, it could be that we are subjects
of God, and otherwise, simply that we are all people. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">Image: Jesslee Cuizon from Fujisawa, Japan, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn1"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref1"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[i]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;"> Exodus
28<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn2"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref2"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[ii]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">
Talmud, Yoma 69a, Maimonides, book of service, laws of the vessels of the
sanctuary, 8:11, <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn3"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref3"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[iii]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">
Leviticus 19:19<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn4"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref4"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[iv]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">
Fiddler on the roof reference<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn5"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref5"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[v]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;"> Zohar
Vol 3, chapter 18<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn6"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref6"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[vi]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;"> Benayahu
Ben Yehoyada, Shabbat 11a<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn7"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref7"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[vii]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">
Rabbenu Bchaya on Leviticus 19:19<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn8"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref8"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[viii]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">
Genesis 4:4-4:8 as interpreted by the Zohar and Bchaya. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a name="m_2035709803438385416__edn9"></a><a href="#m_2035709803438385416__ednref9"><sup><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;">[ix]</span></sup></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-ligatures: none;"> The
Lubavitcher Rebbe, Likutei Sichos Vol 36, pages 153-160<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></p>
<p> </p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-48800807567249700692023-08-01T18:43:00.002+10:002023-08-01T18:43:23.071+10:00Inner Peace and Judaism<p> <b>“Jews don’t do
inner peace”.</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE53eUMCjeLLPTWRGjAoL3_Mgy1P_WwzHMkTVslx86Jn6zF-UHOnFPfQOi2JwSWp6XJsypzF9WB2Ds7-3al7L51r2cuRGlfl3EUDyuo6MQSY4u5kbIqV2aOEu3sCAsnkOVy_X-t9i0TgpRltmKZOZo-_-oH07nNZ_4RTJ6FZEIm1S6NFqfVxJZTzfqtyE/s359/Hendel%20Chosid%20in%20prayer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="359" data-original-width="250" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE53eUMCjeLLPTWRGjAoL3_Mgy1P_WwzHMkTVslx86Jn6zF-UHOnFPfQOi2JwSWp6XJsypzF9WB2Ds7-3al7L51r2cuRGlfl3EUDyuo6MQSY4u5kbIqV2aOEu3sCAsnkOVy_X-t9i0TgpRltmKZOZo-_-oH07nNZ_4RTJ6FZEIm1S6NFqfVxJZTzfqtyE/s320/Hendel%20Chosid%20in%20prayer.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>“Jews don’t do inner peace”. This was my first thought when
teacher Judith Hurley invited me to talk about inner peace in Judaism for a
staff spirituality day. The Strife of the Spirit<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
is the title of a book that articulates some of the Chabad Hasidic ideas that have
most influenced my understanding of spirituality. The battle of the body also
referred to as the animalistic soul or “evil inclination” against the divine
soul looms large in the Hasidic experience<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
The Torah appears more concerned with the struggle to obey the commandments
than peace. However, as I learned more, I recognised that peace can be regarded
an overarching goal that includes obeying the commandments and living out the
covenant with God. <o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Peace is an essential condition of existence.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This past week, I was delighted and surprised to find teachings
about inner peace in the writings of Rabbi Yitzchak Arama (1420 – 1494). Arama is
regarded as one of the great rationalist commentators on the Torah. He frequently
quotes Maimonides’ guide for the perplexed. Yet, he regards peace as essential
to all of existence including Jewish life<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
He explains that every being in the universe, other than God, is a composite of
different components that must coexist in peace. The moment that peace is lost
to a body, is the moment it is destroyed. The word ‘disintegrate’ captures his
thinking. To disintegrate means to decay but also signals that it is opposite
to being integrated or at peace. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Peace with God is synonymous with living the covenant</b>.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For Arama, peace with God is synonymous with living true to
the covenant with God. To obey the commandments is to be at peace with God. The
gift of peace brings healing of all our faults<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
The opposite is also true. Regarding the verse “there is no peace for the
wicked<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”,
Arama comments that there is no punishment needed for the wicked, other than
losing peace. To lose peace is to lose
hope and to close off the channel of God’s blessings.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>The resolution of inner strife involves inner peace.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In Jewish and Chasidic writings about the battle between
body and soul or between animal and divine souls, there are allusions to
cooperation and peace between them. Every morning and evening, Jews read the ‘Shema<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>’,
which<br /> calls us to love God with all our hearts. The word for hearts has an extra
letter Bet<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>,
which alludes to Jews loving God with our two inclinations, the evil and good,
or with both the animal and divine aspects of ourselves. The animalistic evil
inclination cooperates with the Godly - good inclination to love God - putting
aside their competition to conquer and control the body<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. Instead
they are at peace with each other in joint love of God. The animal soul’s passion
in the hot-headed person is harnessed by their divine soul to perform great acts
of compassion beyond their ability<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
The two parts of the person working in harmony. Our souls are redeemed in peace<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Peace through pausing on Shabbat.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The practice of Shabbat is one of the great Jewish vehicles
for peace. In the ten commandments we read, “Six days you shall work and <i><u>do all your
work,<b> </b></u></i>but the seventh day is a Sabbath for your God you shall
not do any work”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
The Torah instructs us to do all our work in six days. This is interpreted<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
as God commanding us to imagine that, in fact, all our work has been done by
Friday afternoon and to rest from even thinking about work. All the piles of
papers in the in-tray, all the unanswered emails are as if they don’t exist. Vanished
by a swish of the Shabbat angel’s wand, if I may mix my metaphors. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This approach is based on faith. If God wanted all that work
done this week, He would have found a way for us to get it done. The fact that
he didn’t ensure that it got done, means that it was not destined to be this
week’s work. It belongs to another time. On Friday at sunset, all the work that
mattered is either done, or as good as done, because Shabbat is a sacred time
in which that work is irrelevant. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This attitude has been an amazing gift for me and my family.
I don’t check emails or social media or lift a pen or read a work report. It is
truly a holy time. Unfortunately, thoughts are harder to control than actions,
and I confess that my thoughts sometimes wander to work on shabbat. But it is
still a powerful way of achieving inner peace, to a significant extent, at
least once a week with a flow-on effect for the rest of the week. <span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Accepting others and self – the ugly man<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">One of the great obstacles to peace is an unwillingness to
accept people, either others, or to accept ourselves as we are. I have had my
moments with both. Enter the ugly man story. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Rabbi Eliezer was once riding on a donkey on the coast,
he was feeling very happy because he had studied a lot of Torah.<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Then he noticed a very ugly man, not just in the physical
sense but it was clear to the Rabbi that the man had an ugly character.<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>The ugly man greeted him, "Shalom, Rabbi!" <o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Rabbi Eliezer did not return the greeting. <o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Instead, he said, "Empty (headed) one! Are all the
inhabitants of your town as ugly as you?"<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>The man replied: "Why don't you tell the craftsman
who made me, “how ugly is the vessel you made?"<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Rabbi Eliezer realised that he had done wrong. He went
down from his donkey, prostrated himself and begged the man for forgiveness<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>...<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">A believing
person has no business condemning anyone for what they are. Yes, we can object
to someone’s behaviour. But I have found that sometimes what annoys me more
than behaviour is another person's essential nature. This is wrong, as they
have not chosen to be the way they are. They were created that way. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The same
principle applies to me. It is ok for me to be disappointed with my behaviour
or choices. But I should never be ashamed or frustrated with myself for what I
am. I did not create myself<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn14" name="_ednref14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>!
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Forgiveness <o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We can lose peace within ourselves and with God through our
choices and walking away from God and our covenant with Him<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn15" name="_ednref15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
When this happens, we can seek resolution with God. Once we seek forgiveness,
we are encouraged to be confident that God will instantly forgive us. God’s
capacity for forgiveness is infinite, not like humans, who might find it hard
to forgive someone for their repeated mistakes<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn16" name="_ednref16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
I’ve found that sometimes by focusing on my belief that God has forgiven me, I
can more easily forgive myself. At a Catholic school spirituality day, I
recently invited teachers to consider trying this approach on grudges they held
against themselves - perhaps for ten years or twenty years - and to consider whether
God’s forgiveness might allow them to forgive themselves as well. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">There is also great power in forgiving others, which Jews
are encouraged to do every night before going to sleep<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_edn17" name="_ednref17" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
Forgiving others not only releases the object of our resentment, it also allows
us to feel at peace in ourselves. <span style="color: red;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Conclusion<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Being at peace and in sync with God, through living out the
covenant and bringing the different aspects of ourselves into harmony with God,
allows us to have hope and brings with it its own kind of inner peace. <o:p></o:p></p>
<div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span style="background: white; color: #333333; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Steinsaltz, A. (1997), </span>The Strife of the Spirit, Jason
Aronson, it is an adaptation of the Tanya the foundation book of Chabad Chasidism, by Rabbi
Schneur Zalman of Liadi, who is one of the most significant figures of Hasidism<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Tanya, by Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Arama, R. Yitzchak, in Akedat Yitzchak, gate 87. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Arama, based on Isaiah 57:19<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span> </span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> Isaiah 46<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-US">Deuteronomy 6:5-9<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-US">Sifey Chachamim on Rashi’s
commentary to Deuteronomy 6:6<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
<span lang="EN-US">Tanya, </span>chapter 9<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Rabbi
Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, Sefer Hamaamorim Hakuntresim, Vol 1, Naase Na Aliyas
Kir Ktana<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Psalm 55<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>:</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>19,
as interpreted by Rabbi MM Schneerson, see also <a href="http://www.chabad.org.il/Magazines/Article.asp?ArticleID=11930&CategoryID=2010">http://www.chabad.org.il/Magazines/Article.asp?ArticleID=11930&CategoryID=2010</a>
<span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Exodus 20:9<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Mechilta<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Talmud, Taanit 20a–b<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn14">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref14" name="_edn14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Tanya, <span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>31</span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn15">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref15" name="_edn15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Arama, ibid<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn16">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref16" name="_edn16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Tanya, Igeres Hateshuva chapter 11<span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn17">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Inner%20Peace%20and%20Judaism_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref17" name="_edn17" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Siddur, order of shema and prayers before going to sleep, section hareni mochel <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-15303881661608340592023-07-06T17:08:00.005+10:002023-07-06T21:18:42.254+10:00Maimonides Teachings on Anger – Rare, Restrained and Real?<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEito5sSkDlyw1y9glPgtnGyosWyfuWRGVbcxyOFX9w8FgLQEkefRFLRUdbjf4VNiva4xy988LtmFKOKpZzCgjgVyVdcXJaIOz-H4Em4eEMuXiYtoiu6iZsXJ5Kpiz4LC8hDfU6z_JPYnP9YrfabwvbDExDyf8M01AQN0lCHRLenFV0_8lxf7t273f7JIG4/s500/angry%20paddington.gif" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="210" data-original-width="500" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEito5sSkDlyw1y9glPgtnGyosWyfuWRGVbcxyOFX9w8FgLQEkefRFLRUdbjf4VNiva4xy988LtmFKOKpZzCgjgVyVdcXJaIOz-H4Em4eEMuXiYtoiu6iZsXJ5Kpiz4LC8hDfU6z_JPYnP9YrfabwvbDExDyf8M01AQN0lCHRLenFV0_8lxf7t273f7JIG4/s320/angry%20paddington.gif" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Maimonides wrote that anger is sometimes appropriate but,
apparently, also that anger is always wrong.
I will argue that, despite Maimonides cautioning us about the dangers of
excessive anger, he permitted real anger when it is warranted, on condition
that one does not lose control. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Chapter 1 - Anger is appropriate only when warranted.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">In chapter 1,<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides taught that one should follow the middle path. “<i>Do not be an angry person, easily
angered; nor be like the </i></span><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">dead</span></i><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">, without feeling; rather one should be
in between these extremes. Be angry<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
only about big matters that warrant anger, to prevent the matter from recurring</span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Chapter 2 - Don’t get angry even when warranted.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">In chapter 2,<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides wrote that <i>“it is forbidden to follow the middle path”</i> regarding
anger. <i>“Anger is an exceptionally bad quality. A person must teach himself
not to become angry even when anger is warranted.</i>” This appears to be the
exact opposite of his guidance in chapter 1. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Aristotle vs the rabbis<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">One academic perspective on this apparent
contradiction is that, in chapter 1, Maimonides was following the teachings of
Aristotle, who advocated the middle way of being good-tempered – to get angry
only in the appropriate manner on the appropriate occasion<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
In chapter 2, Maimonides rejected Aristotle and followed the teachings of the rabbis<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">In the Abbreviated Code of
Jewish Law (the Kitzur), these chapters of Maimonides are quoted verbatim,
except for the permission to get angry when it is warranted in chapter 1, which
is omitted<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
This makes sense if the author of the abbreviated code thought that chapter 2
is rabbinic and chapter 1 is Aristotelian. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This reflects a broader disagreement between the
Torah’s approach and that of Aristotle. In Aristotle’s worldview, pride is a
virtue, and a slight to one’s </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">honour</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> is seen to justify anger; in contrast, the rabbinic
attitude sees pride as a vice and humility as a virtue, which makes anger about
slights to </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">honour</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">
unacceptable<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Maimonides wrote elsewhere that authors might
contradict themselves in this way, first quoting one authority, then quoting
another with a different view<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
However, this approach does not completely explain Maimonides’ approach to anger
as it is reflected in his various writings. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Other texts show that anger, when warranted, is
appropriate.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Maimonides’ writings contain quite angry and scathing
comments about wrongdoers whose offences warranted anger<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
One target of his anger was a man, who condemned Jews who made a statement of
faith in the basic tenets of Islam under the threat of death. Maimonides was indignant
and scathing in his rejection of this man’s work, declaring that he had “</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">darkened the hearts of people<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-language: HE;">Maimonides wrote about the case of Moses being angry with the Israelites
for demanding water when they had none to drink, followed by Moses hitting a
rock and being punished by God</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-language: HE;">. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Maimonides
explained that Moses was punished for being angry in a situation that did not
warrant anger<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
The inference I draw from this explanation is that there are some situations
that warrant anger, in which anger is appropriate, just as there are other
situations that do not warrant it.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><b style="font-size: medium; text-align: -webkit-right;"><span dir="LTR" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 17.12px; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Only feigned anger is permitted</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Some interpret Maimonides permission to be angry in
chapter 1 to mean feigned anger<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
This approach is based on Maimonides’ comment in chapter 2: if a parent or a
community leader wants to arouse fear in their children or the community to
motivate them to proper </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">behaviour</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">,
“<i>he should show them that he is angry<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn14" name="_ednref14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>,
but he should be inwardly calm, like a person who pretends to be angry, but is
not really angry.” <o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">A careful reading of Maimonides’ words does not
support this interpretation<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn15" name="_ednref15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. Real anger is implied by Maimonides’
statement: “<i>nor should one be like the dead, without feeling</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn16" name="_ednref16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
Instead, one can take Maimonides’ comment about feigned anger not as a rule but
merely advice about how to limit one’s exposure to the vice of anger, even
though anger - in some cases - is permitted by Jewish law<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn17" name="_ednref17" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-language: HE;">Genuine anger is an appropriate educational tool.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-language: HE;">The Lubavitcher Rebbe wrote that genuine – not feigned – anger is
legitimate when teaching children. A teacher who seeks to correct their
students’ failings, is instructed to be angry with them<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn18" name="_ednref18" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xviii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
The teacher must not just pretend to be angry as it is impossible to fool the
students and influence their behaviour; instead, the teacher should feel
genuinely angry<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn19" name="_ednref19" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Anger only over big things?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">An alternative attempt at reconciling the
contradiction between Chapters 1 and 2 recalls the self-help book titled,
“Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn20" name="_ednref20" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xx]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
In chapter 1, two conditions are set for anger to be acceptable. A. something
‘big’ and B. a matter that warrants anger. </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span>Chapter
2 forbids anger where only one condition is met – ‘anger is warranted’; however
anger is not justified unless the second condition is also met that it is a “big
matter".</span></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn21" name="_ednref21" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The idea that “big matters” justify anger, aligns with
the Torah’s praise for Phineas’ indignation over Zimri’s public disregard for
the Torah’s morality<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn22" name="_ednref22" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
Another example of anger in the Torah is Jacob’s anger at Rachel when she demands
that he be God-like to solve her infertility<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn23" name="_ednref23" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
Also, a big issue.<span style="color: red;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Another Jewish authority wrote that there are times
when anger is obligatory, and it is about such situations that the moralists
taught: “<i>Don’t be sweet, lest they swallow you</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn24" name="_ednref24" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>!”.
One who only gets angry rarely – with
difficulty - and is easily reconciled, is called pious by the Mishna<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn25" name="_ednref25" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Be angry but don’t become an angry person or lose
control.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">An approach that resonates with me is Rabbi Elchanach
Samet’s<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn26" name="_ednref26" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. He cites Maimonides’ other work where he
defined anger as having two components - behavior and character. A person is
encouraged to develop a patient or tolerant character, as well as be moderate
in one’s behavior<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn27" name="_ednref27" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxvii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">In chapter 1, Maimonides is focused on behavior<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn28" name="_ednref28" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxviii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>:
feeling anger is appropriate when warranted. Chapter 2 is mainly<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn29" name="_ednref29" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
about character. Maimonides warns us that the angry person cannot think clearly<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn30" name="_ednref30" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxx]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. It is this kind of angry character that
Maimonides urges us to avoid developing. We should not allow ourselves to get
so angry that we lose control, which would impact on our character. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">When Maimonides wrote about showing family or
community members that one is angry<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn31" name="_ednref31" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxxi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>,
Maimonides meant to be genuinely angry, not pretending<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn32" name="_ednref32" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxxii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
But this anger should be controlled anger rather than one in which one has lost
control. This aligns with Maimonides’ writing elsewhere that God does not act
out of emotion, and that human leaders should aspire to the same<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn33" name="_ednref33" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxxiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Samet focuses on one important word, the word “like”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_edn34" name="_ednref34" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxxiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
in chapter 2, where Maimonides mentioned pretending to be angry. Maimonides’ concern
is that if one expresses controlled anger, it might not be taken seriously by
others. They might mistake the calm manner as a signal that the offence was not
serious. Therefore, it is ok to act <i><u>similar</u> to</i> – but not exactly
the same as – an actor who is not angry at all but pretends to be so angry that
they have lost control. In fact, one is called to be more nuanced than the
actor whose anger is completely fake: we are advised to combine genuine anger
and calm, with exaggerated expression. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Acting like I lost it, roused a half-drunk actor.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I experienced this kind of mixture of controlled anger
and pretending to “lose it” on the morning after some of my Sydney Yeshiva peers
had been drinking on Purim night in 1991.
A group of Yeshiva students were scheduled to perform the story of Purim
in a play at Bellevue Hill Public School, at 8 am the following morning. One of
the young scholars with a minor part in the play, was too hung-over to get out
of bed. I was moderately annoyed with him because he was part of the team, but
not too worried because we could manage without him. Despite my confidence and
calm, I pretended to be extremely angry. I screamed and yelled at him, not for
his benefit but for his more crucial friend, half asleep in the next room, who
was meant to play the king in the Purim play. “His royal highness” appeared
moved by my acting and dragged his half-drunk body out of bed - the show could
go on! <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Maimonides' guidance on anger – although contested – appears
to balance social utility and the recognition that anger is sometimes
appropriate, with restraint that ensures we don’t lose control and supports
virtuous character development. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p>
</p><div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Mishne Torah, Hilchot Deot – Human Dispositions, 1:4 <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Mishneh_Torah%2C_Human_Dispositions.1.4?lang=bi">https://www.sefaria.org/Mishneh_Torah%2C_Human_Dispositions.1.4?lang=bi</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The Hebrew word is<span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">יכעס </span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> which is most accurately translated as to be
angry -but the Hebrew word is a verb. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Mishne Torah, Hilchot Deot – Human Dispositions, 2:3<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Aristotle,
Nichomachean Ethics, IV.5, in Frank, D., H., (1990), Anger as a vice:
Maimonidean Critique of Aristotle’s Ethics, History of Philosophy Quarterly,
Vol 7, No 3, pp. 269-281, University of Illinois Press<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Frank, D. H. (1990), Anger as a vice: Maimonidean Critique of Aristotle’s
Ethics, History of Philosophy Quarterly, Vol 7, No 3, pp. 269-281, University
of Illinois Press<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried, Kitzur Shulchan Aruch, Chapter 29, 2 and 4 where he
only quotes Maimonides teachings in chapter 2 but omits his teaching about
anger in chapter 1<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Frank, D.H. (1990). Ibid, page 272-273 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Maimonides, Guide for the perplexed, introduction. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
In addition to the example that I cite from Maimonides’ letters, see also his Introduction
to Perek Helek where he wrote about the accursed second group of
scoffers, who are so pretentiously stupid that they can never attain genuine
wisdom.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Iggeres
HaShmad - letter on destruction written between 1160 or 1162<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Numbers 20:12, Deuteronomy 32:51<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Introduction to Pirkey Avot, Shemona Perkaim, chapter 4<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Knesset Hagdola, and E. Tauger’s translation of Hilchot Deot. Moznaim
publishers HaGedolah. Tauger’s translations renders chapter 1 in which
Maimonides says it is appropriate to be angry about big matters as “to display”
anger. In other words, to fake it. The
Hebrew verb used by Maimonides to convey ‘being angry” is Yich’os - <span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">יִכְעֹס</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>,
which is hard to translate into English. Tauger boldly translated it as ‘to
display anger. See also the conclusion of Shaarei Chinuch, p. 245-246, Likutei
Sichos vol 22, p. 401 which seems to support this approach in cases not
involving a teacher and students.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn14">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref14" name="_edn14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The Hebrew text reads: <span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">יראה עצמו בפניהם
שהוא כועס כדי לייסרם</span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn15">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref15" name="_edn15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Mirkevet Hamishneh, Aaron Ben Moshe Alfandri <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn16">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref16" name="_edn16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Hilchot Deot chapter 1 cited above<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn17">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref17" name="_edn17" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Bigdey Yom Tov, Shlomo ben Yehuda Aharon Kluger, (1783-1869) <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn18">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref18" name="_edn18" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xviii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 246:11 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn19">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref19" name="_edn19" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The Lubavitcher Rebbe, in Shaarei Chinuch, p. 245-246, Likutei Sichos vol 22,
p. 401<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn20">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref20" name="_edn20" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xx]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Richard Carlson, (1997), Don't Sweat The Small Stuff and it's all small stuff,
Bantham Books<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn21">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref21" name="_edn21" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Abraham Ḥiyya de Boton (1560 – c. 1605) in Lechem Mishna on Mishne Torah,
Hilchot Deot 1:4-5, Knesset Hagdola also offers a similar interpretation in one
of his answers<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn22">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref22" name="_edn22" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Numbers 25:7-8, and 25:11-13, See Rabbenu Yona on Avot 5:11<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn23">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref23" name="_edn23" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 30:1-2<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn24">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref24" name="_edn24" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rabbenu Yona on Avot 5:11, Rabbenu Yona lived 1180-1263<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn25">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref25" name="_edn25" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Pirkey Avot 5:11<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn26">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref26" name="_edn26" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Elchanan Samet, (1998) <a href="https://www.daat.ac.il/daat/kitveyet/maaliyot/iyunim1-2.htm">https://www.daat.ac.il/daat/kitveyet/maaliyot/iyunim1-2.htm</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn27">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref27" name="_edn27" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxvii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Introduction to Pirkey Avot, Shemona Perkaim, chapter 4<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn28">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref28" name="_edn28" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxviii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
In 1:1 Maimonides mentions many behaviours including frequently being angry, or
never being angry, along with other behaviours such as self-torment with
hunger, gathering possessions or money, avoiding spending even a penny and when
spending feeling great pain, or wasting all of one’s money etc. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn29">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref29" name="_edn29" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
This resolution fits with a lot of the text of Maimonides but does not fit all
of it. In 2:3 it states “one should conduct oneself in such a way that he
should not ever feel at all for matters that make one angry, <span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">שינהיג עצמו שלא ירגיש אפילו לדברים המכעיסין</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> </span>which
is about behaviour, not character. I don’t think there is any explanation that
will perfectly resolve the contradictions arising from all that Maimonides
wrote in these two chapters that also fits with Maimonides other writings. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn30">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref30" name="_edn30" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxx]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Deot 2:3 based on Talmud, Pesachim 66b <strong><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="background: white; border: 1pt none windowtext; font-family: Heebo; font-weight: normal; padding: 0cm;">כל אדם שכועס – אם חכם הוא חכמתו מסתלקת ממנו</span></strong><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn31">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref31" name="_edn31" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxxi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The Hebrew text is <span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">יראה עצמו בפניהם
<u>שהוא כועס</u> כדי לייסרם, ותהיה דעתו מיושבת בינו לבין עצמו</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>,
which I think is best translated as he should show himself, before them that he
is angry. The Hebrew text can reasonably be translated in either of two ways,
either showing them that he is actually angry, or pretending to be angry. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn32">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref32" name="_edn32" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxxii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
This phrase <span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">יראה עצמו בפניהם
<u>שהוא כועס</u> </span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> </span>might be part of
what was troubling the author of Mirkevet Hamishneh about the suggestion that
only feigned anger was allowed – which he said did not fit with the <span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span> לשון </span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>(literally the tongue, figuratively the exact words) of
Maimonides. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn33">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref33" name="_edn33" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxxiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Guide for the perplexed, part 1, chapter 54<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn34">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Maimonides%20teachings%20on%20Anger%20Rare%20Restrained%20and%20Real%20-%20final%206July2027.docx#_ednref34" name="_edn34" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xxxiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">the Hebrew
letter</span><span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">כ </span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> </span><span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">כאדם שהוא מדמה</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-79003610290576793492023-04-28T14:46:00.004+10:002023-05-06T20:05:50.024+10:00Conceived in Sin - A Lack of Soul Connection<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivWrk7iUOdgC3cvr-ZVyCGaBLweLbj0QlNGb6x4tzTBua9P6jngcfYbwD1lmKdS0INcdCrhcfMFw0oQx5EL14mf6GAi0KcoMTd2FfyJxy-LulUGfF8cS87-Vd4Z8Fwd38WnzhCcuVL_I-6rMxMRuwnbJp0u009OX2KfW3tQDBrt5P_P6zGsBR1bn9I/s640/twin-soul-healing.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivWrk7iUOdgC3cvr-ZVyCGaBLweLbj0QlNGb6x4tzTBua9P6jngcfYbwD1lmKdS0INcdCrhcfMFw0oQx5EL14mf6GAi0KcoMTd2FfyJxy-LulUGfF8cS87-Vd4Z8Fwd38WnzhCcuVL_I-6rMxMRuwnbJp0u009OX2KfW3tQDBrt5P_P6zGsBR1bn9I/s320/twin-soul-healing.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />I was intrigued by how Jewish teachings interpret King David’s lament in
the Psalms that “<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">in sin my mother conceived me
(1)”. Surely, Judaism does not regard sex as a sin. I was pleased to find an
interpretation that made a lot more sense to me and expressed Judaism’s
guidance about genuine intimacy. <o:p></o:p></span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Let us begin with the context of David’s exclamation. It is part of “a
psalm by David…after he had come to Bathsheba” (2). David, a passionately
religious (3) married man, had become interested in a married woman - Bathsheba.
He slept with her, and used his royal power to ensure her husband died in
battle (4). In this psalm, David expressed remorse, acknowledged his sins and
continuing guilt, and pleaded with G-d for forgiveness.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">A Midrash adds some explanation of what David meant. “</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">David said to God;
“Master of the worlds, did my father Yishai intend to cause me to stand [be
born]?! …his intention was only for his own pleasure. Know that this is so,
because after they did their needs, this one turned his face this way and that
one turned her face there (5)”.</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This seems to imply that David was not concerned about the act itself, but
its intention - for pleasure rather than procreation (6).</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This is problematic on two counts. The Torah mandates intercourse as a husband’s
obligation and a wife’s right (7), regardless of the potential for procreation,
for example, when a woman is past menopause (8). A husband’s priority during
intimacy should be maximising his wife’s pleasure and he is encouraged to delay
his own pleasure so that his wife climaxes first (9). The Torah portrays
intercourse as pleasurable, using the euphemism ‘playing’ or ‘laughing’, regarding
Isaac and Rebecca being sexually intimate (10). According to Raphael Aron, an
Australian Chasidic Rabbi and counsellor, the Torah teaches that the “intimate
relationship must be pleasurable (11)”. In 2008 Rabbi Aron wrote that “</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">it is
a serious mistake to think that the best way is the strictest way; that denial
is the most effective means by which to achieve a ‘Kosher’ marriage (12)”</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">To understand what ‘Kosher’ intimacy is, it is worth looking at its
opposite. The Talmud lists nine types of children, conceived in situations that
were, mostly, not accompanied by a full emotional union. These include </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">children
of fear</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, i.e., where the wife was afraid of her husband and engaged in
sexual intercourse with him out of fear</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">; children of a woman who was forced </i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">into
intercourse by her husband</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">; children of a hated woman; children of
drunkenness (and thus the partners are not able to be emotionally present with
each other); children of a woman who was divorced in the heart</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, i.e., the
husband had already decided to divorce her when they engaged in intercourse;
and </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">children of substitution</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, i.e., while engaging in intercourse with
the woman, the man thought that she was another woman (13).</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Considering this list, further commentary written in the 19</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
century, on the midrash above, can advance our understanding of David’s lament.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This commentary cited a different midrash that
relates that ‘</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">Yishai, David’s father, separated from his wife Nitzevet [because
of a technical religious concern] (14). Instead, he decided to sleep with his
maidservant. The maidservant told her mistress, Yishai’s wife Nitzevet. Nitzevet then went into the bed, instead of
the maidservant, and was intimate with her husband Yishai while Yishai thought
he was sleeping with his maidservant. From this deed, David was born’ (15).</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The nature of his conception rang in David’s mind
during his situation with Bathsheba. Because he felt like he was inherently damaged
goods, like a child of a substitution. [one of the nine mentioned above]. …David
referenced this in this psalm about his sin with Bathsheba. …David said to God,
“I had to sin with Bathsheba (16) because there is, in me, a side of sin, from
my father’s side, in that he had no intention of creating me, but only his own
pleasure, as he thought he was sleeping with his maidservant. …In this, my
father made me like the ‘child of a substitution’. This rumbled inside of me
when I sinned with Bat Sheva.” [perhaps, also, that he felt additional shame as
he reflected on his sin, because he saw it as linked to his essentially damaged
spiritual state because of the nature of his conception (17)].</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This remarkable commentary can be
understood to be critical of an act that was completely selfish. Yishai was not
cementing his relationship with his wife in an act of love and togetherness –
in the way the Torah says a man will leave his parents and cleave to his wife
and become one flesh (18). He didn’t even know who he was sleeping with! (It is
also unlikely that he had quickly formed a deeply committed relationship with
his maidservant.) This understandably ‘messed’ with the head of his son, David,
who regarded it as sinful.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I find this explanation very useful in an age that, although shameless in
some ways, is in other ways excessively shame prone. So many of us feel ashamed
of our bodies, telling ourselves we are fat etc. There are plenty of legitimate
reasons for people to feel ashamed of themselves when they violate valid standards.
However, for a religious Jew, being a considerate lover, giving and receiving
intimate pleasure, in a committed loving relationship, sanctioned by marriage, is
certainly not one of them. </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Notes<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">1)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Psalms, 51:7<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">2)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Psalms, 51:1-2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">3)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="background: white;">Samuel II, 6:14 is one example, his
authorship of the psalms is another.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">4)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Samuel II, 11 <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">5)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Midrash Rabbah, Vayikra 14:5<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">6) <span style="line-height: 107%; text-indent: -18pt;">Chanoch Zundel Ben Yosef (1829) in</span><span style="text-indent: -18pt;"> </span><span style="line-height: 107%; text-indent: -18pt;">Anaf Yosef commentary on Midrash
Rabba, </span><span style="line-height: 107%; text-indent: -18pt;">Vayikra 14:5, in his</span><span style="line-height: 107%; text-indent: -18pt;"> first comment. Anaf Yosef links the
objection to pleasure to a comment in the Talmud whose context suggests it does
not mean what he suggests it means. The Talmud in Nedarim 20b relates a
description of intercourse by a woman named Ima Shalom who described her
husband’s behaviour as follows…</span><span style="line-height: 107%; text-indent: -18pt;"> </span><span style="line-height: 107%; text-indent: -18pt;">My husband does not converse with me [a euphemism for sex] neither at the
beginning of the night nor at the end of the night, but rather at midnight. And
when he ‘converses’ he reveals a handbreadth and covers a handbreadth, and it
[the sexual experience] is as though he were being forced by a demon. And I
said to him: What is the reason? And he said to me: It is so that I will not
set my eyes on [think about] another woman, which would then result in his
children consequently come to a <i>mamzer</i> [bastard] status. [i.e., the
nature of their souls is tantamount to that of a <i>mamzer</i>. Therefore, he
engaged in sexual intercourse at an hour when there are no people in the street
that might distract him from his attention on his wife because he was afraid of
not being fully focused on her]. From his explanation, it is clear that he was
not worried about how much pleasure he was having but about his degree of
emotional connection with his wife, and that it is not diluted by thoughts of
other women.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">7)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Exodus 21:10, Maimonides, Book of Women, Hilchot Ishut, 12:2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">8)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> I</span>n Aron, R. (2008), Spirituality and Intimacy, Devora
Publishing, p. 81<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">9)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Talmud Nida 31a, see Rashi there and Raavad quoted in Magen
Avraham on Orach Chayim 240:8<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">10)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Genesis 26:8<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">11)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Based on a comment by Rashi on Genesis 2:24 and the Netziv-
HaEmek Davar on Genesis 2:23, in Aron, R., p. 84, he also cited Nachmanides
that Intimacy should be “amidst an abundance of love and desire”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">12)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Aron, R., p. 85<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">13)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Talmud Nedarim, 20b <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">14)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>As a descendant of Ruth, who was a Moabite woman, he was unsure
if the Torah forbids only Moabite men or also Moabite women from marrying into
the Jewish people. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">15)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Yalkut HaMachiri, and Sefer HaTodaah, Sivan and Shavuot, cited by Chanoch Zundel in Anaf Yosef and <span style="background: white;">Rabbi Yisroel
Roll in</span> https://torah.org/learning/torahtherapy-alone13/?printversion=1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">16)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Maharal of Prague in Derekh Chayim (commentary on Pirkey Avot)
3:1:15 explained that David’s intention was not to excuse his behaviour- in the
psalm he expressed genuine remorse. It is more an argument of mitigating
circumstances.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">17)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Chanoch Zundel Ben Yosef (1829) in Anaf Yosef commentary on
Midrash Rabba, Vayikra 14:5, see more on this in this article, cited by <span style="background: white;">Rabbi Yisroel
Roll in</span> https://torah.org/learning/torahtherapy-alone13/?printversion=1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia;">18)<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Genesis 2:24</span></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-32707059341227701182023-03-31T13:22:00.003+11:002023-03-31T13:33:57.394+11:00 My speech for son's Bar Mitzva Be a Dragon Rider<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilA_BAsyMQRy6XfUzGYUrqRTdwzqm0fwGacQhvtCYpKSMpNMJ5iEA64o34ozWAOra6zqlpevZM7DlUJCMWRC2gHx4NugPfkFIKwF69uCVcQCo7wg59fhkZA2JRF4rxBE82HpumbS9Ak2rF_HS4H2rMyCmWdBkd3s7OJV4JFrN2pO-woPn7JttO7Jwq/s3994/Tuvia%20dancing%20with%20friends.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2663" data-original-width="3994" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilA_BAsyMQRy6XfUzGYUrqRTdwzqm0fwGacQhvtCYpKSMpNMJ5iEA64o34ozWAOra6zqlpevZM7DlUJCMWRC2gHx4NugPfkFIKwF69uCVcQCo7wg59fhkZA2JRF4rxBE82HpumbS9Ak2rF_HS4H2rMyCmWdBkd3s7OJV4JFrN2pO-woPn7JttO7Jwq/w320-h213/Tuvia%20dancing%20with%20friends.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 12pt;">What a night, to be with all of you to
celebrate our delightful Tuvia’s Bar Mitzvah.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">King David told his 12-year-old son,
Solomon, “I am going the way of all the land, to die, and you should be strong
and be a man<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What kind of man should you be? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You should follow the example of the
men you were named after. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Moshe Tuvia Stark, your great-grandfather
who was so loved that every time his grandchildren mentioned his name, their
whole faces lit up with pleasure. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">My wife Shoshie
and I, grandparents, and teachers all get great pleasure from you. This is no
small matter, as we are taught: “</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">Every person in whom people’s
spirit find pleasure, God is pleased with, but anyone that people are not
pleased with, God is also not pleased with<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Mr. Stark was an example of the teaching
that; “In a place where there are no men, step up and be a man<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
He was ‘the man’ who took responsibility for the synagogue, two schools, meals
for those in need, the mikveh, and the burial society. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You are also named after your great,
great grandfather, Dr. Armin, Yirmiyahu Blau. A Torah scholar and a teacher. One
of his students wrote about him. “<i><span style="background: white; color: #222222;">His depth of knowledge of German culture and his artistic interests
fascinated us and called on us to follow him. </span></i><span style="background: white; color: #222222;"> “<i>Nobody instructed us better in the
noble art of being human.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[iv]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”</i></span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Great shoes to fill, but you are
already on your way to living up to their examples, thanks to the balanced
education you get at your school, Kesser Torah. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">But, as Reb Zushe said, it
is not our task to be a copy of anyone else. Certainly, not strong, and brutal like
Samson<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. Instead,
we must strive to be the best version of ourselves<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">So, I return to the
question of what kind of man you will become? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I invite you to consider
being the kind of man represented by a fictional, brave, young man, wise beyond
his years.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I refer to the character
called Hiccup, a young dragon rider</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[vii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1LOxFlUrJWxIooQ1R265UGtYT-xyklwX8xdNOBcfdId_L1iTSFXSUmZn4-sbVgCzR8MYwFN20B6N129tN40KXvLgrZS9QdwJ6-mXhPb3XJ1TemoeGGR-MLHZECYCJoMalR3OBmR8H2yv7DZ06ZgIxqR-0UGInBrxPMt9EilPLcE9P58-aj0_ZafLC/s220/Dragon%20rider.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="220" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1LOxFlUrJWxIooQ1R265UGtYT-xyklwX8xdNOBcfdId_L1iTSFXSUmZn4-sbVgCzR8MYwFN20B6N129tN40KXvLgrZS9QdwJ6-mXhPb3XJ1TemoeGGR-MLHZECYCJoMalR3OBmR8H2yv7DZ06ZgIxqR-0UGInBrxPMt9EilPLcE9P58-aj0_ZafLC/s1600/Dragon%20rider.jpeg" width="220" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It is written: “</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">who is
strong, one who conquers his own inclination</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">”</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[viii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The kind of man you must
be, is one who is able to tame the beast inside of you.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">According to Hasidic
teachings, the meaning of the sacrifices offered up in the temple, is to offer
up the animals inside of us.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The ox represents the
aggressive part of us</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[ix]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">,
that reacts harshly when provoked or irritated, when we feel that the other
person is not being reasonable and deserves a harsh reaction.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It is ok to be assertive,
but we must be calm and restrained.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The wrong kind of ox is
represented by many of the 1980s New York City cops I remember who were in the
habit of yelling insults at people who made a traffic mistake.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">On the other hand, the harnessed
ox is exemplified by the detective who stopped at a traffic light, next to a
car full of Yeshiva students including me on Ocean Parkway in Brooklyn. He
flashed a badge and in a very calm, soft voice told the driver “</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">I have been
watching your driving”</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, he listed all the things the driver did wrong. Then
he said: “</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">I am not a cop, I am not going to give you a ticket. You keep
driving like this and I will take you into the station</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">”. The driving
dramatically improved. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">But we also sacrifice sheep.
This represents pleasure-seeking. A gentle sheep that does nothing but eat
grass play on the computer and endlessly dribble a basketball.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Here is the odd thing
about pleasure. In moderation, pleasure is good. All the sacrifices had to
include salt</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[x]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> which adds
flavour to food</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[xi]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">. I am
proud of your basketball ability. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">But we must not be driven
by seeking pleasure. We must be in control.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The Torah states that
yeast or honey was generally not allowed to be part of the sacrifices</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[xii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">. We
must not be motivated by the drive for pleasure represented by honey</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[xiii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">,
but do what is right, because it is right</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_edn14" name="_ednref14" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[xiv]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The animal soul we have
inside is wild and loves his pleasure. It can be incredibly productive and
delightful which is great. Its passion can help us fly high and accomplish things
we might never have imagined possible, but this only works if we direct it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Tuvia, welcome to the
dragon riders, young man.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><div>
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Kings I 2:2<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Pirkey Avot 3:10<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Pirkey Avot 2:5<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">Wolfsberg,
Dr. O, Armin Published in Zion, vol 9, no. 3, pp. 13-14. July 1937. Berlin.
Translated from German to English by his daughter Rivka (Jenny) Marmorstein.</span><a href="http://www.geni.com/people/R-Dr-Armin-%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%9E%D7%99%D7%94%D7%95-Blau/353035782440006443"><span style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">http://www.geni.com/people/R-Dr-Armin-%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%9E%D7%99%D7%94%D7%95-Blau/353035782440006443</span></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Lyrics to the 8<sup>th</sup> Day song<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> https://jewishjournal.com/commentary/blogs/336309/a-moment-in-time-why-were-you-not-more-like-zusia/<span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> the
main protagonist of the DreamWorks’ animated How to Train Your Dragon <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
<span lang="EN-US">Pirkey Avot 4:1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-US">Likutei Torah, Vayikra<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Leviticus 2:13<span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-US">Baal Shem Tov on the Torah<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Leviticus 2:11<span dir="RTL" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="HE" style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Sefer Hachinuch 117, referred to as “self-oriented satisfaction a person feels
in his divine service – based on Ohr Hatorah and Yahel Or in The Siddur
Illuminated with Chassidus, p. 39, Kehot publications<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn14">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS_edits_My%20speech%20for%20Tuvia%20Bar%20Mitzva%20blog%20version.docx#_ednref14" name="_edn14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Laws of
repentance 1:3<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-59590415638606294152023-03-15T17:24:00.005+11:002023-03-15T17:24:33.059+11:00Changing Nature of Jewish Religious Practice in Australia and the Importance of Interfaith Dialogue<p class="MsoNormal"><i>An edited version of a talk to the ISRA Studies of
Religion Conference in Sydney 10 March 2023<br /><br /><o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In response to the Studies of Religion Syllabus focus on the
changing pattern of religious observance in Australia post-1945, I will discuss
one change - the prevalence of Hasidic Rabbis in orthodox synagogues in Sydney.
