Leadership in Action: Another Rabbi Announces their Aliya

As the Shabbat of "Parashat Shalch" (the weekly portion of the "spies") approaches, I'm thrilled to report that yet another Community Rabbi has announced to his community that he is making aliya. Rabbi Ari Berman of the "Jewish Center of Manhattan" is making aliya and remaining in Israel after a year's sabbatical from his shul and community.

Here are some excerpts from his letter to the Jewish Center community:

"As you know from my public and private talks, my personal connection to Israel is visceral and heartfelt. In truth, it would be difficult for any Jew with any level of historical consciousness not to be emotionally connected to Israel. Defying all historical probabilities, our people have returned to our homeland and, as such, we who live today have the duty and the privilege of playing a role in the Jewish story and advancing our people's historic destiny. This past year, living in Israel as a resident instead of visiting as a tourist, has given me new insight into the issues and challenges that Israel confronts. And there are many. But even though Israel is not always an easy place, never a simple place, certainly a complicated place, it is still our place. The rhythm of life, the face of the public square, the culture and undercurrents of society are all rooted in our tradition and heritage. Raising a family in Israel comes with a very different set of challenges than living in the Diaspora, but it also carries with it a very different set of rewards. Before The Jewish Center offered me the opportunity to spend a year of study in Israel, I mentioned to our leadership that it might be difficult for me to leave Israel. I knew that my connection to Israel would only intensify and that the opportunity to raise my children in Israel might be too difficult to let pass.

When I think of the land of our fathers and mothers, my focus naturally shifts to my sons and daughter, and my hope that they will learn to see Israel as not just their homeland but also as their home."

When you read/hear the story of the spies in this week's parasha, remember the Zohar's commentary:

The Zohar asks, how could the Israelite spies from the desert, who were such great leaders of Israel, speak such slander about the promised land?

The answer is frightening.

The Zohar writes that the spies realized that if Bnei Yisrael would cross the Jordan immediately after the spies' return from their mission (which was the correct game plan), then the Beit HaMikdash would be built and a king would be anointed. There would be no destruction of the Temples, no Exiles, No terrible periods of tragedy for the Jewish people -- rather we would have immediately entered the period of ultimate geula.

So what was the downside? The spies figured out that upon the anointment of a Jewish king, their leadership roles would disappear. In order to hang on to their political positions of power, they sacrificed the Jewish people for 38 more years in the desert, the destruction of 2 Temples, 2 periods of exile, and the deaths of countless Jews throughout the ages.

According to the midrash, not only did the spies make their announcement to all of Israel, but they went from tent to tent to personally spread their message of gloom and doom if Israel would enter the promised land of Eretz Yisrael.

How wonderful is it that we can see positive leadership this week -- Community Leaders announcing their aliya, actively demonstrating their love of the land.

You too can correct the misdeeds of the spies -- and help spread the positive message of Eretz Yisrael to your family and friends.

Shabbat Shalom.

--Jameel & Co.

hat-tip: David

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Jewish Leadership in the Parashat HaShavua

This week's Parashat Hashavua, (weekly Torah Portion) "Shlach", is about the 12 spies sent by Moshe to spy out the land of Israel and their report back to the Jewish people.

As we all know, 10 came back with awful, horrendous reports of why not to move there; security issues, a land that devours it's inhabitants, fear of the locals, etc. Joshua and Calev had a completely different report -- a land flowing with milk and honey. (Side note, tonight (Thursday) at midnight, the IDF is again allowing access to Kever Yehoshua and Calev)

So much of this week is reflected in this week's Parasha.

The 40th anniversary of Israel's amazing liberation of Yehuda, Shomron, Gaza, the Golan, the Sinai...and Yerushalayim.

The world was in awe of us at the time.

In their 1967 report on Israel and the war, TIME magazine's coverage would make their current editors cringe. I suggest you take a few minutes to read it to remind yourself how we were viewed by the world at the time. Their final paragraph sums it up amazingly:

In the last analysis, though, it was the Israeli military virtues of superb tactics and timing, its professionalism in the martial arts, that turned an Arab defeat into a classic rout likely to be studied with admiration at war colleges the world over. Beyond those tangibles there looms the dedication of the Jews, forged in thousands of years of dispersions and persecutions, their inviolable determination to ensure modern Israel's survival as a nation. "Everybody fought for something that is a combination of love, belief and country," said Moshe Dayan at week's end. "If I may say so, we felt we were fighting to prevent the fall of the Third Temple." (hat-tip to SoccerDad for the TIME articles)

How times have changed.

In TIME's retrospection on the past 40 years, their main point is "the plight of the Palestinians"...though such a term doesn't even appear in the the original 1967 report. From a war of survival, revisionists (abroad and even in Israel) have rewritten history so that Israel was the aggressor.

And yet, let's return to the Parasha.

The Zohar asks a curious question; The 12 spies were leaders of Israel! How could they have fallen so easily to report back such awful reports about the land? The leaders were Talmidei Chachamim...leaders of the tribes of Israel....they all saw our liberation from Egypt and Matan-Torah, the revelation of the Torah from G-d at Mount Sinai! What happened?!

The answer from the Zohar is rather distressing.

The spies realized that if the children of Israel would enter the land on schedule, 2 years after their deliverance from Egypt, then Jewish history would unfold as follows:

The Jews would enter and conquer the land, anoint a king and build the Beit HaMikdash, the Jewish Temple -- which would remain forever and the "days of Mashiach" would essentially start immediately.

There would be none of the tragedies that would befall the Jewish people -- those from the 9th of Av (the day the 10 spies gave their bad report).

The Jewish Temples would not be destroyed. There would be no exiles. Judaism and history as we know it would have been radically different...and approaching perfection.

So what happened?

Realizing all of this, the 10 spies feared their current status of leadership would disappear -- there would be a king over Israel.

The Zohar writes that to retain their leadership...even if meant that the Jews would stay in the desert for another 38 years, the spies provided a negative report about the land.

All the tragedies that befell us; 38 more years in the desert, destruction of the Temples, Exiles, Bloodshed...all so that those 10 spies could retain their leadership.

Now that's a frightening point.

What is our leadership like today?

Krum as a Bagel writes about the awful political backstabbing in the WJC, as Rabbi Israel Singer was backstabbed and thrown out over personal advancement and backroom politics.

"I expected a Jewish organization to be about more than politics and backroom dealing but it seems they are no different than any other group of career politicians who make and break alliances and bedfellows as it suits their political needs."

Israel's political leadership...is replete with corruption, placing their own personal and political agendas before that of the country.

Askanim; political hacks infest religious political parties and organizations for a myriad of reasons that do much damage to some of the loftier goals of those parties and organizations. (I hope to write more about this in the coming weeks, showing why askanim are giving Chareidi/Ultra Orthodox Judaism a bad name)

And of course, religious leadership which covered up wrongdoings of their own colleagues.

We shouldn't really be surprised; ma'aseh avot -- siman libanim. The actions of the fathers illuminate/dictate the actions of their children.

Only 2 out of 12 did the right thing.

We need to find them and elevate them above the rest.

May we find them speedily!

Shabbat Shalom.

Jameel.


PS: The end of the Parasha demonstrates what Pinchas thought of awful leaders as well. Discussing that however, is grounds for incarceration.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael