Wholly Holy?

Today’s words of Torah are brought to you by the Hebrew word “Kodesh”.

“Kodesh” means “holy”. In this week’s parasha the Jewish People are enjoined to be a “Holy People”. The Parasha goes on to explain just what that means. However,  an examination of the entire Torah quickly shows that it is not only “people” who can be holy!

When Moses encounters G-d at the burning bush, Moses is told he is standing on “holy ground”.

Sabbaths and Festivals are “holy days”.

Aaron and his son’s clothing are described as “holy garments”. 

Food can be holy.

Oil for lighting the Menorah is holy.

Oil for anointing a priest -- a kohen -- is holy.

The ark is holy.

The first born of certain animals are holy; the first of the fruit of the trees are also holy. 

And of course Israel is “the holy land”. 

The three letter root in Hebrew -- kuf/dalet/shin -- upon which the word “Kodesh” is built means “separate” or “set apart”. Holy people, holy objects, holy food, holy days, are all “set apart” for service to the divine. They are dedicated for G-d’s use. 

The favorite way of referring to G-d in classic rabbinic literature is not to use the term “Adonai” or “Hashem”.  In classic Rabbinic literature  G-d is often  referred to  as “Kadosh Barukh Hu” -- the Holy, Blessed One. 

Thus, in this week’s Torah reading, we are told that the entirety of the Jewish People is to be “holy”, that is, set apart by G-d, for G-d, to bring the knowledge of G-d to the rest of humanity. That is our special work, our mission in the world. But G-d is the only being that is totally holy, whose essence is holiness. We humans are of flesh and blood. The only way we can be holy is to somehow connect to G-d’s holiness, to build a path to the Source of Holiness and to share in that holiness. Without that connection to G-d, we can still be good people, we can still be generous people, we can still be compassionate people, but we cannot be holy people. 

There is a verse in the prayer in the Amidah, which all of our 5th and 6th graders will learn for their b’nai mitzvahs, which declares “Kadosh Kadosh Kadosh, Adonai Tsevaot, Meloh Kol Ha-aretz Kevodo.” “Holy Holy Holy is G-d, the entire world is filled with G-d’s glory!” Each time we recite the word “Kodosh” it is the custom to rise on our toes. It is as if we are reaching upwards to partake of the holiness of G-d. But this action is merely symbolic of our aspiration to be holy. Our parasha give us the path we need to walk along to be a holy people. To be holy we need to follow the ethical rules and practice the ritual observances established by Jewish life. To be holy we need to love our neighbor, take care of the poor, treat the stranger with kindness, respect our parents and observe Shabbat and the Jewish holidays. It is through walking this path that we can elevate ourselves to be at least partly holy -- not by standing on our toes!

Prof. Solomon Schechter, one of the great Jewish scholars of the twentieth century, once asked: "Where are the Jewish saints? In other communities you have a long list of saints. Churches are named after saints. Where are the Jewish saints?"

Schechter answered his own question: "Jewish saints do not form a sect apart. You find them in the very midst of the community. They are not raised on a special pedestal,  a….[person] who works as a doctor can be a saint, a…...[person] who works as a laborer can be a saint… a woman who works as a mother can be a saint... It is sometimes even possible  to achieve a degree of holiness in the pulpit—surprising as that may be."

Shabbat Shalom

Happy 73rd Birthday, Israel!

 

           

 

Over the past year many words have crept into our day-to-day language…. “Pandemic”, “lockdown”, “masking” “social distancing” and “PPE” are some of the words that we used infrequently or did not know. When asked about whether the Corona virus will ever go away, scientists often respond that it will be “endemic”. I’m pretty sure unless you are an “epidemiologist” -- another frequently heard word these days -- you  might  not have  known what “endemic” means. According to Wikipedia, “an infection is said to be endemic in a population when that infection is constantly maintained at a baseline level in a geographic area without external inputs”. Merriam Webster defines “endemic” as “characteristic of or prevalent in a particular field, area, or environment”.

By these definitions I think it is safe to say that “antisemitism” is endemic to Western Civilization. It is always there, under the surface, and it flares up now and then. Last February two disturbing incidents appeared on network television.  In the first, Saturday Night Live aired a news parody where comedian Michael Che, playing a newscaster, reported that Israel had vaccinated half of its population and then quickly added [quote], “I’m going to guess it's the Jewish half,”. In the second incident, NBC aired a scene of the program “Nurses” in which a young Orthodox man, named “Israel”, complete with payus, lies in a hospital bed. His father, dressed in the black worn by the Ultra-Orthodox, is standing by his bed as a young African American doctor explains that the young man needs a bone graft for his leg. The doctor explains that the bone graft would come from a deceased donor. To which his Israel’s father responds with consternation, “A dead goyim leg … from an Arab, a woman,” -- to which a female nurse responds, under her breath: “Or, God forbid, an Arab woman.” 

I needn’t tell you how these two scenes portray Jews as racist, hateful, and only concerned with themselves, three well-worn  anti-Semitic tropes.  These did not appear in some dark place on the internet. They appeared on national television only weeks ago! 

 

Yes, antisemitism is indeed endemic, but as you can see from the above two examples, its target has shifted over the past 50 years. The target is now Israel. Note how the young man in the hospital bed is named “Israel”. Not so subtle. And of course, the Saturday Night Live episode is a direct reference to Israel. 

 

The endemic nature of anti-Semitism can be the only possible reason that Israel, of all nations in the world, is singled out for the harshest of criticisms, the harshest of judgements. The creation of the State of Israel is the culmination of the two thousand year old dream of the Jewish people -- to return to our ancestral homeland. The Jewish people are the indigenous people of the Land of Israel, returning home after 2000 years of exile. Yet we are often maliciously described as “colonizers” displacing the “rightful owners” of the land. Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East, and one of the great democracies of the world. Yet Israel is frequently attacked as being the worst violators of human rights. Israel was officially recognized by the UN as an independent nation in 1948. Yet it is the only nation in the world whose “right to exist” is constantly questioned. The state was founded after the Holocaust, in which 6.000.000 Jews were murdered and the entire Jewish civilization in Europe was obliterated. Yet Israel is regularly accused of being worse than the Nazis. Israel has suffered thousands of casualties because of terrorism. Yet Israel is condemned whenever she defends herself.

 

Scientists tell us that the Coronavirus is here to stay. It can be controlled, but it will not go away. The Pandemic nature of the disease will subside, but it will always be endemic. Anti-Semitism is the same. When Theodore Herzl conceived of the idea of a Jewish State, he hoped that it would solve the “Jewish problem” -- that antisemitism would be eradicated if Jews could become a normal people in a normal nation state.  He was wrong, because anti-Semitism isn’t a “Jewish problem”. It is a “human problem”, a problem of Western Civilization. Jews cannot solve the problem because Jews do not cause the problem. It cannot be fixed by a change in our behavior, or even the establishment of a Jewish state. The root of antisemitism lies elsewhere. It lies with those who hate, not with those who are hated.

 

Nevertheless, the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 is the most important event in Jewish history in the last 2000 years. No longer would Jews have to endure the powerlessness we experienced living in the Diaspora. No longer would we live or die at the whim of a king, a queen, an emperor. No longer would Jews suffer the torrents of humiliation, hatred and violence in silence. No longer would we be merely a tolerated minority in the lands of our dispersion. The establishment of the state of Israel meant a return to Jewish dignity and power. Jews could now determine their own fate. If Jews were attacked, Jews could hit back. For the first time in 2000 years, Jews could protect themselves, defend themselves.  

 

Last Thursday was Yom Hashoah U gevorah, Holocaust Memorial Day in Israel. We will commemorate the day with our Holocaust Memorial program this Sunday at 10 am. CBS member Paul Bloom will be our featured speaker. This coming Wednesday, April 14, Israel celebrates Yom Hazikaron. This day commemorates all those in the Israeli military who lost their lives in the struggle that led to the establishment of the State of Israel and for all military personnel who fell while on active duty in Israel’s armed forces. The following day is Yom Ha-atma-ut, Israel Independence Day. These three holidays -- Yom Ha-shoah, Yom Ha-zikaron and Yom Ha-atz-mah-ut -- are the first new holidays on the Jewish calendar in 2000 years. They mark the dawn of a new era in Jewish history. The message is clear. Out of the destruction of the Holocaust, through the sacrifice of its people, a Jewish nation has risen again to begin a new, hopeful, and exciting chapter of the Jewish saga.

Shabbat Shalom

Photo Credit Lavi Perchik on Unsplash

 

Judaism and Baseball

 

 

Inspired by opening day, which was yesterday, I found myself writing these lyrics:

To the tune of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game)

Take me out to the temple dad

Take me out to the shul,

Let’s hear some prayers and Torah chants,

Maybe the rabbi will break out in dance

 

For its Ruth, Ruth, Ruth on Shavuot

I’m not talkin’ ‘bout “Babe” you may guess

‘Cause it's Fun…..To……. Dress up on Purim

At Cee  Bee  Esss!   (CBS) 

 

Solomon Schecter,  who was the first President of the Jewish Theological Seminary in the first decades of the twentieth century, was said to have advised his students – all male at the time -- “Gentlemen, in order to be a success in the American Rabbinate, you must be able to talk baseball”. Just think about it!.  Why would he pick baseball?  In the beginning of the 20th century, with antisemitism and anti-immigrant sentiments rising in this country, it was part of a rabbi’s job to make his immigrant Jewish community more American. What could be more American than baseball? Today, of course, one could say that a rabbi”s job is the opposite -- to make our community that is by now comfortable being American more Jewish! 

 

The game of baseball is over 150 years old. There are many similarities between baseball and Judaism. For example, the rules of baseball have essentially remained the same over a long period of time. The same with Judaism!  Yet baseball is a very different game than when it first began in this country after the Civil War. Judaism, too, is very different than it was 150 years ago.

 

For example, both Judaism and baseball have become more inclusive.    One of the greatest changes in baseball occurred in 1948, when Jackie Robinson became the first African American to play on a Major League team. Prior to that time baseball was a segregated sport. An aspiring African American ball player had to play in what was called “The Negro Leagues” if he wanted to play professional baseball. The Negro Leagues had legendary players -- Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, Buck Leonard, to name a few -- but they never had the opportunity to play in the Major Leagues due to segregation.  Fairly recently the   Major  League Baseball is finally making amends by including Negro League statistics in the Major League record book. 

 

In addition to being racially integrated, baseball has recently begun to admit women into its ranks as leaders. The Florida Marlins made headlines last year by naming Kimberly Ng as the first female general manager of any of the four major North American sports leagues. She is also the person of Asian descent to become a general manager of a professional sport. Last year Alyssa Nakken was hired by the San Francisco Giants to be a full time coach. The barriers to women’s participation in Major League baseball are beginning to fall.  And yet, there has never been a female Major League umpire. The time will come, I am certain.

 

Just as baseball has become more inclusive, so Judaism has become more inclusive. The first bat mitzvah in America took place on March 18, 1922. The bat mitzvah was Judith Kaplan, 12 year old daughter of Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan. On that Shabbat morning, Judith did not ascend the pulpit but stood below it. With the Torah scroll covered but in sight, Judith recited the blessing before the Torah,  read the Torah portion from her own Chumash in Hebrew and English, and concluded with the blessing after the Torah. Yet, it wasn’t until the 1970s that 13 year old girls began having the same ceremony for their bat mitzvahs that boys that age had for their bar mitzvahs.

 

Judaism has become more inclusive in its clergy as well. The first woman ordained as a rabbi was Regina Jonus in Berlin in 1935. It was not until 1972, when the Reform Movement ordained Sally Priesand, that the next woman was ordained. There was a time when only men could aspire to be cantors. Today women not only serve as cantors but have contributed significantly to Jewish liturgical music.  

 

In addition to being more inclusive, both baseball and Judaism have experienced many changes. Here are just a few:

In 1895 a held foul tip was first considered a strike

In 1896 Theodore Herzl published The Jewish State 

In 1952 Players had  to remove their gloves from the field when batting and no equipment was to show on the field at any time.

That same year the Conservative movement allowed driving to shul on Shabbat

In 1968 the pitcher’s mound was dropped 5 inches.

That same year the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Seminary was founded.

In 1973 the American League began to use the designated hitter

In 1983 the Reform movement adopted the Patrilineal Descent resolution.

 

Despite these changes -- and many, many, more throughout the years -- baseball remains the same game. Judaism, too, has seen enormous changes but remains at its core the same.  Like every aspect of human life, and over time, both have had to adapt, to adjust and to accommodate to remain relevant and germane in our changing world -- For  baseball, to hold onto its fanbase. For Judaism to hold onto its adherents!  I daresay that if Solomon Schecter, the President of the Jewish Theological Seminary could come back today, he would marvel at the changes baseball and Judaism have undergone in the past century. But I am sure he could still enjoy a ballgame -- and find a spiritual home in Jewish life today.  

Shabbat Shalom

Photo Credit: Jose Francisco Morales at www.unsplash.com