I will also address the importance of Interfaith dialogue.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I begin with a bit of scripture, <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i>Moses came down from Mount
Sinai with the two tablets, he was not aware that the skin of his face was
radiant… the Israelites were afraid to approach him (</i>Exodus
34:29-30)<i>. <o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">The phenomenon is explained by
the Midrash<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS%20Changes%202023_03_10%20Changing%20Nature%20of%20Jewish%20Religion%20in%20Australia%20and%20Interfaith%20Dialogue%20SOR%20conference%20.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[i]</span></span></span></a>. Moses
worked closely with God to create the second set of tablets after he broke the
first set in response to the worship of the golden calf. Moses held one side of
the tablets in his hand – symbolic of the parts of the Torah humans could
understand, while the Divine Presence held the other edge – symbolic of the
parts of the Torah that only God understands<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS%20Changes%202023_03_10%20Changing%20Nature%20of%20Jewish%20Religion%20in%20Australia%20and%20Interfaith%20Dialogue%20SOR%20conference%20.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ligatures: none;">[ii]</span></span></span></a>, and
in between the two parts was something of profound mystery. It was from this mystery
that rays of light appeared on Moses’ face. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">I, a Rabbi from Brooklyn, New
York, read this passage while preparing my lesson for a Hasidic-led Synagogue
based on the North Shore of Sydney. The congregation I will deliver this lesson
to are not Hasidic Jews, but choose to attend the lessons of a Hasidic Rabbi. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm7QEZCa7J0RJ0ArZmd7iMNEkw4EqfwWge3G--XuvMtQbgxNxl1tYwdFLZ5DdkIOEAM_t253sEV51GTAfatQW9rL9_I2bs52o7mAywT5FG6xWw4vXPmQfqEQMnIgVOg4fChHzx2Zrac3JD12j7jjJTxP0ghWTbQh0ueREIAf_1zJDY2qLxmgSdysme/s525/Yehoram.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="525" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm7QEZCa7J0RJ0ArZmd7iMNEkw4EqfwWge3G--XuvMtQbgxNxl1tYwdFLZ5DdkIOEAM_t253sEV51GTAfatQW9rL9_I2bs52o7mAywT5FG6xWw4vXPmQfqEQMnIgVOg4fChHzx2Zrac3JD12j7jjJTxP0ghWTbQh0ueREIAf_1zJDY2qLxmgSdysme/s320/Yehoram.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Senior Dayan (Judge) of the Sydney Beth Din <br />(Religious court), Rabbi Yehoram Ulman<br /></td></tr></tbody></table>This reflects a peculiar
development of Jewish practice since 1945. Instead of mainstream orthodox Jews
being led by Rabbis of the same inclination, they are mostly led by Hasidic Rabbis.
In terms familiar to Studies of Religion teachers, many of these Rabbis are
less in the mode of Maimonides and his rationalist approach - that would
interpret the Torah’s story about a talking donkey as a prophetic vision - and
more in the mystical mode of the Baal Shem Tov. This change that has occurred
in orthodox Jewish life in Australia is linked to the rise of secularism.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p>Australian
Jews are generally full participants in Australian culture, and the general
trends you will see in the census also hold true for Jews. Like the census data
that tell us that more than a third of
Australians selected no religion, around 30% of respondents of the Gen17
Australian Jewish Population Survey cited a ‘secular’ outlook or lifestyle<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS%20Changes%202023_03_10%20Changing%20Nature%20of%20Jewish%20Religion%20in%20Australia%20and%20Interfaith%20Dialogue%20SOR%20conference%20.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span></span></a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">The trend
away from religious observance has been a global one. It prompted a response from
the Chabad Hasidic movement to send Rabbis from New York to all corners of the
world to call Jews back to religious belief, study, and practice. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">This
development is one change in one stream of one faith community in Australia, and
it is important not to overstate its significance, even within the Jewish faith.
Hasidic Rabbis will often teach from mainstream orthodox perspectives. Adherence to religious requirements is still
mixed, despite the best efforts of the Hasidic Rabbis. 29% of survey respondents
reported that only kosher meat was bought for their homes and 14% attend synagogue
once or more per week.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Despite the Hasidic background of many Rabbis in Sydney, this has
not inhibited interfaith work. Labels can often be misleading. An example of
this is my good friend, Imam Farhan Khalil, who comes from a Salafi school of
Islam and is one of the most passionate advocates of interfaith I know. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The interfaith work done by the Together For Humanity Foundation began
in a Chabad Hasidic Synagogue in 2002. It was a collaboration between a Hasidic
Rabbi, Christians and Muslims spreading a message of goodwill between people of
different faiths. One of the early events was covering NSW Parliament with
messages from students in response to the visits by the Christian, Jewish and
Muslim teams to schools. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">During the Sydney siege, Father Patrick McInerny and I said
prayers on the steps of Lakemba Mosque alongside Sheikh Wesam Charkawi. This
was part of an effort to show interfaith solidarity. It was widely reported in
the media, and was part of the spirit of goodwill at the time that prevented
that terrible event eroding social cohesion in our city. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">There is a lot of effort being put into interfaith. Studies of
Religion is strong in NSW, with an active Facebook page with over 1600 members.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">School children from different cultures come together in
interfaith encounters. These are run by Catholic Mission, the NSW Jewish Board
of Deputies and Together For Humanity, to name a few. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">An Independent evaluation of Together For Humanity’s work by Western
Sydney University found that there was a significant impact from these activities. The research found that programs are effective in assisting students to challenge
stereotypes and alleviate their fears. These programs also empower students to
deal with prejudice and discrimination and promote the acquisition of empathy, mutual
acceptance and belonging. <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS%20Changes%202023_03_10%20Changing%20Nature%20of%20Jewish%20Religion%20in%20Australia%20and%20Interfaith%20Dialogue%20SOR%20conference%20.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Some would argue that if the criteria for evaluating the importance
of interfaith dialogue is measured by the number of participants, then it is irrelevant
to most Australians and therefore unimportant.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">On the other hand, I would argue that the criteria should be based
on the need for it, in which case, it is very important. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To return to the scriptural idea I began with. Some people are
drawn to a ‘golden calf’ type of religion. Concrete, solid and uncomplicated.
Interfaith work, however, can be linked to the mystery of <i>’the middle
section of the tablets</i>‘. Its mystery involves the complexity of holding in
tension; truth claims on one hand, and leaving space and having respect for
those who believe and practice differently. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p> </p><div>
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS%20Changes%202023_03_10%20Changing%20Nature%20of%20Jewish%20Religion%20in%20Australia%20and%20Interfaith%20Dialogue%20SOR%20conference%20.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-US">Midrash Rabba, Exodus, 47:11<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS%20Changes%202023_03_10%20Changing%20Nature%20of%20Jewish%20Religion%20in%20Australia%20and%20Interfaith%20Dialogue%20SOR%20conference%20.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-US">Etz Yosef on Midrash Rabba, Exodus,
47:11<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS%20Changes%202023_03_10%20Changing%20Nature%20of%20Jewish%20Religion%20in%20Australia%20and%20Interfaith%20Dialogue%20SOR%20conference%20.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <a href="https://www.monash.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/1531791/gen17-initial-findings-report-online-version-final-22_3.pdf">https://www.monash.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/1531791/gen17-initial-findings-report-online-version-final-22_3.pdf</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/NS%20Changes%202023_03_10%20Changing%20Nature%20of%20Jewish%20Religion%20in%20Australia%20and%20Interfaith%20Dialogue%20SOR%20conference%20.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
<span style="color: #212223; mso-font-kerning: 0pt;">Gale, F., Edenborough, M.,
Boccanfuso, E., Hawkins, M., & Sell, C. (2019), Western Sydney University,
Australia. Promoting intercultural<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div><p><span style="color: #212223;">understanding, connectedness
and belonging: An independent qualitative evaluation of Together For Humanity
programs</span><span style="color: #212223; font-size: 11pt;">.</span> </p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-72931881483700429172023-03-02T15:58:00.010+11:002023-03-02T15:58:48.723+11:00 Selling Young Daughters into Servitude and Marriage in the Torah<p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Long after I
closed the book the words played on my mind. I read a passage in the Torah
about the case of a man who sells his daughter as a child to be a maidservant.
When the girl matured, she would be expected to marry her master, marry her
master’s son, failing either of these options s</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZmVDa7BlagQTKxqx7hoeQGQPerdJboLEPmwJM-AYCFeI5XRnXXXvbUrbP3wze5x_a2aT1FqFIQ_o-9sjn0nnk_EO3pg-shPwLx87__UntK-5TuvqNDqItd5IwYlb0uun-k__9hpItv0mJIKytzkkowjr0rWCv0iAbSN3Pz1Ujshfwaee0-KNAYfZ6/s273/gils%20into%20slavery.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="185" data-original-width="273" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZmVDa7BlagQTKxqx7hoeQGQPerdJboLEPmwJM-AYCFeI5XRnXXXvbUrbP3wze5x_a2aT1FqFIQ_o-9sjn0nnk_EO3pg-shPwLx87__UntK-5TuvqNDqItd5IwYlb0uun-k__9hpItv0mJIKytzkkowjr0rWCv0iAbSN3Pz1Ujshfwaee0-KNAYfZ6/s1600/gils%20into%20slavery.jpeg" width="273" /></a></div><br />he would go free<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.
This was disturbing enough, but a 13th-century</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> commentary by Rabbi
Yitzchak Ben Araama added some colour to this. He wrote that the father could
go ahead with such a sale even if it is to a “</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">repulsive man, stricken with
leprosy, and the daughter is screaming there is no justice [in the world],
there is no Judge</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">”-
an allusion to God, in whom she can no longer believe after what has been done
to her.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This
disturbing law, and passage really got my attention. So, I did two things, I
started to read what I could in my library and what I could find online and I
put a call out on Facebook to see if anyone else could shed light on this. Both
strategies bore fruit. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We must
first ask the question; is this scenario one the Torah condoned or a practice
the Torah tolerated but condemned and restricted. It would appear to be the
latter. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Torah
stated that if this arrangement did not transition into a fully-fledged
marriage – with all the rights of a wife as required by the Torah- then the
girl must be set free. She cannot be sold again, after ‘<i>he had betrayed her</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>’.
According to one interpretation, this is referring to the father who betrayed
his daughter by selling her in the first place<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
While it is jarring to us that the Torah does not forbid the practice outright,
it does appear to condemn it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Torah
does not say anything about requiring consent from the girl – who as a child
could not meaningfully consent anyway. However, the written Torah is meant to
be read together with the oral tradition to be understood<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
A friend<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
on Facebook directed me to the work of Maimonides on Jewish law, which requires
the girl’s consent for marriage when she becomes mature<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
Another commentator adds that if the father is a “kosher’-proper person the
sale should not go ahead in the first place without the daughter’s agreement<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Maimonides –
based on the Talmud<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> -
also stipulated that a father is only permitted to sell his daughter if he
became so poor that he has absolutely nothing, he does not even own the garment
he is wearing<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
The context of this practice is unimaginable poverty in an economic reality
that is very different from ours<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
It has been argued that in such a context it was merciful for a girl to escape
unbearable poverty and become a ‘lady’ in a more affluent home<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">All of this
needs to be viewed within the larger context of Judaism that contains insistent
messages about the obligations of the strong toward the week <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">None of this
sits comfortably with me. The idea that the Torah would tolerate such a
terrible deed still disturbs me. However, with further study, I recognize that
there is more nuance than first meets the eye. I hope that as people with
different beliefs and backgrounds meet each other and are confronted with
ancient texts we respond with curiosity and not knee-jerk condemnation. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Thank you to
Rabbis Ben Elton, Chayim Lando, Eli Cohen and Shimon Eddi and many others for
your help <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Exodus 21:7-11<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Yitzchak, Ben Arama, - (c. 1420 – 1494) Spain, in Akeidat Yitzchak, on book of
Leviticus, gate 67, p.119, it is beyond the scope of this short post but it
must be pointed out that this passage in gate 67 is in the context of making a
rhetorical point in the context of a discussion of the Rosh Hashana liturgy.
Yitzchak, Ben Arama takes a very different approach in Exodus gate 46, when he
is focused on this law directly where he emphasises mercy and says nothing or
repulsive men and distraught young girls <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Exodus 21:8<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rashi on verse 8, BVigdo Bah, based on the Talmud Kiddushin 18b, Seforno<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
See Aaronson, E, <span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">האם-זה-מוסרי-שאדם-ימכור-את-ביתו-לאמה</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>/<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span> </span>https://www.elami-elatzmi.co.il/<span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">האם-זה-מוסרי-שאדם-ימכור-את-ביתו-לאמה</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>/<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rabbi Shimon Eddi<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Yad Hachazaka, Hilchot Avadim, 4:8<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Seforno on 21:7<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Kiddushin 20a<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Yad Hachazaka, Hilchot Avadim, 4:2<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
See also Tosafot, Kiddushin 41a, Dibur Hamatchil Asur<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Sefer Hachinuch mitzva 43<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Selling%20Young%20Daughters%20Sold%20Servitude%20and%20Marriage%20in%20the%20Torah%20Mishpatim%20BLOG%202023.docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Exodus 22:22 is just one example, Isaiah 58 is another among many<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-1978273751303338102023-02-02T19:10:00.003+11:002023-02-02T19:10:57.440+11:00Darkness is Light and Liberating<p>I learned a
remarkable teaching the other day relating to the dark times in our lives and
the plague of darkness in ancient Egypt. “Darkness” - deep discomfort - is necessary
for breaking free. Contrary to the idea that religion is the opium of the masses,
and that spiritual practice should make us feel good, in the short term, is the simple truth that growth requires some discomfort.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Our lives take
on familiar patterns. Comedian Jim Carey struggled with depression, despite
his fame and success. Reflecting on his experience, he said,” depression is
your body saying it had enough” [he used more colourful language.] <i>”…I don’t
want to be this character anymore. I don’t want to hold up this avatar that you
created</i><i> </i><i>in the world. It’s too much for me”</i>. His
point is that it’s totally pointless to spend our whole lives creating and
curating an identity for ourselves. This is all propping up our ego: desiring
to be important, to be someone, to ‘matter’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span></span></a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">To be free,
from a spiritual and emotional perspective, is to realise our potential and be
oriented to, and focused on, our purpose rather than our ‘brand’ and others’
perceptions of us<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span></span></a>.
The Talmudic sages stated, “there is no one who is free, other than one who is
occupied with the Torah<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span></span></a>”.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">From
Chasidic/Kabbalist and allegorical perspectives, the ten plagues that were
inflicted on the Egyptians at the time of the exodus were powerful forces that
contributed to spiritual liberation<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span></span></a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Of all the
ten plagues, only one - darkness - was so important that it is predicted to be
repeated, for fifteen days, during the final redemption by the Messiah<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span></span></a>.
It struck me as odd; how can darkness be critical for positive transformation?</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix9nNmo-tyZ7pZje2uSNN757EmVtQ4_nPXEG44pbvrf-e-HyvqCVmP1Z-h0LOwZt-9RrLg3QvkNwDJ1LnvLCgzvsof662DndEqlf8N2WnrdmoUFmkHPuAkVvmn0_DjE5YSZ00hkMP3heX8HFsMz4NuzlR7XfePeWoKhGz-GU2mj2hb83EipWsgiMED/s2560/A-boy-pointing-his-finger-in-darkness-153796-pixahive.webp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2560" data-original-width="1920" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix9nNmo-tyZ7pZje2uSNN757EmVtQ4_nPXEG44pbvrf-e-HyvqCVmP1Z-h0LOwZt-9RrLg3QvkNwDJ1LnvLCgzvsof662DndEqlf8N2WnrdmoUFmkHPuAkVvmn0_DjE5YSZ00hkMP3heX8HFsMz4NuzlR7XfePeWoKhGz-GU2mj2hb83EipWsgiMED/s320/A-boy-pointing-his-finger-in-darkness-153796-pixahive.webp" width="240" /></a></div>This can be understood when we consider that circumstances experienced
as light and pleasure by one person can be experienced as darkness and a plague
by another. Moses initiated the plague of darkness by extending his hands over
the heaven<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
This represents a flow of spiritual energy down into the land of Egypt. For
people who were already tuned into spirituality, this was delightful and ‘light’,
however for those who were oriented towards decadence and cruelty, this same
situation was alienating and uncomfortable or ’dark‘. In other words, there is
no greater hell than the experience of a wicked person put in a spiritual paradise<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">My takeout from
this is that, in seeking to negotiate my relationship with God and personal
growth, perseverance is needed when something doesn’t immediately click and
doesn’t feel right. It might be because it is out of my comfort zone rather
than because ‘it is not for me’. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">According to tradition,
during the plague of darkness, any Jewish people who did not wish to leave
Egypt died<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span></span></a>.
This will also be the case for those in future who will not want to leave the
state of exile<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span></span></a>. This
represents the agony that can be experienced with significant change. Experiences
of ‘darkness’ invite us to reflect on the choice between growth and stagnation,
and a kind of death. We are forced to ask ourselves ‘are we willing to give up,
or do we have the fight in us?’ Is the pain of growth unbearable? The answer
must be “<i>I will not die, but live</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span></span></a>!”</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p>This theme
plays out again when the Israelites encountered bitter water that became sweet
when a stick was thrown in<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span></span></a>.
This story reiterates the same message - the unfamiliar water that initially
appeared bitter was revealed as being sweet after a bit of discomfort. Bitter
can be the other side of the coin to sweet, as darkness can be to light<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span></span></a>. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">It has been
said that “breakdown is often breakthrough<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span></span></a>”.
The dark times in our lives can be like having “fallen down a ravine, falling
into the gap between who you are and who you want to be<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_edn14" name="_ednref14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></span></span></a>”.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> https://www.elephantjournal.com/2017/11/jim-carrey-explains-depression-in-the-best-way-ive-ever-heard/<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Lowenthal, T, https://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/2754/jewish/Freedom-in-Five-Dimensions.htm<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Pirkey
Avot 6:2<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The Zohar cited in <a href="https://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/819472/jewish/Fire-and-Ice.htm">https://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/819472/jewish/Fire-and-Ice.htm</a>
and Schneerson, Rabbi M.M, in Likutei Sichos vol 1, Vaera<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
Zohar, cited in Chida on the Chumash, Shemot, p. 89. Note also Isaiah 60:2<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Exodus
10:21<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Yaakov Yosef of Polnoah, one of the Chasidic masters, in Toldos Yaakov Yosef,
parshas Bo, p. 148<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Shmos Rabba, 14:3<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
Zohar, cited in Chida as cited above<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Psalms 118:17 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Exodus 16:23-25<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Yaakov Yosef of Polnoah, p. 147<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Laing, R.D. in Haig, M, (2015), Dear Stranger, Letters on the Subject of
Happiness, Penguin Books, p. 34 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn14">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Darkness%20is%20Light%20and%20Liberating%20Bo%20Bshalach_NS%20esits.docx#_ednref14" name="_edn14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Haig, M, (2015), Dear Stranger, Letters on the Subject of Happiness, Penguin
Books, p. 34 <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-26375760572047790452022-12-23T10:27:00.002+11:002022-12-23T10:27:13.051+11:00Embrace the pain<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal"><b>Embrace the pain<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I felt quite uncomfortable as I observed a five-year-old girl
erupt in frustration and rage when he was rejected by his peers as he tried to join
them in an activity. At times, in the quest for scarce means of sustenance, status
or companionship, there is plenty of pain to go around. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">One strategy is to escape into fantasy. In my late teens, as
a somewhat insecure young man, I was chosen to be a ‘lieutenant general’ in a
summer camp ’colour war’ activity. As
part of this role, I was carried on someone’s shoulders dressed in a camouflage
army uniform. At the time I thought I looked glorious and once told a friend
that I liked “that [inflated] Zalman” better than the real one. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYVIE4rPOHdh8I3vKSNvMOy2WFNaosxGT8ifDdRytXRiqY6_qIhRrRJhICB6MfIhSmZ1NE7q8kzaf-K70_MVZ0tGP9iPERgr2EjzldSanOmSgj_yD0xPZhyLjKb8VSTAFFf7o_bkLA_no7iPv6bhdsFjuoEqmmDiMqqj5hCCIl_qYDCQsBZBnFfg2X/s1219/pharaoh%20on%20the%20nile%20modified.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1219" data-original-width="854" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYVIE4rPOHdh8I3vKSNvMOy2WFNaosxGT8ifDdRytXRiqY6_qIhRrRJhICB6MfIhSmZ1NE7q8kzaf-K70_MVZ0tGP9iPERgr2EjzldSanOmSgj_yD0xPZhyLjKb8VSTAFFf7o_bkLA_no7iPv6bhdsFjuoEqmmDiMqqj5hCCIl_qYDCQsBZBnFfg2X/s320/pharaoh%20on%20the%20nile%20modified.jpeg" width="224" /></a></div>That memory came to me while studying this week’s Torah reading
about Pharaoh dreaming of standing on the water of the Nile River<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
Pharoah dreamed of cows and grain,
hinting at catastrophic famine for his nation and people in the region. But
first, Pharaoh noticed his own position in the dream: <span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">ְ</span>behold he was standing on the Nile
River, like a god walking on water. His dream reflected the fact that he made
himself into a god who controlled the Nile<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
“<i>My Nile is my own; I made it myself</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
While this delusion served Pharaoh’s political interests<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>,
it might have also served an emotional need to overcompensate for any
insecurities. <o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This blog post is an argument for not running away from
pain, before or after it occurs. In the Torah reading, the Pharoah’s nightmare-induced
funk was relieved when a prisoner with a talent for dream interpretation, Joseph,
was brought before the king. Joseph had been imprisoned for two years (in the
final phase of his jail time), yet it felt like a few days for him. This was
because <i>“afflictions are treasured by the righteous”,</i> and these two
years [of imprisonment] were [for Joseph] like two days<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
He saw the problem as something to accept rather than resist.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Joseph’s father was not so accepting of the troubles in his
life. He craved tranquility as he ‘settled’ in the land of Canaan<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
Not long after Jacob had ’settled’, a terrible event occurred. His favourite
son Joseph disappeared. Joseph’s own brothers sold him into slavery then misled
their father about what happened. While the loss of a son is a terrible
tragedy, Jewish tradition suggests that Jacob’s suffering was related to his
seeking to be ‘settled into tranquility’ in his life on earth, rather leaving
such aspirations for the afterlife in heaven. We are encouraged to feel like
foreigners passing through this life, to expect and accept hardships in this
foreign place rather than resisting the inevitable disappointments with false
hopes of a trouble-free life<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">One challenging form of pain many people seek to avoid is the
shame and guilt that arises from causing harm. For Joseph’s brothers, many
years passed and still they failed to confront the cruel robbing of their young
brother’s freedom until they found themselves the victims of false
imprisonment. This predicament caused the penny to drop. The brothers reflected
on what they did to Joseph and proclaimed; “<i>but we are guilty about our
brother, that we saw the distress of his soul, when he pleaded with us but we
did not listen”</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Joseph’s brothers felt a mixture of shame and guilt about
their sin. Yet, the eldest brother Reuben chose not to ease his brothers’
discomfort; instead, he seemed to rub it in. “<i>Did I not tell you, do not sin
with the boy, but you did not listen, and also his blood is now demanded of us</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
Reuben gave his brothers a master class in repentance. It is not enough to say ‘sorry’
as a response to being punished. He invited his brothers to make a deep
personal commitment to now take responsibility for the choice they made to
commit an injustice and sin against an innocent child all those years ago. He
urged them to put aside any excuses, and own up to their choice<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The rejected five-year-old girl got a ‘sorry’ from the other
girls. It did little to change how she felt. Sitting with the harm caused to,
and by us is a slow and painful but useful path to healing.<o:p></o:p></p>
<div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 41:1<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> R.
Bchaye, on Gensis 41:1 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ezekiel 29:3<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Chemdas Yamim manuscript in Torah Shlaima, p. 1530, tell us more about this.
Pharoah was constantly ruminating about the matter of the Nile. He would say to
himself, “if the Nile will not rise this year then there will be a great
famine, or if he add a lot of water then it might ruin the crops and I told the
Egyptians that I made the Nile and now I will be [considered] a liar to them”.
He saw his dream in a way that was similar to his ruminations… In the end he
recognised that his dream will require him to tell the people that he in in
fact not God, and he admitted this to Joseph when he said that after God made
all this known to you, he acknowledged that there is a God other than himself. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Midrash
Habiur, a manuscript, cited in Torah Shleima, p. 1529, 8. The midrash is based
on the fact that the verse states it was two years – days. If it was two
“years”, why does it say “days”?<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Midrash Rabba on Genesis 37:1<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rabbi Yitzchak Ben Aramaa, in Akedat Yitzchak, Genesis Shaar 30, p. 257<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 42:21<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 42:22<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Embrace%20the%20pain%20miketz%202022%20blog_NS%20edits.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Rabbi
MM Schneerson, The Lubavitcher Rebbe in Likutei Sichot, Vol 16, Miketz<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div></div><br /> <p></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-7008420361082107412022-12-05T12:34:00.007+11:002022-12-05T12:34:42.130+11:00Family Comes Last? Abraham Saving Sodom but Sacrificing his Son<p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1LhCZu90Vv5AkJXajcNIgleFPdLCqUOGnIsiyeqYSvMbh6ORD5fquAU7YgCHc9YA5MKrTePqd9a5XI42FWHFCwjBHidouNKyxkYuBKwV1e2Efo9-qVokg5IFs0bjVI_4icP4vceCEs9En_H4N3kBvQkvVU0mX2G2p7QRi6NaYI_-Zj8u8nfXw7Dc8/s1920/pexels-ketut-subiyanto-4474035%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1920" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1LhCZu90Vv5AkJXajcNIgleFPdLCqUOGnIsiyeqYSvMbh6ORD5fquAU7YgCHc9YA5MKrTePqd9a5XI42FWHFCwjBHidouNKyxkYuBKwV1e2Efo9-qVokg5IFs0bjVI_4icP4vceCEs9En_H4N3kBvQkvVU0mX2G2p7QRi6NaYI_-Zj8u8nfXw7Dc8/s320/pexels-ketut-subiyanto-4474035%20(1).jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: PlusJakartaSans, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", Ubuntu, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; white-space: pre;">Photo by <a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/kids-making-noise-and-disturbing-mom-working-at-home-4474035/">Ketut Subiyanto</a>, used under CC license: </span></td></tr></tbody></table></p><div style="text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">As a young boy, I waited
for what seemed like an eternity, in the vast cavernous ‘770’ Synagogue in
Brooklyn after the prayers, longing to just go home. But my father had
important communal work to attend to as an emissary of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.
Dad had many people he had to talk to, to advance his important Lubavitch
outreach work. When I became a dad, I promised myself to prioritize my family
over my work. I told myself that, if the price of greatness is neglecting my
family, I choose my family. Almost three decades later, when I reflect on that
promise, I think that, while I have certainly fallen far short of my ideal, I
have at least partially fulfilled my promise. I wonder what the Torah teaches us
about this dilemma. </span><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The story of Abraham’s willingness
to sacrifice his son Isaac<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[i]</span></span></span></a>, especially as it follows closely on the heels of his heroic efforts to
save the wicked people of Sodom<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[ii]</span></span></span></a>, is jarring. Does it legitimize deprioritizing familial love?! After all,
we have the great </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #050505; font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Abraham pleading for strangers in Sodom, but not for his son,
who he is willing to kill?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Let us
examine the two cases.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #050505; font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">In the
case of Sodom, God told Abraham that He planned to destroy the wicked people of
that city because the injustices perpetrated by its inhabitants had provoked
great cries<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #050505; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[iii]</span></span></span></a>. (To be clear, in
Jewish sources, the sin of Sodom was not homosexuality, but extreme cruelty to
strangers<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #050505; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[iv]</span></span></span></a>). Despite the xenophobic
cruelty of this community, Abraham pleaded for mercy for them and pestered God,
advocating for them six times <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #050505; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[v]</span></span></span></a>. Abraham felt compelled to
cry out to the heavens to prevent the destruction of human life<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #050505; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[vi]</span></span></span></a>. </span><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">“The
great argument between Abraham and God…was a turning point in the history of
the spirit. For the first time a human being challenged God Himself on a matter of justice”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[vii]</span></span></span></a>.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Yet, when God calls Abraham to sacrifice his son
Isaac</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[viii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">,
Abraham did not offer one word of protest. His response was eager obedience and
acquiescence to the divine will </span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[ix]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">. It
is only God’s redirection at the last minute that Abraham </span><b style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>not kill</i></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> his son, that
spared Isaac’s life.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Abraham’s willingness to challenge God for evil
strangers but not for his son, seems like the case of the community worker or
clergyman who shows endless patience for strangers, but appears to put his
family last </span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[x]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">To try to make sense of this, I take a step back and
recognize that I am using a very contemporary social lens to interpret a
timeless text. As an orthodox Jew in 2022, it is right for me to search for
guidance in the Torah for how to live my life now, but I also am bound to
consider interpretations of the Torah that have been written over thousands of
years. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">In my study of the classic and Chasidic sources, I
found the dominant theme to be an emphasis on devotion to God, rather than
commentary about degrees of devotion or neglect of one’s family.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac was not a
case of prioritizing a mission or cause over a child. Isaac was Abraham’s sole
successor in his mission of promoting monotheism; so, if Isaac would have been killed,
that would have meant the end of Abraham’s cause rather than its advancement</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[xi]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Far from some frenzied burst of fanatical religious
excitement, Chasidic teachings portray this moment as a dark night of Abraham’s
soul, where he lost all inspiration and any high spiritual consciousness, yet
his deep devotion to God was so strong that he was prepared to make this
painful sacrifice </span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[xii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">There is a Chasidic story that emphasises
prioritizing parental care over spiritual experience. Once, in the middle of
the night, a child of the Mitteler Rebbe [the second leader of the Chabad
Chasidic movement] fell out of bed. Entirely engrossed in his spiritual-mystical
studies, he did not hear the child’s cries. However, his father, the Alter
Rebbe, heard the cries, closed his Torah books, and went to comfort the child.
The Alter Rebbe later said to his son: No matter how deeply immersed you are in
holy pursuits, when a child cries you must hear it; you must stop what you’re
doing and soothe their pain</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[xiii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">. In one instance, the Lubavitcher Rebbe
told one of his emissaries whose child had some difficulties: Your main mission
is looking after your child. If you have any time left after that, you can do
other things</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn14" name="_ednref14" style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[xiv]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Far from the modern, work- focused dad, whose love
for his children is sometimes not evident, Abraham’s love for Isaac was clearly
manifest. God’s first sentence to Abraham highlighted this when he referred to
Isaac as the child he loved. As the story unfolds there is a tender exchange
between son and father. Isaac asks a question of Abraham, addressing him as “my
father”. Abraham replies: ”Here I am, my
son.” Then, he again tenderly refers to Isaac as “my son”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn15" name="_ednref15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[xv]</span></span></span></a>.
What is being described here is a loving father, with tears flowing from his
eyes <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn16" name="_ednref16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[xvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>,
who, despite feeling intense love for Isaac, attempted to do what he believed
he must, to obey God. </span><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">From a contemporary perspective, Leon Kass argues
that, in a sense, we all sacrifice our children. “…All of us fathers, devote
(that is ‘sacrifice’) our sons to some ‘god’ or another – to Mammon [money] or
Molech [an idol served with child sacrifice]. To honour or money, pleasure or
power, or worse, to no god at all. …we
do so willy-nilly, through the things we teach and respect in our own homes; we
intend that the entire life of the sons be spent in service to our own ideals
or idols… But a true father will devote
his son to – and will self-consciously and knowingly initiate him into - only
the righteous and Godly ways………</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Finally, Cass points out, “the true founder [of any
movement] knows and accepts the fact that his innocent sons will suffer for the
sake of the righteous community, and that their ‘sacrifice’ is no proof that
they are not properly loved as sons. On
the contrary, the true founder, like the true father, shows his love for his
followers when he teaches them, often by example, that one’s life is not worth
living if there is nothing worth dying and sacrificing for” </span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn17" name="_ednref17" style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[xvii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">In the end, we are indeed called on to ‘<i>be
willing’ </i>to prioritize G-d over our loved ones, and this involves some
painful trade-offs by parents in which children get significantly less of their
parents’ attention, support and material goods they might ideally receive, but
in the end, Judaism – or devotion to any cause - should not detract too
much from parents’ love and care for
their children and families<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"> </span></span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_edn18" name="_ednref18" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span dir="LTR"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[xviii]</span></span></span></span></span></a><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>, just as Abraham does not actually sacrifice
his son. Getting the balance right is fraught for fathers, and even more so, for
mothers. I believe that awareness of the dilemma is one part of managing its
tensions.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span></p><div>
Notes<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 22<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Genesis 18:17-32<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Genesis 18:20<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Talmud, Sanhedrin 109b <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Genesis 18:23-32<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
Lubavitcher Rebbe, Likutei Sichos vol.
10, p. 58, 5,<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Sacks, J. (2009), Covenant and Conversation, Genesis, Magid Books and the
Orthodox Union, p. 103,<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 22:2<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 22:3-10<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> I
wondered if this kind of attitude was inferred by some Chasidim from the
Lubavitcher Rebbe’s teachings relating to the phrase from <span dir="RTL" lang="HE">כתובות (ט ע"ב</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> </span>that <span dir="RTL" lang="HE">כל היוצא למלחמת בית דוד כותב גט כריתות לאשתו</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>, that all who went
out to the wars of the house of David, would write a divorce to their wives
which, although it technically has an entirely different meaning, could be
understood to mean, in a symbolic sense, that Shlichut requires a prioritization
of the mission over attachment to family.
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
Lubavitcher Rebbe, Likutei Sichot, vol 20, p. 76-77<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Rabbi
Mordechai of Lechvitch, and similarly in Chidushei Harim, based on the Arizal
and the Zohar, cited In, Reisman, M. Y., <span dir="RTL" lang="HE">שיעורים בסידור
התפילה</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> <span dir="RTL">ר' מנשה ישראל רייזמאן
שליט"א ע"י הרה"ג שיעור נ"ח - והאלקים נסה את אברהם ניתן
לשמוע </span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> </span><a href="http://www.kolhalashon.com/">www.kolhalashon.com</a> <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <a href="https://www.chabad.org/therebbe/livingtorah/player_cdo/aid/2081439/jewish/Hearing-the-Cry-of-a-Child.htm">https://www.chabad.org/therebbe/livingtorah/player_cdo/aid/2081439/jewish/Hearing-the-Cry-of-a-Child.htm</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn14">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref14" name="_edn14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[xiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Told to me by Rabbi Yossi Engel with the name of the Shliach the Rebbe told it
to. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn15">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref15" name="_edn15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[xv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 22:7-8<span lang="EN"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn16">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref16" name="_edn16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[xvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Rav
Avraham Mordechai Alter: Imrei Emet: Sefer Bereshit, cited in White, T, Avraham
and the Akeida: The Silent Sacrifice, <span style="color: #0563c2;">www.contemplatingtorah.wordpress.com</span><span lang="EN"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn17">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref17" name="_edn17" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">[xvii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Leon
R. Kass, L, R., the beginning of Wisdom p. 348-350 cited in White<span lang="EN"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn18">
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" dir="RTL" style="background: white; direction: rtl; margin-bottom: 12pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman%20Deprioritizing%20Love%20Saving%20Sodom%20and%20Sacrificing%20Son%20vayera%20blog%202022proofread%20(1).docx#_ednref18" name="_edn18" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span dir="LTR" style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">[xviii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span dir="LTR"> </span><span lang="HE" style="color: #404040; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br />
</span><span dir="LTR" style="color: #404040; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">An example of the commitment to family is
expressed in this talk by the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s. <br />
</span><span dir="LTR">: </span><span lang="HE" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">ומכיוון
שהוא יוצא למלחמת בית דוד – הרי בודאי שהוא מצליח ומנצח כו', וחוזר בשלום לביתו,
על דרך מה שכתוב "ויבוא יעקב שלם", "שלם בגופו כו' שלם בממונו כו'
שלם בתורתו</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>", </span><span lang="HE" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">באופן של
"לכתחילה אריבער", ואז הוא חי עם אשתו, ונולדים להם בנים ובנות עוסקים
בתורה ומצוותיה – ביתר שאר וביתר עז, מכיוון שמדובר אודות חיילי בית דוד</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR" lang="HE" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> </span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span lang="HE" style="color: #404040; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>(משיחות הושענא רבה
תשמ"ג ותשמ"ח. התוועדויות תשמ"ג חלק א' עמ' 251-253; תשמ"ח
חלק א' עמ' 291-293</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> <br />
</span><span dir="LTR"> <a href="http://www.chabad.org.il/Magazines/Article.asp?ArticleID=7222&CategoryID=1442"><span style="font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">http://www.chabad.org.il/Magazines/Article.asp?ArticleID=7222&CategoryID=1442</span></a></span><span dir="LTR" style="color: #404040; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span dir="LTR" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div></div><p></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-37227804628276354732022-11-11T10:37:00.003+11:002022-11-11T10:37:56.605+11:00Speech at the wedding of my son, Aaron, and daughter- in-law, Tzippy<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguR4_-3DkJEEEj96WpqSzXl5nhiXwWA_fwopP5SM_umAAcdmt306bqFjLiZtKDbmVHRD0d739LpNnWLWkjrdge3X_sM1V_jQpDxPH1di9ZJye-hSK1uWRXL0b-_yaD8FSgm9dFr5F55oN6Uq9dcYJIdC8BF4FiB2hKvb2xzCbA_zXfIpn6fU4B7-ID/s800/Aaron%20wedding%20dancing%20on%20shoulders.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="800" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguR4_-3DkJEEEj96WpqSzXl5nhiXwWA_fwopP5SM_umAAcdmt306bqFjLiZtKDbmVHRD0d739LpNnWLWkjrdge3X_sM1V_jQpDxPH1di9ZJye-hSK1uWRXL0b-_yaD8FSgm9dFr5F55oN6Uq9dcYJIdC8BF4FiB2hKvb2xzCbA_zXfIpn6fU4B7-ID/s320/Aaron%20wedding%20dancing%20on%20shoulders.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Wow! What
joy for the bride and groom, for family and friends! It is the happiest day of
my life. Today we witnessed an outstandingly significant spiritual event. Not
only were two halves of a soul reunited, but a serious spiritual wrong has been
corrected. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In the story
of creation (1), God looked at his creation and repeatedly said it was good, except
for one thing, about which he said the opposite: “it <i>is not good </i>for the
human to be alone (2)”. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If man is
alone he can be mistaken for a God, because he would be alone on earth like God,
who is alone in the heavens (3). Thus, it is not proper for humans to be alone.
It does not fit the essential spiritual role of humans to be alone (4). We were
meant to be social beings, not alone. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So how was this
problem solved? God created a woman and marriage. Half-jokingly, I proclaim
that no husband would ever make the mistake again that he is God, once he is
married! <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Seriously
though, why create woman? If men need companionship, God could have simply created
more men. But it is precisely living with someone from the opposite gender that
advances personal growth (5); that is, when men and women are challenged by
difference, to accommodate and negotiate different norms from their families, different
ways of processing emotions, for example.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I once met an
old-fashioned man, who got annoyed with his wife shortly after they got married
because she opened mail that was addressed to him. His wife explained that she
grew up in a big family where it was normal, when the post was delivered, for
someone to run, get and open everyone’s letters. However, she changed her
customary behaviour to follow her husband’s norm. I asked this man how he
reciprocated his wife’s sacrifice. ‘Oh, I don’t read her mail either’ he
replied! He completely missed the point about self-transcendence achieved
through accommodation. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Unlike this man,
what is required from us is to rise to the challenge designed for us: to put
aside our ego, make space for each other and in that way grow in the way God intended
for us. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This begs
the question: if God knows everything, why did He create man alone in the first
place and then say it was not good? Why not simply create man with a mate like
He did with all the animals? <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The truth is
that, although in one sense it is not good for man to be alone, in another
sense, for humans to be alone and unique - the quality of oneness and independence<i>
- is</i> appropriate. “It is fitting for man to have a little oneness” (6). To
be a little God-like. As the psalmist states:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="line-height: 107%;">מאלוקים</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE" style="line-height: 107%;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="line-height: 107%;">ותחסריהו
מעט<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE" style="line-height: 107%;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> </span><i><span style="line-height: 107%;">“You have made him [man] little less than divine”</span></i><span style="line-height: 107%;"> (7). Just as God has the ultimate
free choice, it is appropriate for a human to march to your own drum, at least some
of the time to dream your dreams, to retreat into a man-cave, <i>a little</i>.
Then, to return to marriage, to the social contract and to dissolve your ego in
awareness of the other. To be “very married” (8). <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">To
illustrate the two modes humans are meant to operate in – the independent and
wild on the one hand and, on the other hand, the domesticated, interdependent
and responsible - I share the following poem by Zelda. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The flame
says to the cypress:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">“When I
see how calm, how full of pride you are,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Something
inside me goes wild –<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">How can
one live this awesome life, <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">without a
touch of madness,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">of
spirit,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">of
imagination,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">of
freedom,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">with only
a grim, ancient pride?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If I
could, I would burn down the establishment that we call the seasons,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">along
with your cursed dependence<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">on earth
and air and sun, on rain and dew.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
cypress does not answer.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He knows
there is madness in him,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">and
freedom,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">and
imagination,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">and
spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">But the
flame will not understand,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">the flame
will not believe. (9)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
cypress looks "very married": the epitome of the ‘<i>baalabus</i>’ - domesticated!
