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Do You Believe in Magic?

By Rabbi Dr. Stuart Fischman In this week’s parsha there is a long list of magical practices in which we are forbidden to engage (Devarim 18: 9-12). It is not clear what exactly these magical techniques involved but it is clear why people turned to them. People turned to them in order to prevail over the reality of their existence thinking they could try and change that reality, or perhaps to divine the future. Be that as it may, these magical practices were alleged to be a tool which one could use to create a more advantageous existence and these verses in the Torah raise an important question: Is magic real?

Nonsense. Just nonsense.

It probably comes as no surprise that Rambam (Maimonidies), the great master of Halacha and perhaps the preeminent avatar of a rational Judaism, wrote with tremendous scorn on the subject of magic. Here are his concluding words in the eleventh chapter of his Hilchot Avodat Kochavim regarding the prohibition of magic:

All of these things are false and spurious, and it was that the ancient idolaters misled the peoples of many lands so that they would follow them. And it is unbecoming to Israel who are exceedingly wise to be attracted by these absurdities, nor to even imagine that they are of any consequence…Whoever believes in these matters, and their like, and suppose that there is wisdom and truth in them, except that the Torah disallowed them, such people are none other than foolish and ignorant ….

Not Nonsense

Ramban (Nachmanidies), the greatest Torah scholar in 13th century Spain, was one of the first figures to bring Kabbalistic ideas to the public. He did this in his trailblazing commentary to the Chumash in which he wove together all of the facets of the Torah into one magnificent work. Ramban opposed many of the ideas of Aristotelian philosophy which enjoyed great popularity among a significant portion of Jewish society. Aristotelians said that miracles are impossible because God cannot change nature. In a similar vein, Aristotelians denied the reality of magic. The Ramban fought Aristotelianism and so we find him defending magic. Here is a passage from the Ramban’s commentary to our parsha:

Now, many scholars dispose of themselves to be liberal with regard to these enchantments by saying that there is no truth in them whatsoever, for who tells the raven or the crane what will happen? But we cannot deny matters publicly demonstrated before the eyes of witnesses. …

To most of us the credulity of the Ramban seems, to put it mildly, naïve. But we need to keep in mind that in medieval Europe many very learned people engaged in the study of astrology and alchemy and these were considered worthy of serious study. Be that as it may, Ramban opposed Aristotle and those who accepted his ideas because they limited Hashem’s absolute freedom to manage all of creation.

What to do?

It is understandable that people will do what they can to shape their future. The world can be very scary. So, what can Jews do to shape their future?  After the prohibition regarding magic the next verse has this to say: You must be wholehearted with your God Rashi explains what this verse is teaching:

“…walk before God whole-heartedly, put your hope in Him and do not attempt to investigate the future, but whatever it may be that comes upon you accept it whole-heartedly, and then you shall be with Him and become His portion.”

In other words, Rashi seems to be explaining the beauty of what is called “simple faith,” something that can be easily tested in a world where so much of the truth can be covered in lies. Being ‘wholehearted’ with God can help ground us and guide our way.  

Permission to eat meat

By Rabbi Dr. Stuart Fischman Elsewhere in the Torah we are taught the rules for eating meat as part of the system of animal sacrifices but in this week’s parsha the Torah specifically permits the consumption of meat for pleasure. We are told (Devarim 12:21) that if we choose, we may eat meat simply because we want to:

כי־ירחק ממך המּקום אשׁר יבחר הי אלקיך לשום שׁמו שׁם וזבחת מבקרך ומצאנך אשׁר נתן הי לך כאשׁר צותך ואכלת בשׁעריך בכל אות נפשך

If the place where God has chosen to establish the divine name is too far from you, you may slaughter any of the cattle or sheep that God gives you, as I have instructed you; and you may eat to your heart’s content in your settlements.

Why now?

The language of the Torah here is astonishing. The Torah seems to be legitimizing something that was terribly destructive forty years earlier amidst a gluttonous craving among the Israelites as they wept and said, “If only we had meat to eat!” (Bamidbar 11:4). The תאוה or desire for meat at that point in our journey to the Land of Israel led to the catastrophe of Kivrot ha’Ta’avah. So why is Hashem now suddenly permitting us to satisfy the תאוה, our urge to eat meat? The simple explanation is present in the pesukim. At Kivrot ha’Ta’avah the people were rebelling against the Divine gift of manna. But on entering Israel there would be no more manna and once we entered Israel not everyone would be able to easily come to the Temple to eat sacrificial meat. Therefore, God permitted us to consume meat should we choose to do so.

Why Food?

If we look at Tehillim 107 we see it is about our deliverance from Egypt and our journey through the desert. The fifth verse states:

Hungry and thirsty, their spirit failed.

The Ba’al Shem Tov asked a simple question based on this verse and he taught a remarkable lesson. He asked, how does food, which is material and tangible, nourish the spirit which is neither material nor tangible? He answered that in food there are “sparks” which are spiritual and holy. When eaten properly (which means for the proper motives) these hidden sparks are what nourish the soul.

Spiritual Territory

In discussing our parsha, the Sfat Emet elaborates on this idea of the Ba’al Shem Tov explaining the following. When the Torah says we may eat meat “When Hashem enlarges your territory,” it does not refer to territory on a map. It also does not refer to meat, per se. The Torah is talking about one’s spiritual territory and everyone is born with a certain spark of holiness and it is our job to make that spark grow. When a person has enlarged his or her holiness, the next task is to expand the realm of holiness in this world and this is achieved by liberating the sparks concealed in the rest of Creation. Everything in this world seeks to be elevated towards God and as the Baal Shem Tov said, food in particular has holy “sparks,” which nourish the soul. Eating meat is just one example of the many opportunities people have to enjoy something in this world while simultaneously making themselves and the world holier.

Old, But Not in the Way

By Rabbi Dr. Stuart Fischman One of my favorite musicians is Jerry Garcia. Jerry Garcia acquired his fame as the leader of the Grateful Dead, but he worked and recorded with many other musicians as well. One of his non-Grateful Dead projects was the formation of a band called “Old and in the Way” and the production of an album with the same name.

Are the Old People in the Way?

“Old and in the Way” is an interesting title. I think that it was a tongue-in-cheek reference to the old-style bluegrass music that the band played. Perhaps it was also a reference to their age, since rock music had an ethos of “Hope I die before I get old.” But “old and in the way” does reflect society’s attitude towards the elderly. Old people are not as physically capable as young people. Old people are often retired from the workforce. They are in the way.

The Torah’s Teaching on the Old

The Torah of course does not tolerate the marginalization of the elderly. This is obvious from the the following pasuk (ויקרא י״ט:ל״ב):

מפּני שיבה תּקום והדרתּ פּני זקן ויראת מּאלקיך אני הי׃

You shall rise before the aged and show deference to the old; you shall fear your God: I am the LORD

But the significance and dignity of every human being is found in this week’s parsha as well, in relation to Moshe Rabbeinu recalling his smashing the tablets.

The Second Luchot

The story is well known that Moshe Rabbeinu received two tablets of stone crafted by and engraved upon by Hashem. But when Moshe Rabbeinu came down from Mount Sinai and saw the Golden Calf he cast the two tablets down and shattered them. After praying to Hashem to forgive the Jews for their sin Moshe Rabbeinu was told to carve two new tablets of stone and to bring them up the mountain. There, Hashem would engrave upon them the words of the Ten Commandments. A remarkable drasha in masechet Menachot (מנחות צ״ט א:יב) on his retelling the story states:

אשר שברת ושמתם בארון (דברים י, ב) תני רב יוסף מלמד שהלוחות ושברי לוחות מונחין בארון מכאן לתלמיד חכם ששכח תלמודו מחמת אונסו שאין נוהגין בו מנהג בזיון

"...[The tablets] which you broke, and you shall put them in the Ark” (Deuteronomy 10:1–2). Rav Yosef teaches that both sets of tablets including the pieces of the broken tablets are placed in the Ark. We learn from here that with regard to a Torah scholar who has forgotten his Torah knowledge due to circumstances beyond his control, one may not behave toward him in a degrading manner."

Old People are Never Ever in the Way

The new set of tablets were placed in the Ark- the ארון הברית. But what was done with the shattered remnants of the first tablets? Rav Yosef teaches that the shattered tablets were kept alongside the intact second pair of tablets. This in itself is surprising. Why would the shattered stones be kept alongside the intact tablets?  Rav Yosef then teaches us that this is meant to teach us a lesson: Scholars who forget their learning due to illness or age must not be disgraced. The tablets of stone were important because of their content. We might have thought that once the tablets were shattered, they would have just been ignored. But no, the shattered tablets were shown the exact same respect shown to the intact tablets and they were stored alongside them in the Holy of Holies. Scholars are respected because of their scholarship. They are Torah personified. That is why we stand up when we see them. But what about the scholar who forgot his learning? Is he to be ignored? Rav Yosef teaches us that to ignore him would be to deny his inherent dignity. Just as the shattered tablets were treated with their original respect so too must we treat the scholar who lost his scholarship. He may be old but he must never be treated in such a way.