But lurking beneath is the solitary man, a little crazy and wild, alive with
holy craziness (10). <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So, I wish
the groom and bride love and companionship, spiritual growth together and, as
appropriate, also separately. May you lose your egos in care for each other and
find just enough ego for some individual greatness. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p>
</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Notes <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">1)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Genesis
1<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">2)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Genesis
2:18<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">3)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Pirkei
D'Rabbi Eliezer, cited in Rashi on Genesis 2:18<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">4)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Maharal
of Prague in his commentary Gur Aryeh about Genesis 2:18<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">5)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Eisenblatt,
D. (1988), Fulfilment in marriage, Feldheim Publishers, p. 18- 29<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">6)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Maharal,
ibid<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">7)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Psalms
8:6<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">8)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">The
term very married comes from an anecdote I heard from Sholom Popper about a
young Chabadnik in Russia with limited command of the Russian language. When
someone asked to speak to the Rabbi, the young fellow mixed up the words for
busy and married. He told the visitor that the Rabbi was “married”. The visitor
insisted they only need a few minutes. The young Chabadnik tried to explain
that the Rabbi was very busy, so he told the visitor the Rabbi was very
married!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">9)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Zelda,
Translation: 2004, Marcia Lee Falk, From: The Spectacular Difference, Publisher:
Hebrew Union College, Cincinnati, 2004,
https://www.poetryinternational.com/en/poets-poems/poems/poem/103-3281_TWO-ELEMENTS/<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">10)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 107%;">שטות דקדושה</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 107%;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> discussed in
the Maamar Baasi Lgani, by the 6<sup>th</sup> Lubavitcher Rebbe. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p>
<span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-64209507028504575152022-08-22T19:00:00.000+10:002022-08-22T19:00:12.670+10:00Escape the Inner Noise<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSehdpA_ooZVUkXVSTd6owIE0YdgPcI6uASbsf9j_RySlKoBZ2Zu7YGOzOYvP824rqki6PtFY_8yroywfhuPVeb1r0w01DTJHVPb4WE5IZA-EY88etYwf1eRVCLcXTIcPJCYSlHwPQSca_rY3exKIT9ziXPUj2VUEXp-HeRfkcwLn3l2D4jANNdh2O/s500/turning%20down%20the%20noise.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="329" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSehdpA_ooZVUkXVSTd6owIE0YdgPcI6uASbsf9j_RySlKoBZ2Zu7YGOzOYvP824rqki6PtFY_8yroywfhuPVeb1r0w01DTJHVPb4WE5IZA-EY88etYwf1eRVCLcXTIcPJCYSlHwPQSca_rY3exKIT9ziXPUj2VUEXp-HeRfkcwLn3l2D4jANNdh2O/s320/turning%20down%20the%20noise.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I am
reading, in a book by Christine Jackman, about the problem of the stream of troubling
thoughts or chatter in our minds </span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[i]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">
and the virtue of achieving quiet and stillness. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Such thoughts are sometimes
self-recriminating: “Why was I such a fool?” They can be stewing about other
people’s faults: “She is so horrible.” Or fearful thoughts. All these thoughts
can flood us with negativity, outrage, envy, anxiety, and stress. What is to be
done?</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Shame</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Jackman
is searingly honest about the self-critical thoughts that would sometimes
torment her. She is not alone in being afflicted by the stream of thoughts in
her mind. “Studies have revealed that most people find it hard to tolerate
being alone with their thoughts, even for relatively short periods of time.” “Simply
being alone with their thoughts for 15 minutes was apparently so aversive that
it drove many participants to self-administer an electric shock…<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”
just to avoid the discomfort of facing themselves. I understand this as some of
us feeling ashamed of our own inadequacies and afraid of being confronted with
these. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">It
doesn’t make sense because most of us are not really so shame-worthy. Yet, such
thoughts persist. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Fear
and Worry<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Sometimes
we ruminate not on our self-worth but on what we should do, especially relating
to earning a livelihood. “The many thoughts in the heart of man, that hassle
the person by raising many doubts about every matter…being pulled this way and
that way…<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
More ominous, are undefined fears that are not related to a clear danger. This
is explained by the sages as a fear that “<i>although he does not see it, his guardian
angel </i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> his soul <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> or
perhaps his subconscious - <i>sees the danger </i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><i>”</i>.
This could be very unsettling. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Don’t
run<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Rumi
wrote, “Your old life was a frantic running from silence <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”. Jackman quotes Rumi as a way of reflecting on the fact that her ruminating
thoughts were a way to avoid confronting her deeper self, hidden beneath the
noisy, repetitive, and meaningless thoughts. Instead, she encourages us to stop the
flow of ruminating thoughts and be still – primarily through meditation or
walking mindfully in a forest <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
This is not a quick fix, but this capacity can be built over time. Like
Jackman, Carl Jung called us to look at the “shadow” part of ourselves, those
parts of ourselves that might otherwise remain hidden, but still influence our
thoughts and life. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">At
the right time<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">I
agree with Jung and Jackman that it is better to confront ourselves, than to
escape, at least sometimes. On the other hand, I think escape can sometimes be
a good thing as well. Chasidic writings suggest that, if ruminating thoughts
about sins we’ve committed, or not being good enough, pop into our head, “this
is what one should take to his heart, this is not a good time… [to effectively
deal with such concerns and for introspection], this requires specially
scheduled sessions, at an appropriate moment, with a settled mind <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”.
I have tried this technique and it worked for me. After telling myself that now
is not a good time for ruminating on my faults and past shortcomings, I was
able to park that thought for another time and refocus on what was in front of
me at that time. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Silence
in Conflict</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">One
of the great men of the Talmud stated, “I grew up among the wise and I have not
found anything better for the body than <b>silence </b><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.” One virtue of silence is when one, for
example, hears him/herself being denigrated, and is silent <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
A lot of the “noise” in our heads consists of rehearsed or rehashed
conversations we might have with other people in response to their hurtful
words. It would be much better for us if we could stop those thoughts and shift
to equanimity. A beautiful phrase in a Jewish prayer expresses this aspiration:
“To those who curse me, may my soul be silent <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>”. Alternatively, another prayer states, “I forgive anyone who sinned against me…
[including] sins against my honour <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Jackman
cautions against expecting a complete and quick transformation. Instead, she
urges the reader to keep at it. The Torah would certainly agree. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Jackman, C (2020), Turning Down The Noise: The quiet power of silence in a busy
world, Murdoch Books, Sydney, London<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Wilson,
T.D. et al, In Jackman, C (2020), p. 146<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The Rebbe, Rabbi Shmuel, known as the Maharash, in Toras Shmuel, Maamar Mayim
Rabbim, p, 1 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rashi commentary on Talmud, Megila 3a<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Steinzaltz commentary on Talmud, Megila 3a<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Talmud,
Megila 3a, cited in Rabbi Chayim Yosef David Azulai, Toras Hachida , Devarim, p
11 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Jackman, C, (2020), p. 73<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Michelle Brenner has introduced me to the concept of forest bathing and
walking meditation – which can be achieved, at least partially, by walking in
nature and being very mindful of one’s surroundings. Jackman also writes about
walking in nature. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi in Tanya chapter 26, as adapted by Miller, C.
(2016), the Practical Tanya, part 1, p. 305 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Pirkey Avot 1:17<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ovadia Bartenura on Pirkey Avot 1:17<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The end of the Amida, Elohai Netzor<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Documents/Torah/Zalman%20Turning%20down%20the%20inner%20noise%2018%2008%202022%20(edited%2021.05)%20.docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The prayer before going to sleep<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-7378570050016911392022-07-22T11:05:00.004+10:002022-07-22T11:05:57.789+10:00Shaming Disrupts the Flow - Moses’ Rock Strike <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8kcTcWb2ZMYBjfS9cJM8lCGD_dD4JiWLEN0Ln8LPEVKfnAcXuiDu6JaTh0zuHflVHhvTjgQmEA0OHzIhAyWetuU7od0KnuczYTou1ANXoervCfq41xWK2TluKDOCo14h1s_9fo-A1jtqsFlKZOhn45KATH7kywcwUyPTgb4IjHcEdxQQeTWGSpS-N/s1024/flow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="814" data-original-width="1024" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8kcTcWb2ZMYBjfS9cJM8lCGD_dD4JiWLEN0Ln8LPEVKfnAcXuiDu6JaTh0zuHflVHhvTjgQmEA0OHzIhAyWetuU7od0KnuczYTou1ANXoervCfq41xWK2TluKDOCo14h1s_9fo-A1jtqsFlKZOhn45KATH7kywcwUyPTgb4IjHcEdxQQeTWGSpS-N/s320/flow.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Image by </span><span style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/vreez/">BillVriesema</a> - <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/">Creative Commons License </a>2.0</span></span></p></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><p style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">When we are provoked, we must generally respond without
shaming our antagonists, nor allowing anger to cloud our judgement.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">It is not always ethical to go along with others’ wishes.
Saying yes when our principles require the answer to be no, is to compromise
our own integrity. In the context of marriage, saying yes against our
principles or needs, has this result: “<i>the lips may be moving one way, but
the heart may be saying no silently until the heart breaks from the weight of ’nos’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[i]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>."</i>
Sometimes, disagreement escalates into identity conflict<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> and becomes a contest of
claiming the moral high ground – each party trying to be deemed the “good one”
and cast the other as the villain. It can then become especially tempting to inflict
pain on one’s opponent. Especially for people who have been hurt deeply – and
who hasn’t been - there can be an urge to lash out. This blog post will explore
the merit of being agreeable in disagreement. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Let us consider what happened between Moses and the
Israelites in the desert. “There was no water for the people to drink, so they
gathered onto Moses… (the wording in Hebrew is very similar to the modern
expression “pile on”). The people quarrelled with Moses, saying, “If only we
had died when our brothers died… Why did you bring [us]… to this desert… and
why did you take us out of Egypt… to this terrible place with no grain or figs
or vines or pomegranates? ...</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[iii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">While there was a legitimate water problem to solve, the
rhetoric from the Israelites was a broad rejection of Moses and God. Let’s
think of the relationship between the people and Moses and God as a marriage.
Only a short time ago, God - with Moses as his visible messenger - was the
knight in shining armour that rescued the Israelites – damsel in distress –
from the oppression of Pharaoh. The people threw caution to the wind and
displayed great faith in God and Moses, his servant</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[iv]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">,</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">walking after Him bravely into a desert,
where nothing had been planted</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[v]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">. But the honeymoon didn’t last,
and the Israelites’ stance was like yelling “Why did I ever marry you? I wish I
never met you.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">In response to this attack on Moses, Moses lost his
temper with the Israelites, and he used a derogatory label to shame them. In
his anger</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[vi]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">, Moses muddled God’s
instructions to him about how to miraculously draw water from a stone. Although
God told Moses to speak to the rock to draw water from it, he, instead, hit the
rock with a stick. God was disappointed with the way Moses handled this
situation, and told him that, because of this failure, Moses would not bring
the people to the promised land</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[vii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Moses had plenty reason to feel angry. The people had,
yet again, delegitimised his leadership and life’s achievements. This attack
came at a particularly vulnerable time for Moses as he mourned the death of his
sister, Miriam</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[viii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.
Yet, one commentator sees Moses’ angry reactions as a significant failure.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
amazingly kind, Berditchever, taught that you can rebuke people, using two
different methods. One approach is positive and builds people up. It reminds
the people that their very souls originate </span><span lang="AR-SA" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">immediately
beneath the Creator’s throne in heaven. It tells people about their ability and
privilege to provide God with the pleasure he gets from </span><span lang="AR-SA" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">His
people performing His will. The other method of admonishing people involves
putting people down and shaming them.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">When
the positive method is used, it introduces positive energy into the physical
world, so that the creations willingly provide for the people. In the case of
Moses, if he had spoken positively to the people, then the rock would have
responded to Moses’ words with flowing water. However, when people are
denigrated, the creations are not in a state of flow. The only way to get them
to provide for humans, is with great coercion symbolised by their being beaten
with a stick</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[ix]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
will be times in our lives when others’ disrespect toward us, or unwillingness
to support our wishes, might make us feel like we are spiralling down to feel small
like a mouse “insignificant, under the foot, hiding, timid and on the run”. It
is at such times that we overcompensate for such feelings by swinging in the
opposite direction, to become a “monster… obnoxious, and overbearing”</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[x]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.
This reaction is understandable but ultimately very destructive - it interrupts
the flow of the good things we need and want for ourselves and the people
around us.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"> </span></p>
<div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-border-shadow: yes; mso-padding-alt: 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;">Rabbi Shlomo Riskin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Heen, S. Patton, B. Stone, D. 2021, Difficult
conversations, Penguin<span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Numbers 20:2-5<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-US">Exodus 14:31<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Jeremiah 2:2 <span dir="RTL" lang="HE"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
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<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Sifre to Numbers 31:21, see also Talmud Pesachim 66b, every man who rages, if
he is wise his wisdom will leave him…<span dir="RTL" lang="HE"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Numbers 20:7-12<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Numbers 20:1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
R. Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, Kedushas Levi, on Chukas, Vdibartem El Haselah,
p. 303, Sifrei Ohr Hachayim edition, Jerusalem <o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Responding%20to%20provocation%20without%20harming%20dignity%20Moses%E2%80%99%20Rock%20Strike%20%20Hukat%202022%20version%2021July.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Brenner, M (2011) Conscious Connectivity, p.70, drawing on the work of Pat
Palmer</span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-80943386344236910092022-03-22T07:45:00.007+11:002022-03-22T07:45:39.893+11:00 Body Parts Flung Heavenward and Jewish Sexual Ethics<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiCInMXnvR1SHMcHXuOwBnnK_rY48jFFMevKQ7JUQtWU54VMomdBR0q8waz_VcsgT1JJiQDIGViOom_bn_cHY6MfbRnGs9JAcQ8pSmdYOFNqTATHGY39r7PL7-_h37WoONfBGaI2hIWw5NkE8uRyCyzs7kBFYHwMiHSLi-Ax9K2sPC1b1P9yWPx6IZF=s1920" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1302" data-original-width="1920" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiCInMXnvR1SHMcHXuOwBnnK_rY48jFFMevKQ7JUQtWU54VMomdBR0q8waz_VcsgT1JJiQDIGViOom_bn_cHY6MfbRnGs9JAcQ8pSmdYOFNqTATHGY39r7PL7-_h37WoONfBGaI2hIWw5NkE8uRyCyzs7kBFYHwMiHSLi-Ax9K2sPC1b1P9yWPx6IZF=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In
the synagogue, a fellow congregant showed me a surprising interpretation of a
verse in the Torah about Amalek’s attack on the Israelites in the desert. This
is based on Deuteronomy 25:18<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><i><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></i></span></a><i>,</i>
which is usually translated as Amalek <i>“</i></span>surprised you on the
march, when you were famished and weary, and cut down all the stragglers in
your rear".<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">” However, there is an interpretation
of this verse that reads as </span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Amalek<i> “cut off the Israelites’ penises and
flung them heavenward, [to God] saying, ‘This is what You have chosen, take for
Yourself what You have chosen<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This
bizarre interpretation leads one to wonder what moral teachings are to be
inferred from the symbolism in this story. In understanding Jewish sacred text,
it is useful to remember that there are 70 faces of the Torah</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">,
eg. Every verse has multiple meanings. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Perhaps, one meaning of this story is alluding
to </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">a Jewish approach to sexuality that
is nuanced, in that it affirms a positive attitude to sex as joyful, loving,
wholesome and even holy, but also harmful if not constrained and directed. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Amalek
performed this brutal gesture to make a point in a culture war against the
Israelites. </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">“Amalek was opposed to Israel, and the form of Israel is that
they [the males, of course] are circumcised. It is with circumcision that they
are Israelites. This is the reason why Amalek cut off their circumcised penises
because Amalek was opposed to circumcision<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></b></span></span></a>.”
</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">According to this teaching, circumcision is essential to the identity and
idea of the Jewish people.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">One
way to explain this is to consider Maimonides’ explanation of circumcision. </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">“As
regards circumcision, I think that one of its objects is to limit sexual
intercourse, and to weaken the organ of procreation as far as possible, and
thus cause man to be moderate regarding the sexual act…This commandment… is a
means for perfecting man's moral shortcomings. The bodily injury caused to that
organ does not interrupt any vital function, nor does it destroy the power of procreation.
Circumcision simply counteracts excessive lust…<a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></b></span></span></a>”.</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This
teaching is one half of the picture when it comes to Judaism’s approach to sex.
A call to the Jew for moderation in sex and other means of enjoying life makes
it possible for him to achieve a measure of holiness</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">On
the other hand, we have the very positive approach to sex in Judaism. Sex is
portrayed as joyful in the verse: “</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">Abimelech, king of the Philistines,
looked through the window and behold, Isaac was playing/making laughter [having
sex] with Rebecca his wife</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sex
is not just a Mitzvah, a positive commandment, when it leads to procreation</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">,
but it is regarded as a Mitzva (commandment) and obligation for a man to please
his wife and honour her right to sex</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">. This
obligation is understood more broadly as requiring the man to prioritise the
woman’s pleasure during sex before his own</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">,
and an overall responsibility for a man to show understanding and be responsive
to a woman’s emotional need to feel loved</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Maimonides
provides the following guidance: </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">“[a man] should not be intimate with her
[his wife] unless she is willing, and out of chatting and joy. Marital
relations are forbidden while [he is] thinking of another woman, nor while
drunk, while they are fighting, or in hatred, nor may he force her nor while
she is afraid. Nor after he has decided to divorce her</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">”.
I understand this as affirming the value of bodily pleasure while also emphasising
the emotional experience of making love and connecting. This is elegantly
reflected in the use of the word “knowing” as a euphemism for sex</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.
“One should not think that there is anything disgusting, or any ugliness, God
forbid, in the proper union</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn14" name="_ednref14" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">”,
if it is done “as it should be” at the right time and with the proper intent.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">One
of Judaism’s aims is for us to be part of the world and partake of its
pleasures in a measured way. We are invited to appreciate the flavours and
textures of food</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn15" name="_ednref15" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xv]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">,
but also to rise above our urges and bodily needs to attach ourselves to God,
and to hold both seemingly opposed stances at the same time.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">A
descendent of Amalek, Haman, argued that “</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">there is one nation [the Jews]… whose
religious laws and ways were different from other nations</i><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn16" name="_ednref16" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvi]</span></span></span></a><i style="font-size: 12pt;">”</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
and this difference was a valid reason for them to be annihilated. Perhaps the
Jewish approach to be in the world and beyond it, unsettles the intolerant
Amalekite who requires conformity for his own emotional security. By throwing
the modified sexual organ toward the sky, the Amalekite is asserting there is
no place for this ‘deviation’ from his norms, on his earth, but only in heaven.
If you choose not to conform fully to the norms of the earth and you choose
heavenly approaches, do them there not here</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_edn17" name="_ednref17" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">! </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">On
Thursday 17 March 2022, we celebrated victory over Amalek and Haman with the
religious festival of Purim, which is marked by wine, feasting and food gifts,
as well as charity and storytelling. And except for any Jewish astronauts, we
do this right here on earth! </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"> </p>
<div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]-->Notes<br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="edn1">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Midrash Tanchuma, Devarim, Ki Tetzei 10, cited in Rashi on 25:18, this translation
is more of an interpretation than a translation. It is based on a verb related
to the word “tail” (Zanav in Hebrew), that could be translated literally as “he
tailed you”. The usual way of reading this verse is that Amalek attacked the
tail end of the Israelite people, the stragglers as interpreted by Ibn Ezra, Ralbag,
Chizkuni, Ohr Hachayim on Deuteronomy, 25:18<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Midrash Tanchuma<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Bamidbar Rabba, 13:16 <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Gur Aryeh on Deuteronomy, 25:18<b><o:p></o:p></b></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed, 3:49, 11<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ramban on Leviticus, 19:2<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Genesis
26:8<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Talmud, Yavamot 65b<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Exodus 21:10, Raavad cited in Lamm, M. (1980), The Jewish Way in Love and
Marriage, Jonathan David Publishers, p. 137<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Talmud, Brachos 60a<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
Stiepler gaon, igeres Hakodesh, in cited Abramov Y., & Abramov, T. (1994)
Two halves of a whole. Feldheim, p. 178<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Maimonides, laws of marriage 15:17-18, forbidden intercourse 21:12, drawing on
the Talmud Nedarim 20b<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Me’iri, cited in Lamm, M. (1980), The Jewish Way in Love and Marriage, Jonathan
David Publishers, p. 135<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn14">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref14" name="_edn14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ramban, Iggeres Hakodesh, chapter 2, cited Abramov Y., & Abramov, T. (1994)
Two halves of a whole. Feldheim<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn15">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref15" name="_edn15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Seforno on Genesis 25:30<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn16">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref16" name="_edn16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Esther<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span> </span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>3:8<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn17">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Zalman's%20blog%20Body%20Parts%20flung%20heavenward%20and%20Jewish%20sexual%20ethics%20edited%20version%2012%20middayfinal%20edit12.30.docx#_ednref17" name="_edn17" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xvii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Be’er Basadeh, on Deuteronomy, 25:18<b><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-10199166609107166612022-03-04T09:44:00.008+11:002022-03-04T09:48:07.594+11:00What do Jews wish for from Catholics?<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjLPvJxjhUjSFGNoR43OHCIWjFz8qDa2G1_INTzkwcDSKRbjPYysES3Mjyk2ugrw4z4mT7qFekN2WaX8v3htNC3aZgDgcPvt3x-LpPkELn0oKbXAxsNRjijoyOM-V55O51PilKvX6_RQzN-dHzkOb2R3bWVjejo9wl8smzT1MEZxHJ3zObV6sNjn9dO=s5184" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3888" data-original-width="5184" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjLPvJxjhUjSFGNoR43OHCIWjFz8qDa2G1_INTzkwcDSKRbjPYysES3Mjyk2ugrw4z4mT7qFekN2WaX8v3htNC3aZgDgcPvt3x-LpPkELn0oKbXAxsNRjijoyOM-V55O51PilKvX6_RQzN-dHzkOb2R3bWVjejo9wl8smzT1MEZxHJ3zObV6sNjn9dO=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><div style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0cm 0cm 1pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="border: none; direction: ltr; padding: 0cm; text-align: center; unicode-bidi: embed;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #002060; font-family: arial;">My remarks on
24 February 2022, as part of the Synod of Bishops discussion at the Columban
Centre for Christian-Muslim Relations, Sydney, Australia</span></b></p>
</div><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="background: white; direction: ltr; line-height: normal; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Context</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="background: white; direction: ltr; line-height: normal; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif">On
24 February 2022, a Muslim Academic Dr. Mahsheed Ansari, and I were invited to
speak to a group of Catholics, including a bishop, priests, and others, about the
attitudes and behaviour Muslims and Jews wish for from Catholics. This was an extra-ordinary meeting. Often
faith communities talk among themselves about how to relate to others but, on
this occasion, the organisers, led by Reverend Dr. Patrick McInerney, went
further and asked, “the others”. This is a variation on the questions often
asked in Together For Humanity programs: “What do you want people of other
faiths to know about yours?” and “what do you want to never hear said about
your faith by others?” </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="background: white; direction: ltr; line-height: normal; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif">The
context for this meeting was that, in March 2020, Pope Francis initiated a
global multiyear process related to the Synod of Bishops in October 2023. The
theme is “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission”. Pope
Francis has invited the entire Church to reflect on this theme. All Catholics were
invited to take part in the diocesan consultation process to promote a sense of
communion and journeying together (1). In Sydney, two non-Catholics were also
included in this consultation. The following is an excerpt of my talk. </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: arial; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Concept<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: arial; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">I
felt daunted by the topic. My work is more about encouraging dialogue and
understanding than about the specifics of the Catholic-Jewish dynamic. I am
grateful to Rabbi David Rosen, a world leader in Catholic Jewish relations, who
took the time to talk to me about this, and I credit him for some of the content
of my remarks. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: arial; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">There
is much to celebrate about Catholic-Jewish relations in recent years. Let us
notice that the human family has come a long way from the time when the
approach to religious difference was, “I am right, you are dead”!. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Papal and Vatican announcements, sermons and declarations
express positive attitudes and sentiments that are important to Jewish people. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Some of the key elements of these have been:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">1.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">That Jews should not be blamed for the killing of
Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">2.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Calling for mutual understanding, respect for,
friendship and brotherhood with Jews.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">3.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">An abhorrence of antisemitism specifically. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">4.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">An affirmation of the continuation of the divine
covenant with the Jewish people, rejecting the idea that Jews have been cursed
by God. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">5.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Respect for Jewish interpretations of the Torah. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">I want to call particular attention to the declaration
that recognises the legitimacy of the Jewish faith as a way of worshiping God,
that is not regarded as second rate because of our refusal to accept Christian
beliefs about Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">The significance of this point cannot be overstated. It
is not for Jews to seek to influence Christian beliefs, nor is it reasonable
for us to expect Catholics to embrace relativism. However, we could wonder how
it is possible for Christians to respect Jews as fellow believers if Christians
affirm the truth of the statement by Jesus “I am the way, the truth, and the
life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me” (2). Does this not mean that Jews
cannot find salvation as Jews?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><br />
On 10 December 2015, the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the
Jews issued an unprecedented declaration (3). In this document, the Pope
addressed document addresses this problem as follows: That the Jews are
participants in God’s salvation is theologically unquestionable, but how that
can be possible without confessing Christ explicitly, is and remains an
unfathomable divine mystery. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">This document also contains the following, inspiring
sentence: ‘One can only learn to love what one has gradually come to know, and
one can only know truly and profoundly what one loves’. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">The main questions – as pointed out by Rabbi Rosen (4)
- that arise now are: How have the unprecedented changes occurring within the
Church, been implemented? Have they filtered down to the vast number of
Catholic believers and changed the deep-seated, centuries-long negative
attitudes towards the Jewish people? <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">We hope that these noble sentiments do not remain
words on paper but are instead carried in the hearts of every Catholic,
beginning with priests, schoolteachers and other people of influence, and then
in the hearts of children and adults.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">I acknowledge that many good actions are already underway.
Together For Humanity has been invited to many Catholic schools to have
dialogue with students and to build bridges in this way. I would not normally
presume to offer advice, but since I was explicitly requested to share my
thoughts, I offered the following suggestions about what can be done:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"></p><ol><li><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi; text-indent: -18pt;">The teachings – including the Pope’s statement about
salvation and divine mystery - need to be communicated widely in simple
language that lay people can understand.<br /><br /></span></li><li><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"> </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi; text-indent: -18pt;">The education and formation of priests is to be done
in such a way as to advance these sentiments. This means that learning about
interfaith forms a compulsory element of their education rather than an
elective. <br /><br /></span></li><li><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi; text-indent: -18pt;">The education and professional development of
educators in Catholic schools is to be done in such a way as to advance these
sentiments. Again, as a compulsory
element. <br /><br /></span></li><li><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi; text-indent: -18pt;">Catholic schools are to be supported and directed to
ensure these sentiments are successfully implanted in the hearts of students, and
to allocate time and money as required to get this result. <br /><br /></span></li><li><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi; text-indent: -18pt;">This means ensuring that Catholic students engage with
Jewish people by visiting synagogues and Jewish museums, participating in
cultural exchange programs with Jewish schools, and inviting speakers into
their schools, such as those offered by Together For Humanity. We stand ready
to assist and support Catholic churches, schools or other organisations to
replicate or adapt elements of our programs as they see fit.</span></li></ol><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">“God did not find a vessel to hold blessings … other
than peace”. (5) I commend the Catholic Church for substantial efforts toward
peace and brotherhood, and wish them every success. My prayers are for peace for the entire human
family, in Ukraine, the Holy Land - Israel/Palestine, and wherever this
blessing is lacking.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="RTL"><span dir="LTR" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: arial; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" dir="RTL"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span dir="LTR" face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p>Notes </o:p></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">1)<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">https://www.catholic.org.au/synodalchurch<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">2)<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">John 14:6<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">3)<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">‘<i>For the Gifts and the Calling of God are
Irrevocable' (Rom.11:29): A Reflection on Theological Questions Pertaining to
Catholic-Jewish Relations, point 36, http://www.christianunity.va/content/unitacristiani/en/commissione-per-i-rapporti-religiosi-con-l-ebraismo/commissione-per-i-rapporti-religiosi-con-l-ebraismo-crre/documenti-della-commissione/en.html</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">4)<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Rosen, D. Paper not yet published. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-left: 36pt; margin-right: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">5)<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Mishna, Masechet Oktzin, 3rd chapter</span><o:p style="font-size: 12pt;"></o:p></span></p><p>
</p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-61521200701429487452021-11-08T11:09:00.001+11:002021-11-08T11:09:10.353+11:00Emotional blindness. The Case of Isaac – Toldot <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh63tPgzFs_9FZVlqkvmCEmp8ifXP_ymiI9yUoi_dF3Bi__rqEvAUSVJbSC6djfm8ywer23oZ_wMFIet9XfV4xpLEir1Tp4xywedNsGn3ssCPhO2AzT-YbGS_y1ygW_KBhFX7jNAf-EB6s/s282/blind+eye+homeless+man.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="179" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh63tPgzFs_9FZVlqkvmCEmp8ifXP_ymiI9yUoi_dF3Bi__rqEvAUSVJbSC6djfm8ywer23oZ_wMFIet9XfV4xpLEir1Tp4xywedNsGn3ssCPhO2AzT-YbGS_y1ygW_KBhFX7jNAf-EB6s/s0/blind+eye+homeless+man.jpeg" width="179" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Alienated. Feeling
alone and disconnected from the people who used to provide connection and a
sense of belonging. Perhaps there is a vicious cycle - feelings of alienation
in an individual alienate the people they might otherwise connect with. Don’t
we like to hang out with happy people? Surely, the alienated one needs to get
over it! Look on the bright side! Which also means don’t dare look at what
feels wrong and misaligned. Turn a blind eye, mate. </span><i style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">That’s the winning
strategy</i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">. Perhaps it is.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I wonder about the
merits of focusing on the positive to such a degree that we stop seeing
disturbing facts or fears. I want to explore this by looking at the metaphoric
hints in our teachings about Isaac’s blindness.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Isaac is one of
Judaism’s three patriarchs. He was literally blind</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[i]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">,
but Isaac also seems to have been blind to the true evil</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn2" name="_ednref2" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[ii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">
nature of his oldest son, Esau</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn3" name="_ednref3" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[iii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">,
who he wanted to bless at the end of his life</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn4" name="_ednref4" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[iv]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">
rather than his good son, Jacob.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The meaning of Isaac’s
blindness is hinted at in various teachings of the Midrash. One approach is
that God brought blindness down on Isaac as a way of shielding him from the
shame of Esau’s behavior. Easu abducted married women and raped them. If Isaac
would walk in the marketplace, people would ridicule him as the father of that
scoundrel. By making Isaac blind, God caused Isaac to stay at home and thus
avoid the experience of shame</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn5" name="_ednref5" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[v]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">.
This seems to endorse the proposition that one way to deal with shame is to
avoid exposure to it and escape from it.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I read a charming
articulation of this approach from the Breslov school of Chasidism. </span><i style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">“You may
remember … from the early childhood of some little person in your vicinity,
that closing one’s eyes was a strategy often employed to ward off the threat of
seeming doom. It may not have always worked, but then again you might not have
known how to do it properly.”</i><span class="MsoEndnoteReference" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> <a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[vi]</span></span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The
Breslov approach emphasises seclusion and talking to God like one would to a
friend.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><i>The Rebbe Nachman stated 'And if things get very bad, make yourself into
nothingness.’<o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">I asked him, 'How does one make himself into nothingness?’</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">He replied, 'Close the mouth and eyes – nothingness!’</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">They advise,</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> “<i>One has to hide inside the house to keep himself from feasting
his eyes on this world. The walls of the house serve as blinders.”</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">An alternative view is
that Isaac’s blindness was a consequence of his experience being offered as a
human sacrifice by his own father</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn7" name="_ednref7" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[vii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">.
At the time the angels wept, and their tears entered Isaac’s eyes and
eventually blinded him</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn8" name="_ednref8" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[viii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">.
The angels could not bear the injustice of a father’s cruelty to his son. Isaac
tuned into the outrage of the angels to such an extent that his mind was closed
to any form of parental rejection of a child. He could not see that Esau was an
undeserving son, unworthy of the blessings he wished to give him</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn9" name="_ednref9" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[ix]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">. Following
this interpretation, turning a blind eye is unwise.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Still another approach
links Isaac’s blindness to the experience of bitterness of spirit</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn10" name="_ednref10" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[x]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">
caused to him and Rebecca by the idol worship of Esau’s wives. This made Isaac
angry, which led him to become blind</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn11" name="_ednref11" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[xi]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">.
Anger, sometimes caused by being confronted with something we really wish we
could pretend was not there</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn12" name="_ednref12" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[xii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">,
can cause us to not ‘see things clearly’ and significantly distort our
perception of reality, rendering us emotionally ‘blind.’</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I am not sure exactly
what guidance to draw from all this. However, a few things are clear to me. A
lot of the time, it is useful to look away and tell ourselves that the time is
not right for exploring depressing matters</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_edn13" name="_ednref13" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[xiii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">,
on condition that we do look at them from time to time. If we never deal with
painful issues, denial is likely to end in tears when reality crashes through and
needs to be dealt with. Despite turning a blind eye, we still have some
awareness of the problems we are choosing not to see so the emotions of anger,
resentment and shame bubble away in the shadows, and in the subconscious and
can’t be addressed. The suppressed rage and fear seep out in unspoken ways,
through tone and body language and cause distress to people around us and to ourselves.
Perhaps, the answer lies in mixing blindness with clear-eyed exploration of the
painful things we wish to avoid.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
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</p><div><!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
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<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 27:1<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Midrashic sources, Midrash Rabba and others<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Lamm, N. 2012, Derashot L’dorot, a commentary for the ages: Genesis, OU press,
p. 114<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 27:4<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Bereshit Rabba 65<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <a href="https://www.breslov.org/dvar/bereishis/toldot_5761.html">https://www.breslov.org/dvar/bereishis/toldot_5761.html</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 22:1-12<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Bereshit Rabba 65:5<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
<span style="background: white; color: #333333;">R. Ezra Bick, </span>https://www.torahmusings.com/2013/10/the-blindness-of-yitzchak/<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Genesis 26:35<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Midrash Tanchuma toldot 8<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Toldot Yaakov Yosef, I don’t remember the exact reference<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Zalman/Downloads/Emotional%20blindness.%20The%20Case%20of%20Isaac%20Toldot%202021%20NS%20edits.docx#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[xiii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
R. Schneur Zalman of Liadi, <span lang="EN-US">Tanya,
chapter 26</span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-54346979425787708232021-10-08T13:59:00.006+11:002021-10-08T13:59:39.265+11:00Strength in the face of the deluge of the deep dark chaos - Noah<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx6TSjwHc2SlhRDU7KsH1CBbxgioVzpIGMnjvGQY48P4HsbDy8skxlKtsdbammUI4KiMZC-1Xg1iN0vTczwK23zVEbo7GaktLl_2PvvaSNxiDU4p8k1kwz8BibHdx_GyjGLVoT87dNdrs/s1672/Chaos+from+the+deep+Noach+2021+reduced+size.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1254" data-original-width="1672" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx6TSjwHc2SlhRDU7KsH1CBbxgioVzpIGMnjvGQY48P4HsbDy8skxlKtsdbammUI4KiMZC-1Xg1iN0vTczwK23zVEbo7GaktLl_2PvvaSNxiDU4p8k1kwz8BibHdx_GyjGLVoT87dNdrs/s320/Chaos+from+the+deep+Noach+2021+reduced+size.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />It is 4 am and I can't sleep. Thoughts and
worries rob me of much needed sleep.<p class="MsoNormal">Some of the flood of thoughts are personal
and internal, combining with the troubles of others. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Yesterday I learned about the death of a 60
year old spouse of someone in Western Sydney that I have known through work for
many years. He died of COVID.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">According to a tweet by BBC reporter (of Afghan
heritage) <a href="https://twitter.com/BBCYaldaHakim"><span style="color: #0f1419; text-decoration-line: none;">Yalda Hakim, the 5th of October was “</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #0f1419;">Day 17 of Taliban ban on girls returning to
secondary school in Afghanistan. Millions of girls across the country continue
to be confined to their homes, deprived of an education” . </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%;">An assistant principal in Kabul told Yalda
"Today most of our teachers were crying for their students, when are they
going to start studying above grade 6?”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">I have been thinking about the idea that there is an
alternative reality to the ordered world many of us spend time in. There is
something beyond experiences of delicious, sufficient food, prioritised to do
lists, walking in nature and spending time with people we love or like.“<i>In the
beginning of God’s creation of heaven and earth, [He first created] chaos and void, and darkness upon the face of
the deep</i> (1)”.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">This chaos is not an event of the past but of the
present. The energies of chaos and void, negation and destruction continue to
lurk in the netherworld of reality and in the deep shadows of individual human
hearts and subconscious minds (2). These forces pose an ongoing threat to burst
out and submerge the world and our minds in a flood of destruction or upheaval
(3). One role of the human being is to hold this chaos at bay and to actively
work on creating all that is good, beautiful and nourishing (4).</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">Humans have often
failed to contain the destructive forces. Many women continue to suffer sexual
harassment. This is an ancient problem: <i>“the sons of the powerful ones saw
the daughters of man that they were good, so they took women from all that they
chose” </i>(5), including by force (6). The world was corrupted and filled with
robbery (7). This ethical collapse was followed by a flood arising from the
deep (as well as rain from above) and destroying everything (8).</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">Yet, as terrifying as the deep chaos is, we must
resist the temptation to gather bricks and make towers (9) of false security.
Police states preserve “order” with evil and harsh measures. Some of their
rulers also create extra “security” for themselves in massive off-shore
accumulations of wealth or other kinds
of ‘towers’ to feed illusions of greatness and immortality (10).</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">Punitive self-talk mimics the tactics of the KGB by
shaming and berating us every time a chaotic thought of self-doubt surfaces,
arising from our dark shadowed subconscious. To overcompensate for the gnawing
self-doubt and even loathing, some will display arrogant or narcissistic
“bigness”, or hyper busyness.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">But the chaos and “the deep” is not a fault but a
design feature of creation and what makes us human. When we overcome or
redirect misdirected desires or lusts this brings delight to our creator (11).</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">The floodwaters from the deep that brought
destruction in the time Noah, represent the constant worries that threaten to
overwhelm us. But as in the story of the flood, for those who responded
appropriately with an “ark”, - wise or prayerful words for example- the waters
raise the ark to a higher level representing the growth we can ultimately
achieve prompted by the worries we might not have otherwise attained (12). Let
us accept the chaos and shadows in ourselves and the inherent nature and
realities of the world as the arena we are invited to play in and contribute
to. Let’s add as much light, love, and learning as we can. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Notes </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis
1:1-2, my translation paraphrases the interpretation of Rashi.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Soloveitchik,
J.B. (1983) Halakhic Man, the Jewish Publications Society, p. 102</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Talmud
Succa 53a-b</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Soloveitchik,
J.B., p. 105 </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis
6:2</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">6)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">R.
Bachaya</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">7)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis
6:11</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">8)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis
7:11</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">9)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis
11:3-4</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">10)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Leibowitz,
Nehama (undated), New Studies in Bereshit- Genesis, Production Zion Ezra, p.
103</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">11)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">R.
Levi Yitchak of Berditchev in the name of his father in Kedushas Levi, Noach,
p. 18</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">12)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">The
Chabad - Lubavitcher Rebbes, see for example this adaptation by Loshak, A. </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/5258597/jewish/When-Times-Are-Tough-Be-Like-Noah.htm"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/5258597/jewish/When-Times-Are-Tough-Be-Like-Noah.htm</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></p><p></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-13069003951500271412021-09-20T16:35:00.000+10:002021-09-20T16:35:31.819+10:00Righting Wrongs - Reflection on Hannah and COVID Rosh Hashanah <p> </p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In these difficult times, it can become difficult to hope that what is wrong in the world, and in ourselves, can be made right. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is a time to engage with this challenge. In this blog post, I offer a glimpse into how I grappled with this on this day. </span></p><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" /><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Biblical Hannah was always known to me as the silent woman. Hannah stands in the Jewish imagination as the taunted, childless, embittered woman who prayed with </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“her lips moving,</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">but her voice not heard</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (1)” as she pleaded to give birth to a child. She is credited with the invention of Jewish silent prayer (2). But I heard her loud and clear this year, as if for the first time, due to my lockdown Rosh Hashanah experience. </span></p><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" /><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Unlike the past 45 years when I spent Rosh Hashanah in the Synagogue, this year I experienced it around my kitchen table with my family. Part of this experience was reading out loud in Hebrew the passage about Hannah in the Prophets (Haftorah) and translating it into English for my family. It was then that the power of her words hit me.</span></p><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" /><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After Hannah’s prayer had been answered, she came to the temple and gave voice to her experience:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“It was this boy I prayed for; the Lord granted me what I asked of Him... My horn [pride] is high through the LORD, My mouth is wide over my enemies...</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">...Do not talk, [in a] high, high [manner], let no arrogance cross your lips! The bows of the mighty are broken, [while] the faltering are girded with strength.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Men who were once sated, must hire out for bread; [but] Men who were once hungry, hunger no more. While the barren woman bears seven, the mother of many is forlorn.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">...The Lord casts down, He also lifts high. He raises the poor from the dust. Lifts up the needy from the dunghill, setting them with nobles, granting them seats of honor…”. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(3). </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hannah’s affirmation of hope touched me. I was moved by the image of “her horn” being elevated. The “barren,” belittled woman saw herself enlarged in her new success as a mother. It reminded me that the “little people” can become “big,” and enjoy dignity and pride.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Over the last few days, I read </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Things Fall Apart</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> by Chinua Achebe (4) that describes the humiliation of Igbo tribesmen of Nigeria by their land’s Colonisers. This disturbing story acknowledges some complexities, for example benefits for the Igbo such as reducing the killing of twins (5). On the other hand, the harsh subjugation of the clans and their leaders echoes much of the continuing pain in the world. Hannah’s proclamation that, with God’s help, wrongs can be righted, offers a counterpoint to despair and encouragement to hope.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This encouragement is alluded to in Hannah’s widened “mouth.” There are times when people feel shut down by the disinterest of others in their views. The Rosh Hashanah liturgy includes a prayer for “an opening of the mouth” for those who continue to hope for divine assistance. We pray that as we seek to right wrongs, we do not succumb to the resistance by those who don’t share our vision or by obstacles that stand in our way; rather, we continue to speak our truth. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hannah articulated a vision of the fortunes of the humble and battlers changing for the better, which continues to inspire Jews in our daily and festival prayers (6). Hannah’s words touched and inspired me on this holy day, as I hope they inspire you to continue to hope and work for better outcomes for individuals, communities and perhaps one day, even nations and humanity. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Notes: </span></p><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" /><ol style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Samuel I, 1:13 </span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Talmud 31a</span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Samuel I, 1:27-2: </span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Achebe, C. (1958), Things Fall Apart</span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3773886&source=gmail&ust=1632205649074000&usg=AFQjCNELoYos8S0k9Rer99b3NY3qG4tORg" href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/3773886" style="color: #1155cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">https://www.jstor.org/stable/<wbr></wbr>3773886</span></a><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> , </span><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.theguardian.com/working-in-development/2018/jan/19/twin-baby-dies-secret-killings-nigeria-remote-communities&source=gmail&ust=1632205649074000&usg=AFQjCNF1TMny_sJAMaESgyZcfH6qLvq5PA" href="https://www.theguardian.com/working-in-development/2018/jan/19/twin-baby-dies-secret-killings-nigeria-remote-communities" style="color: #1155cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">https://www.theguardian.com/<wbr></wbr>working-in-development/2018/<wbr></wbr>jan/19/twin-baby-dies-secret-<wbr></wbr>killings-nigeria-remote-<wbr></wbr>communities</span></a><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Psalms 113:7-8, 146, 7-9</span></p></li></ol>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-40511571627936377422021-09-03T15:53:00.002+10:002021-09-03T15:53:11.233+10:00Judgement Acceptance and Celebration Rosh Hashanah <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Accommodating! The word appeared
in large font, an accusation, that screamed at me from my Lumina Spark
personality report. The report that was generated in response to a detailed
survey about my workplace behaviours featured a word cloud with the most
significant of my characteristics shown in the biggest writing. There it was, in
huge type - ACCOMODATING.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipEM05-LxdU0gTri7oI-F2dkSBDbMWcf-SFq9BoA6TpRAJkvG0mEnid6757VmDYC1Xsxv7-SXpR1-TaqrmLJEhEvPZRWyniq-Y8cjD0pcl1DGdPcf3RpGL3s76Ed4jZ_pzujbb9BAdrls/s2048/accomodating.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipEM05-LxdU0gTri7oI-F2dkSBDbMWcf-SFq9BoA6TpRAJkvG0mEnid6757VmDYC1Xsxv7-SXpR1-TaqrmLJEhEvPZRWyniq-Y8cjD0pcl1DGdPcf3RpGL3s76Ed4jZ_pzujbb9BAdrls/s320/accomodating.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /> <o:p></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">One of my hang-ups, and I don’t
think I am unique in this, is questioning my own strength. Am I strong or weak?
Does my reluctance to confront conflict prove that I am a wimp? Are my doubts
and agonising about decision-making further proof of weakness? These kinds of ruminations
are not useful, but if we have them, we are better off dealing with them than
avoiding thinking about them.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">As I reflect on such questions, it
occurs to me that the Jewish New Year’s Day, Rosh Hashanah is fast approaching on
7-8 September. The words “behold, the day of judgement” echo in my mind. At my synagogue
on Rosh Hashanah, we would have a choir,
and two of its members with very strong deep singing voices – one a lawyer the
other a judge – would sing these words in Hebrew in a slow solemn melody: Heenaaaay
Yom Hadeeen, Heee-naay, Yo-o-m, Ha-----deeeen! Behold, the day of judgement!</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">The backstory of the Jewish day of
judgement is that the first humans, Adam and Eve, were created on this date,
and on that same day they ate forbidden fruit and were judged for it (1).
History is repeated every year on the same day.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">As He did to Adam in the Garden of
Eden, God calls out to us, “where are you?” (2) <i>“Where are you in the world?
What have you accomplished? You have been allotted a certain number of days,
hours, and minutes in which to fulfil your mission in life. You have lived so
many years and so many days,”- over 50 years in my case - “Where are you? What
have you achieved?”</i> (3). And the super-ego can’t help itself but to
appropriate the role of the divine judge to do a bit of judging of its own. Are
you good enough? Big enough? Strong enough?</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">For a long time, I regularly
showed up to the court of the false God in my head. I pleaded my case and
presented my defence. I protested too much, then noticed that these thoughts
were never enough to end the judgement. Self-criticism and self-doubt continue
to be part of my life. But one day I decided that I had enough. I declared to
the inner critic that I no longer recognised the legitimacy of his court. This
is a pointless exercise! I thought, I just need to ignore it.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">It worked to some extent but the
other day I decided to change tack and take ownership of who I am and accept
the gifts and challenges that God has given me.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">I am accommodating! That is my
nature. I am not a tough New Yorker. I am not Donald Trump. Good. I acknowledge
that sometimes I will be accommodating in situations in which it would be more
useful to me and the people I care about, or the cause I serve if I were to be
assertive. But I also celebrate that I can tune in to other peoples’ perspectives
and see the world through their eyes, and do what they want when it does not
compromise my principles at all.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">I remind myself that strength is
defined by our sages as the conquest of one’s own self (4). To act with
self-control. I am not perfect at this, but I often score some victories here.
I would love to do even better.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">With regards to one’s failure to
exercise self-control, it is also useful to practice some degree of acceptance.
We can work to address problems we own and acknowledge, but not those we deny. The
first human to be judged, Adam, admitted to God that he ate the forbidden fruit
(5). But as he did, he used the present
tense, admitting that after he was offered the forbidden fruit, “I am eating it.”
That is, I ate some, and I will continue to eat it (6). While some would regard
this as brazen, another perspective is that Adam was owning up to the truth
about himself. He knew his own reality that included a weakness for these
forbidden fruits and was completely honest about this (7). This honesty is
surely the first step to growth.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">As we look back at a year that
included challenges relating to COVID and lockdowns, let us be honest about
what we noticed about ourselves and accept the truths we learned. Then let us
forgive ourselves as surely as we believe that a Merciful God certainly
forgives us (8). In fact, as Jews we approach the day of judgement as a
celebration, wearing our best clothing; we eat and drink as we are confident in
God’s mercy (9). We also engage in some serious self-reflection and prayer. Not
a bad mix of responses to honestly engaging with the truth of our flawed and
lovable selves. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">For all who are observing Rosh
Hashana, I wish you a happy and sweet new year. May it be sweet prosperous,
free and healthy for all of humanity.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b>Sources</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Rabbi Nissim in Pesikta</li><li>Genesis 3:9</li><li>R. Schneur Zalman of Liadi,
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1107/jewish/Where-Are-You.htm
</li><li>Pirkey Avot 4:1</li><li>Genesis 3:12</li><li>Genesis Rabba 19:22</li><li>Rabbi Mendel of Kotzk, in Oratz, E. (1990) Nothing but the
Truth p. 43-44 Judaica Press. </li><li>Tanya, end of chapter 26</li><li>Jerusalem Talmud, Rosh Hashana 1:3</li></ol><o:p></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-82630643467857710662021-07-23T10:11:00.009+10:002021-07-23T10:11:44.337+10:00COVID Tensions Prejudice and Tisha B'Av<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5X7Tw0tWClOFGyH_hdvrFOLOWLBFvCJ3Xir0XXnQfOVPp72Rn9pSUkX3yZtgK88-rzTPZ3XGk6csXcK-2SH2olNqkNTgIBIMeR2KtisAFLGi-msq6udk9oyTInZvv9iFBz0pQTUIo_10/s750/rami.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5X7Tw0tWClOFGyH_hdvrFOLOWLBFvCJ3Xir0XXnQfOVPp72Rn9pSUkX3yZtgK88-rzTPZ3XGk6csXcK-2SH2olNqkNTgIBIMeR2KtisAFLGi-msq6udk9oyTInZvv9iFBz0pQTUIo_10/s320/rami.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i style="font-size: 11pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><p><i style="font-size: 11pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></p><p><i style="font-size: 11pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></p></span></span></i><p></p><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">"Where is the Aussie spirit?" Aren't we all Aussies?! the man with the long orange beard asked a group of police officers. I was very moved when I watched this highly charged exchange that began over allegations about masks. It got me thinking about maintaining solidarity in general, and especially during COVID. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">I write from two perspectives: as the National Director of Together For Humanity, my work is focused on fostering interfaith and intercultural understanding. I also write as a Jewish person sharing my experiences with you, dear reader, as another way of fostering understanding.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">The bearded man at the beginning of this article is Rami Ykmour, an Australian of Lebanese heritage and co-founder of popular restaurant chain <i>Rashays</i>. On the afternoon of 8 July 2021, police entered his Chester Hill office over allegations that some of his staff were breaching face mask orders. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">After some disagreement about how to proceed, the situation escalated. Rami made his appeal to the police, whose patience with him was quickly wearing thin. In the days since the incident, Rami has expressed regret for how things unfolded and support for the police for doing their jobs. He rightly observed that many people are very stressed and stretched at this time.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">The exchange happened at a crucial moment during the intensifying current Sydney lockdown. There have been anguished assertions of unequal and harsh treatment of Western Sydney residents from non-English speaking backgrounds, compared with residents in other parts of Sydney. One Western Sydney man from an Arab background told me he was reluctant to leave his home to go to the shops for food he needed because he just was not up for “dealing with all this.” No doubt there are reasons for specific police decisions relating to facts about the virus – rather than ethnicity – that I do not fully understand, so I don’t feel equipped to comment on the actions of the police.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">However, what is happening in Sydney now brings to mind long-standing experiences of prejudice experienced by many people from migrant backgrounds, and this worries me greatly.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">Rami’s question about us all being Aussies reminds me of the plea of the Jewish character Shylock in the Merchant of Venice: <i>“Doesn’t a Jew… warm up in summer and cool off in winter just like a Christian? If you prick us, don’t we bleed?”</i></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">We discussed this among the Together For Humanity team. One of our teachers, Kate Xavier, herself a South-Western Sydney resident of Croatian Catholic heritage shared the following sentiment: “<i>the danger for us living out West is real. Not only a sense that we don’t belong or are inferior, but a sense of feeling that any minute we fall into that trap of believing the media narrative and forgetting the humanity of our neighbours and ourselves.</i>”</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">As a Jewish person, I feel called to counter any form of prejudice. It is for this reason that I feel so strongly about everyone feeling that they belong. The most repeated commandment in the Hebrew Bible concerns the treatment of the “stranger”– the minority member – the less powerful, less established “stranger.” Jews are called to remember that the Jewish people were once “strangers” in Egypt.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">I write these lines on the saddest day of the Jewish calendar, Tisha B’Av. This year, I joined other members of my community to recite Lamentations in the traditional mournful tune via Zoom under lockdown. On this day we mourn destruction, division and loss of dignity. One legend of this day involves a man, Bar Kamtza, who - like Rami - pleaded for dignity. Solidarity means that every Australian, regardless of background, never needs to question if they are as Aussie as anyone else. <b></b></span></span></p></div><div class="yj6qo"></div><div class="adL"><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" /></div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-44736066851332942552021-04-27T10:53:00.001+10:002021-04-27T10:53:10.053+10:00Linguistic Diversity Cohesion and Power <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUyLRbIFYJCuzNBleGz1jFuk5q8Pq1F9XUKaTWqHQaSe_1HzJ4RAWxcQgEksa_cRffTBwP_hLU3NLr9noMyUpex30ftzBz4Zqt8apyXGlConIkHmvv_i1kAPisb227BOlsKk13R04zefs/s479/yiddish+street+sign.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="378" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUyLRbIFYJCuzNBleGz1jFuk5q8Pq1F9XUKaTWqHQaSe_1HzJ4RAWxcQgEksa_cRffTBwP_hLU3NLr9noMyUpex30ftzBz4Zqt8apyXGlConIkHmvv_i1kAPisb227BOlsKk13R04zefs/s320/yiddish+street+sign.jpg" /></a></div><span id="docs-internal-guid-b3e840b9-7fff-faec-a536-4335753dab34"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The 3 year old girl pointed at the fire truck. “Fie-er lesher, Fie-er lesher” she shouted excitedly in yiddish. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The little girl was my mother. She had recently arrived in San Francisco from Shanghai, where she was born to yiddish speaking parents who narrowly escaped the Nazis in World War 2. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“She should not speak in yiddish! She must speak English” her parents were told angrily!</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is wrong to prevent migrants from speaking their native languages. I believe this, despite my view that migrants must learn the language of their new country (if they can, some people find it quite difficult). It is hard for people to be united or even really get along if they can’t talk to each other. In fact, the first time the Torah mentions linguistic diversity is in the story of the Tower of Babel. We are told that people speaking one language makes their society strong, but if they speak different languages it will weaken them (1). However, being able to communicate in the language of one’s new country can be achieved without restraining migrants from speaking their native languages. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This approach is not without risks. The easiest way to learn a language is to practice it and be immersed in it. There are parts of Australia that have high concentrations of people who speak languages other than English. In these areas, migrants can get by without properly learning the language of the land. Research has shown that being surrounded by signs in foreign languages caused significant discomfort to older Anglo-saxon residents in one of these areas (2). These risks should be addressed and mitigated rather than going to the extreme and trying to stamp out other languages from our shared spaces. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Preserving native languages is important for two reasons: one is self-expression and the other is power. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Educator Ronit Baras introduced me to the idea of “language of the heart”. As I understand it, the language we speak as children enables us to express ourselves most effectively, especially when trying to articulate what is in our hearts. Languages learned later operate on a more technical level. We can express what we think effectively in a second language, but it can be hard to express how we feel. Assuming that this is true for many migrants, it would be a terrible imposition to restrict them from using their own language most of the time. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The second argument relates to power. Because our ability to express our feelings is impeded when we are forced to use a second language, we are therefore not as powerful in negotiating everyday situations when speaking that language. I noticed that intuitively as a teenager when dealing with a particularly harsh teacher (who died from COVID last year). This teacher had a sharp tongue and could pack a powerful verbal punch in his native Yiddish, which was my first language. To change the power dynamic between us, I always addressed him in English rather than in Yiddish. It really threw him. The best he could do when I told him I thought I was a nice guy was to tell me in a thick accent “</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">you not, nice guy, you nice garbage</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">”. That is a bit harsh, but nothing compared to what he could deliver in Yiddish! </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The relationship between power and language can explain a peculiar phrase in the story of Esther. The context is a king wishing to subdue women under the control of men. The royal edict stated that every man will be a ruler in his home, and </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[in the case where husband and wife speak different languages, the husband and therefore his wife]</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> will speak in the language of his [</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">the husband’s</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">] nation (3). There we have it, suppression of linguistic diversity to serve male domination, with the loss of the right to speak one’s native language is clearly linked to a loss of power. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Torah urges us not to mistreat the stranger (4). Allowing them to speak in their native language is one way to adhere to this commandment. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Notes</span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Genesis 11:6-9</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wise, A, (2004) Contact Zones: Experiences of cultural diversity and rapid neighbourhood change among Anglo-Celtic and long term elderly residents in Ashfield. Centre for Research on Social Inclusion, Macquarie University</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Esther 1:22</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leviticus 19:33</span></p></li></ol><br /></span> <p></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-57885452586405661792021-02-19T13:21:00.005+11:002021-02-19T13:21:33.943+11:00Receiving Charity is Divine - Terumah<p>Nine year old Bert Facey was a slave in 1904-5. He desperately wanted to escape the house of the stranger who had him working from morning to night, but could not. He was brutally beaten. His family’s terrible poverty deprived young Bert of schooling, and the love of family through his childhood and adolescence (1). He grew up resilient and stoic and is the author of the classic and inspiring book, “A Fortunate Life”. Despite his heroic life, it is a shame, he never received charity. My argument in this blog is that the acceptance of needed charity is a beautiful thing. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdul7skL1Onh3OduD5JNon3ZwGIy59VKISxTHANJ3ns-3zo6R0t88_FT4fB89YDGcluBetJ16mIT_iLP8uGjsnWhduqYiMTe16lxyFFGyKOxn7kV6N_UiO5hraRgvggc169nf5QLjzksY/s200/sachin+modgekar.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdul7skL1Onh3OduD5JNon3ZwGIy59VKISxTHANJ3ns-3zo6R0t88_FT4fB89YDGcluBetJ16mIT_iLP8uGjsnWhduqYiMTe16lxyFFGyKOxn7kV6N_UiO5hraRgvggc169nf5QLjzksY/s0/sachin+modgekar.png" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image by Sachin Modgekar<br />Reproduced under <br />Creative Commons License</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p>The Jewish mystic the Baal Shem Tov taught that taking charity is a sacred act. Like other solemn activities such as a wedding or prayer, it ought to be done with the right intention. In this case, it should be accepted with the intention of it being “for the sake of heaven”. [Thus] “the one who receives should not accept charity for superfluous items ,... but instead to take what is needed to sustain oneself and one’s family as is appropriate and right [for them]” (2).</p><p>Let me pause here with a disclaimer. My intention in citing this teaching is not to endorse the implication that the poor should never have any luxuries. I interpret the second half of the statement that sets an aspirational standard of “appropriateness and right” as subjective, to be determined by the recipient rather than society. It is wrong for members of the community to police the poor to ensure they use what is given to them for necessities. (The virtues of not taking what is not needed is beyond the scope of this blog (3)). Sometimes there are factors that others are simply unaware of (4) and so we must give people the benefit of the doubt (5). </p><p>Putting this aside, the point I want to emphasise is the way the Baal Shem Tov turns the focus away from the experience of the giver to consider the dignity of, and the spiritual significance of the act for the recipient. </p><p>Receiving charity is linked to what the mystics would regard as the holiest spiritual processes: the repair or “unification” of God’s name. Unification is a key underlying purpose of many of the rituals of Judaism. God’s name is split apart by human evil. Virtuous deeds reunite the four letters of God’s name. The exalted process is activated by the receipt of charity. The letter Yud י is shaped like a coin. The letters Hey ה (the 5th letter of the alphabet, linked to the number five) represent the hands - with their five fingers - of both the giver and recipient, and the letter Vav ו represents the giver’s arm (6).</p><p>One scholar tried to restrict the designation of the divine character of receiving charity to apply only to poor scholars who receive without asking for help. This restriction is dismissed (7). Regardless of how it happens, the act of receiving charity is considered a greater gift to the giver than what the giver of charity provides to the recipient” (8). </p><p>I love these teachings. On the one hand, I admire people like Facey, who despite all his troubles named his book “AFortunate Life” as an expression of incredible positivity and gratitude. However, we need to combine an emphasis on the virtue of resilience and self-sufficiency with the virtue of asking and accepting help when we truly need it. Like many others, I have tried both paths. Being tough and independent when I needed help, and later learning the value of receiving support. I am a better man for learning to do the latter, and I pay forward the support given to me to others who benefit from my strengthened self. </p><p><br /></p><p>Notes</p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">(1) Facey, A.B. A Fortunate Life. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">(2) The Baal Shem Tov- in Tshuas Chein, Teruma, cited in the Baal Shem Tov on the Torah</span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">(3) Numerous sources in the Talmud and Jewish law, Pesachim 112b, רמב"ם (משנה תורה, הלכות מתנות עניים פרק י הלכה יח</span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">(4) Thank you too PS on the Facebook discussion for highlighting this. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">(5) Pirkei Avot 2:5</span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">(6) The Arizal, cited in Chido on Teruma, p. 255, 1</span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">(7) Chido, ibid. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">(8) Midrash Rabba Ruth 5:9</span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><span class="J-J5-Ji" id=":14d" style="align-items: center; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline-flex; flex-wrap: wrap; font-family: Roboto, RobotoDraft, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; min-height: 28px; position: relative; vertical-align: bottom;"><div aria-label="Important mainly because it was sent directly to you." class="pG" data-tooltip-align="b,l" data-tooltip-contained="true" data-tooltip-delay="1500" id=":14a" role="img" style="align-items: center; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-size: 0px; height: 20px; justify-content: center; margin: 0px 8px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 20px;"></div></span>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-8094226506677136542021-02-05T10:25:00.007+11:002021-02-05T10:25:33.955+11:00“Jewish Soul”, Is it a software thing? Yitro <div style="text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">The idea of the
Jews being a “chosen people” (1) can motivate us in worshiping God (2) and
service to humanity. I don’t think of it as me being better, or more worthy
than virtuous people I know and admire who are not Jewish. However, there is a
risk that the idea of being ‘chosen’ - if it is taken to mean that there is an
intrinsic difference to the Jewish soul - can make some Jews feel less
connected to, or to devalue their non-Jewish neighbours (3).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">How we choose
to understand ethnic identity can be compared either to computer software -
that is installed and added on but not essential, or to hardware, in that we
regard it as intrinsic to who we are (4). If it is software, the brotherhood of
mankind is more plausible than if it is hardware. Jewish scholarship on this
question is mixed and complex. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Gx_i_66Cmgamc1t6dGojS1bqqKg61kYQaO1N_YBuSFL35Wve3YC_SSE6-IwGf-kWOPv_9O6tZvkBeaxN23aV9gbL8qe1bdtztQ67zM-u2w2r3_HEs7KaGuI4434VFuW_a8ERgzeBEPw/s1024/soul.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Gx_i_66Cmgamc1t6dGojS1bqqKg61kYQaO1N_YBuSFL35Wve3YC_SSE6-IwGf-kWOPv_9O6tZvkBeaxN23aV9gbL8qe1bdtztQ67zM-u2w2r3_HEs7KaGuI4434VFuW_a8ERgzeBEPw/s320/soul.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image by Steven Depolo, used under <br />Creative Commons Licence 3.0<br />https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">On the hardware
side of the argument is the idea of a unique Jewish soul (5) which, according
to a mystical perspective, is “a part of God” (6). However, this needs to be
taken in the context of the belief that God is present in everything in
existence. Even rocks, according to the mystics, contain a “divine spark” (7),
although these “sparks” are deemed to differ between inanimate objects and
different peoples (8). </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">We should not
overstate the concept of the “Godly soul” because, according to its chief
proponent, it is quite marginal to the lived experience of the Jew. The
day-to-day life of the Jew is an experience of an “animal soul” rather than a
Godly one. It is this animal soul that is the true everyday identity of the
Jewish person (9). The Godly soul is something “that has been placed within him”
(10) but is not him or her (11). It seems more like an obscure “plug in”, than
a core element.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">On the other
side of the argument stands Maimonides (12). Repeatedly, he emphasises that it
is an individual’s knowledge and motivations that are key to one’s spiritual
standing. “Every person can be righteous like Moses” (13). “Every single person
from all inhabitants of the world whose spirit guides him and whose intellect
leads him to understand, to separate himself and to stand before God...to walk
straight as God created him...he is sanctified [with the greatest
holiness],“Holy of Holies”...” (14). </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">A Chasidic
master put it: “Holiness is not found in the human being in essence unless he
sanctifies himself. According to his preparation for holiness, so it comes upon
him from on High. A person does not acquire holiness while inside his mother.
He is not holy from the womb, but has to labor from the very day he comes into
the air of the world” (15). Indeed, whatever faults one might attribute to a
non-Jewish idol worshipper’s soul would also describe our Jewish ancestors when
we worshipped idols in Egypt, “with no difference!” (16). Clearly holiness is
determined by behaviour.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Regardless of
hardware or software, the idea of chosenness is linked to service (17). One
form of this service is the role of the Jews in bringing an understanding of
monotheism to all humans and uniting them in worship (18). This emphasises the
importance of humanity as a whole, and sees the role of the Jewish people to
benefit mankind rather than one of self-centeredness. This is because “all
humans are cherished by God, and the Righteous of the Nations are precious to
God without a doubt” (19). Furthermore Jews are urged to approach this concept
with humility (20). </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I will end with
a quote from one of the Rabbis, who, despite being aligned with the inherent
differences approach, still strongly embraced love of all humanity. He wrote:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">“<i>The highest state of love of creatures should be allotted to the love of
mankind, and it must extend to all of mankind, despite all variations of
religions, opinions, and faiths, and despite all distinctions of race and
climate. It is right to get to the bottom of the views of different peoples and
groups, to learn, as much as possible, their characters and qualities, in order
to know how to base love of humanity on foundations that approach action. </i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><i>For only upon a
soul rich in love for creatures and love of man can the love of the nation
raise itself up in its full nobility and spiritual and natural greatness. The </i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><i>narrowness that
causes one to see whatever is outside the border of the special nation, even
outside the border of [the people of] Israel, as ugly and defiled, is a
terrible darkness that brings general destruction upon all [efforts at]
building of spiritual good, for the light of which every refined soul hopes</i>" (21).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Perhaps
hardware or software does not matter quite as much as it would seem, as long as
we can embrace all of humanity. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Notes: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><br />
I acknowledge Rabbi Hanan Balk and his essay referenced in the notes below as
the basis of much of what I have written above. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto;"></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Exodus
19:5-6, Isaia 41:8-10</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Targum
Yonasan Ben Uziel to Exodus 19:6</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Ohr
Hachayim commentary to Exodus 22:20</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Murray,
D. (2019) The Madness of Crowds, Gender, Race and Identity, Bloomsbury</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Zohar,
Genesis 170, & 171, Kuzari, 1:41-43, in In Balk H., (2013) The Soul of a
Jew and the Soul of a Non-Jew, p. 49, </span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">An
Inconvenient Truth and the Search for an Alternative in Hakira, vol 13, <a href="http://www.hakirah.org/Vol%2016%20Balk.pdf">http://www.hakirah.org/Vol%2016%20Balk.pdf</a> </span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Eitz
Chayim gate 5:2, Tanya chapter 1 and 2 by R. Shneur Zalman of Liady (1745–1815),
and Nefesh ha-Ḥayyim sha’ar 1, ch. 4, by R. Ḥayyim of Volozhin (1749–1821)</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Tanya,
Shaar Hayichud V’Haemuna, chapter 1</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">cited
in the discussion between the Lubavitcher Rebbe and Hilel students, cited in
Balk, H., p.51 </span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">With
the exception of the extremely rare super saint or tzadik as defined in Tanya
chapter 1</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">The
text of the morning prayer Elokai Neshama, my God, the soul that you placed
within me...</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Tanya
chapter, 29</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Balk,
H., (2013) ibid, see also his strong approach to the interpretation of the
coerced divorce</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Maimonides,
Yad Hachazakah, Laws of Repentance 5:2</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Maimonides,
Yad Hachazakah, Laws of Sabbatical and Jubilee Years, 13:13</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">R.
Simḥa Bunim of Przysukha, Kol Simḥa, Parshat Miketz, p. 47 and Mesharatav
Eish Lohet, p. 228, quoted in Noam Siaḥ, p. 263. In Balk, p. 47</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Ohr
Hachayim commentary to Exodus 22:20, <span dir="RTL" lang="AR-SA">נשמות ישראל עצמם
היו טבועות בקליפה ואם כן יהיה גר זה כאחד מכם באין הבדל</span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Targum
Yonasan Ben Uziel </span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Seforno
on Exodus 19:5-6 </span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Seforno
ibid</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Chatam
Sofer on Yitro, p. 38-39</span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Kook
(Mussar Avikha (Jerusalem, 1985), p. 58, no. 10; Orot ha-Kodesh (Jerusalem,
1990), vol. 4, p. 405. In Balk p.54</span></li></ol><p></p>
<br /></div>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-57217124972890014442020-12-04T11:59:00.004+11:002020-12-04T11:59:36.747+11:00Frantic to Equanimity? Jacob Renamed Israel<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5SDz5T_WUIh7JTRlOtREELCFpdAK-0bgBWCiIq_xmTZL5LevmEWgTf5Pn4va3nb3-u0DfAGf4R0HOD3oLZjBDHbxyC3fjRbwXz6PZ74Q1EseuSX8xGLgKFif9T0vV8JliVbT-WqDRScY/s500/panic-1393619_1280.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5SDz5T_WUIh7JTRlOtREELCFpdAK-0bgBWCiIq_xmTZL5LevmEWgTf5Pn4va3nb3-u0DfAGf4R0HOD3oLZjBDHbxyC3fjRbwXz6PZ74Q1EseuSX8xGLgKFif9T0vV8JliVbT-WqDRScY/s320/panic-1393619_1280.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">I have
set myself a goal for December – to shift from feeling driven in the way I
work, to calmer and more accepting ways of being at work. I often </span><span lang="EN-GB">feel like I am frantically moving my attention from one urgent task
to another, doubting myself, feeling disappointed, and worrying about what
might happen next. <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">However, change is risky
because we can try to change too much and either fail to change very much at
all – <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>or, worse, succeed in
overbalancing from too anxious to become too relaxed and passive. This is an
exploration of the challenges of equanimity and personal change, and draws on
the example of the </span><span style="background: white; color: #303336; mso-highlight: white;">patriarch Jacob.</span></span> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB">Equanimity<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; mso-highlight: white;">Jewish tradition extolls the virtue of </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="background: white; color: #303336; mso-highlight: white;">השתוות</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE" style="background: white; color: #303336; mso-highlight: white;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; mso-highlight: white;">– Hishtavut, equanimity. This quality is illustrated by the story of the
man who sought to join a group of </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Kabbalists as an initiate. The admission test, which
he failed, was whether he felt the same when people praised or insulted him (1).
I remember, as a child, being in awe of my father when something went wrong in
his work and his reaction was of one of utter calm. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, equanimity is<span style="color: #303336;">
an ideal that eluded the patriarch Jacob. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Jacob – the name means the crooked
blocker</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">Jacob’s
name and identity was inherently about trying to stop the inevitable. When
Jacob was born, his hand held on to his brother's heel, which is interpreted as
him trying to prevent the inevitable fact of his brother being the first born
(2). This act earned him the name Jacob (3), which has connotations of thwarting
someone and trickery. As a teenager he again tried to change the facts of the
birth order by offering his brother a bowl of lentils in exchange for the
birth-right (4). Despite Jacob’s scheme for advancing his status, his dying
blind father still chose to bless Jacob’s older brother. In response Jacob, disregarding
his deep ethical reservations, impersonated Esau and was blessed instead (5).
This deception enraged Esau, which led Jacob to flee to another country. When
he arrived there, he boasted that he could be devious if someone tried to trick
him (6). Yet, despite his boast, he was repeatedly deceived (7), and resorted
to strange tricks with sticks in a never-ending fight for his rights (8).</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336;">Frantic approach
to a brother</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; mso-highlight: white;">Two decades after the bitter falling out with his brother,
Esau, Jacob returned to his homeland. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anticipating
a confrontation with Esau, Jacob prepared frantically with gifts, flattery, and
preparation for war (9). He</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336;"> cried
out to God with a heartfelt prayer, “<i>Save me, please, from the hand of my
brother, from the hand of Esau, for I fear him, lest he come and strike me,
(and my family too) a mother and children</i>” (10). <span style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Yet, it turned out that his brother kissed him when
they met rather than sought to attack him as Jacob had expected (11). Esau even
reassured Jacob about the disputed blessings (12), with the statement: “let
what is yours, be yours” (13). <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; mso-highlight: white;">Jacob was criticized for not simply letting things be (14).
Jacob’s anxious approach is linked to an interpretation to the verse in the
psalm, may “goodness and kindness pursue me” (15). W</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">e can be too anxious
or unaware of blessings that are sent to us, so we run away. In this psalm we
request that the blessings pursue us despite our difficulty in receiving them
(16).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Personal Rebranding</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext; mso-highlight: white;">In the middle of
all the frantic preparation, Jacob stopped. It was the middle of the night, and
he was alone (17). </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">Jacob entered a heightened state of consciousness
and inner struggle,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-highlight: white;">separating himself from his material self and his external identity and
his name Jacob (18). Perhaps he had enough of being “Jacob”, was tired of
hustling, of the ethical ambiguities and the anxiety and stress. We read that Jacob
wrestled with a “man” while he was alone. The man </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">was “the guardian
angel of his brother Esau” (19) – or perhaps it was how Jacob would imagine his
brother’s angel (20). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222;">At the end of this epiphany or spiritual
encounter, Jacob emerged with a new name, Israel; he was not to be called Jacob
anymore. This new name symbolises strength and ability to confidently negotiate
with humans or divine beings (21). This experience was intense and left Jacob
scarred in his thigh (22). Perhaps the thigh represents walking and movement
(23), and it being injured was symbolic of reducing Jacob's hectic pace.
According to the mystics, the thigh represents the drive to victory or
competitiveness (24), and it being hit represented shifting to a calmer
approach. </span><span style="color: #222222; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">Balance</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">When I studied this transformation of
identity, I was drawn to it and thought I might model my personal growth on
Jacob-Israel's dramatic change. As I read more and reflected on this, it
started to become disturbing. Despite Jacob’s new identity as Israel, a new man
filled with confidence and strength, a new crisis arose with the abduction of Jacob-Israel’s
daughter Dina (25). The old frenetic Jack-in-the-box Jacob was silent and
missing in action, but so was the new Israel identity. New ways of being taking
practice and time to develop, and can’t always be manifest. Yet, it seems like
Jacob did not fall back on his old ways either, to save his daughter through
desperate measures or tricks. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222;">My conclusion is to aim for equanimity,
but also to embrace my New York-Chabad forged drive and hustle as tools in my
toolbox and aspects of my personality. Like Jacob, I can become an Israel, but
I am not aiming for a negation of my earlier way of being or identity.
Equanimity begins for me with being ok with being a little stressed. I anticipate
that I will learn how to work more calmly, but I am trying to be ready for the
times when “I don’t, because sometimes I won’t” (26). And when that happens, I
hope to be ok with that too. </span><span style="color: #222222; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="color: #222222; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; color: #303336;">Notes</span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"></p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1) <span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Gates of Holiness, 4<sup>th</sup>
chapter, Third Gate, section 5- </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.chabad.org/search/keyword_cdo/kid/10371/jewish/Chaim-Vital.htm"><span color="windowtext" style="background: white; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white; text-decoration-line: none; text-underline: none;">By Rabbi Chaim
Vital;</span></a><a href="https://www.chabad.org/search/keyword_cdo/kid/10371/jewish/Chaim-Vital.htm"><span color="windowtext" style="background: white; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white; text-decoration-line: none; text-underline: none;"> translated and
adapted by Zechariah Goldman</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.chabad.org/kabbalah/article_cdo/aid/380555/jewish/Equanimity.htm</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Rashi</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 25:26</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 25:29-31</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 27:11-14, the sin of his deception was considered so
serious that the in the Talmud, Sanhedrin 92a Jacob’s behaviour is compared to
idol worship.</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 29:12 Jacob states that he is Laban’s sister’s brother
which is understood by Talmud Megila 13b to state that he “is his brother in
deception”</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">7)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Genesis</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;"> 29:18-23 and
31:7</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">8)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 30:31-41</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">9)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 32:4-21, see Jonathan Sacks, in Covenant and
Conversation p. 230</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">10)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 32:12</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">11)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Genesis 33:4, </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">See Midrash
Rabba 78:9 (33:4), p. 773, it was sincere and with his whole heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">12)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Rashi to Genesis 33:9, see </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Baal
Haturim:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the Gematriya, the numerical
value of the letters in the words </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">אחי יהי לך אשר לך</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> (my
brother let what is yours be yours) is the same as </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">זה הברכות</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> they
both equal the number 645.</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">13)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 33:9</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">14)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Midrash Rabba </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Midrash Rabba
32:4</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">15)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Psalm 23:6</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">16)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Baal Shem Tov, in Shimon Menachem Mendel of Gavaratchov
(ed).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>on the Torah, p. 271, 9</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">17)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 32:25</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">18)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Malbim on 32:25 p.319,</span><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">his being
alone relates to his preparation for prophecy, in a state of </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">התבודדות</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">19)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Beresheet Rabba 77</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">20)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Ralbag, p 202 & 204, The Midrash Aggada, cited in Kasher,
Torah Shlaima, p. 1282, 146 tells us that Jacob pleaded with his brother’s
angel for forgiveness for the blessings from his father, but the angel representing
Esau, seemed to have moved on as he responded with the question “who is
complaining about you [about this]?</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">21)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 32:29</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">22)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Genesis 32:26</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">23)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Netziv, in Lamm, N. A commentary for the ages- Genesis, p. 176,
it is associated with the hip that is linked to walking and it represents
movement.</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">24)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;">Derech Mitzbotecha, Mitzvat
Gid Hanasheh</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">25)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Genesis 34:1-5</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-highlight: white;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">26)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #303336; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">Dr. Seuss, Oh, the places you’ll go.</span><br /><!--[if !supportLists]--><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1241889800645271761.post-91029055000008288482020-11-20T10:01:00.002+11:002020-11-20T10:01:21.055+11:00Absence of Honest Communication - Rebecca’s Marriage - Toldot <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRdbrXnbaI_yLHFD0J7TwGMWOZ8TTNXzvYobq-w0XOQtjr_7GZBhYL65HQcrqPj8CdWHWuu5PcRMHYA8V-GG5RAxRmYZVaI2Vtf6Z24AjfAUiHfuxSihojaDhpjOTE90EJ5wiXrLcVKys/s1280/emotion-1294184_1280.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1026" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRdbrXnbaI_yLHFD0J7TwGMWOZ8TTNXzvYobq-w0XOQtjr_7GZBhYL65HQcrqPj8CdWHWuu5PcRMHYA8V-GG5RAxRmYZVaI2Vtf6Z24AjfAUiHfuxSihojaDhpjOTE90EJ5wiXrLcVKys/s320/emotion-1294184_1280.png" /></a></div><br /><p>I have been
thinking about people who are afraid to speak honestly to their intimate
partners about difficult topics. This blog post is about those who are
reluctant to speak and their partners, who might need to build the trust that
makes open communication more likely and ‘safer’.</p><p>I was very
surprised to learn that, in the Torah text (1) that contains Rebecca’s story,
she never spoke openly with her husband, Isaac. In fact, she only spoke to him
once in the whole story. In this instance, instead of disclosing her terrible
fear that one of their children was scheming to kill the other, she talked
about prospective marriage partners as a reason for her son – the potential
victim – to leave town (2).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Although the
Torah informs us that her husband Isaac loved her (3), and described their intimacy
as laughter (4), their love and laughter did not necessarily lead to strong
communication. When Rebecca felt distressed during her pregnancy she spoke
about her pain, but not to her husband (5). She and her husband each had
different favourite sons: Isaac loved Esau, but Rebecca loved Jacob (6). We do
not read that they ever discussed their divergent views about their children.
On Isaac’s deathbed, he decided to bless his favoured son, Esau. This was not
acceptable to Rebecca, so she orchestrated for her favourite son, Jacob, to
deceive her husband by impersonating his older brother (7). Perhaps a
discussion between Rebecca and her husband could have prevented this drama that
led to much pain for all concerned (8).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">One commentator
(9) suggests that this reticence began the moment Rebecca first saw Isaac. It
was fright at first sight. Rebecca first set eyes on her future husband and
quickly fell off the camel she was riding on, then grabbed a veil and covered
herself (10). She fell of the camel out of fear, and veiled herself out of
shame, believing that she was not worthy to be the wife of such a holy man
(11). The veil was not merely an expression of modesty, but symbolic of the way
Rebecca metaphorically veiled her personality in her dealings with her husband
(12).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Rebecca’s
reticence is remarkable in how it contrasts with the accounts of the other
matriarchs and patriarchs who spoke out when they were upset. Sarah vented her
simmering resentments passionately, when she felt slighted by her fellow wife,
Hagar (13). Jacob expressed his anger toward Rachel when she demanded he solve
the problem of her infertility (14).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Rebecca’s
predicament illustrates the way some couples fail to communicate and suffer. No
doubt, there are cases where they tried to communicate, and the response was
disappointing. It could be that an expression of pain meets a defensive reply,
or one that seeks to assign blame to the one complaining. It can be scary to
give voice to unhappiness, and no doubt some partners decide it is not worth
it. This blog invites two questions. One is to those of us who are reluctant to
talk. Are we willing to think again about the possible benefits of speaking our
truth and whether the risks can be mitigated in the way we talk? And the second
question is to partners or family members who might be viewed as less than
approachable. How do we ensure that our partners or family members feel safe
and confident to talk to us and expect that we will listen with an open heart
and mind?</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Notes<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">1)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See from Genesis 24:64 to Genesis 27:46<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">2)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 27:46<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">3)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 24:67<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">4)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 26:8<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">5)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 25:22<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">6)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 25:28<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">7)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 27:1-29<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">8)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Haemek Davar, to Genesis 24:64,
https://www.sefaria.org/Haamek_Davar_on_Genesis.24.64?lang=en cited in Lamm, N.
Drashot L’Dorot, Genesis.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">9)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Haemek Davar, ibid<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">10)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 24:64-65<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">11)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Haemek Davar, ibid<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">12)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lamm, N. (2012), Drashot L’Dorot, Genesis. P.
105<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">13)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 16:5 as translated and interpreted in
the Targumim Yonatan ben Uziel and Jerusalem for fuller detail<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">14)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genesis 30:2<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p> </o:p></p>Rabbi Zalman Kastel AMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15689513680760912342noreply@blogger.com0