Divine Consolation - On Shabbat “Nachamu”

By Rabbi Dr. Stuart Fischman This Shabbat is the Shabbat after the fast of Tisha b’Av. It is traditionally referred to as “Shabbat Nachamu”- the “Shabbat of Being Consoled.” This name comes from the opening phrase of the week’s Haftarah which opens with the words “Nachamu nachamu…” I would like to share with you something I heard many years ago from Rav Shimon Schwalb zt”l who was a very distinguished rabbi in  New York. The Haftarah (ישעיהו פרק מ פסוק א - ב) opens with these verses:

(א) נַחֲמוּ נַחֲמוּ עַמִּי יֹאמַר אֱ-לֹהֵיכֶם:

Comfort, oh comfort My people, Says your God.

(ב) :דַּבְּרוּ עַל לֵב יְרוּשָׁלִַם וְקִרְאוּ אֵלֶיהָ כִּי מָלְאָה צְבָאָהּ כִּי נִרְצָה עֲוֹנָהּ כִּי לָקְחָה מִיַּד ה' כִּפְלַיִם בְּכָל חַטֹּאתֶיהָ

Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, And declare to her That her term of service is over, That her iniquity is expiated; For she has received at the hand of the LORD Double for all her sins.

In these two verses we see two different verbs for speech. Hashem’s communication is “ נחמו- comfort.” The communication of the prophet is “ דברו על לב-speak tenderly.”  What is the difference between the two verbs?

The Challenge of Human Consolation

The prophecy cited in the verses above refers to the Redemption. After the horrors of our Exile, Hashem will redeem us and at that time we will have many questions for Hashem: Why did we need to suffer, as the prophet says, “Double for all her sins”? Why was there a Holocaust?  And so on... No human has the answer to these questions. No human can explain the Holocaust. But our questions will be answered by Hashem. And that is what Hashem promises us when He says that He will comfort us. He will provide us with the explanation for our history.

Yosef Consoles His brothers

Rav Schwalb based his explanation of the verb "נחם"  on its use in the story of Yosef and his brothers. After the death of Yakov Avinu, Yosef’s brothers feared that now Yosef would take revenge on them. So, they offered themselves to Yosef as his slaves. Then Yosef spoke to them as follows  (בראשית נ:כ-כא):

:וְאַתֶּם חֲשַׁבְתֶּם עָלַי רָעָה אֱ-לֹהִים חֲשָׁבָהּ לְטֹבָה לְמַעַן עֲשֹׂה כַּיּוֹם הַזֶּה לְהַחֲיֹת עַם רָב

:וְעַתָּה אַל תִּירָאוּ אָנֹכִי אֲכַלְכֵּל אֶתְכֶם וְאֶת טַפְּכֶם וַיְנַחֵם אוֹתָם וַיְדַבֵּר עַל לִבָּם

Here again are the two verbs "וינחם" and "וידבר על לבם". What do they mean in this context?

Divine Consolation

The brothers were afraid that Yosef would take revenge on them. But Yosef explained that he cannot do this. Yosef understood that all that his brothers’ treachery led to saving the nascent Jewish people. Yosef understood the Divine truth. That enabled "נחם" – consolation. Consolation is achieved through comprehension and explanation. Coming to terms with or understanding the past. The brothers were afraid that Yosef would abandon their children. So, Yosef promised that he would support them. That was "וידבר על לבם"- he spoke to their hearts. “Speech to the hearts” means allaying fear of the future. Yosef saw the Divine plan in his life’s story and he could explain it to the brothers. He could speak to their hearts and make them stronger for the future. But for us today awaiting the redemption, what about the life story of our people? Prophets can allay our fears of the future but they cannot explain the past. Returning to our the verses above from our Haftarah, we see it is the prophet who will “speak to our hearts” preparing us for the future but first, it will be Hashem Himself in the first verse who will console (מנחם) us making our understanding of the past as clear as the Divine truth was to Yosef.  

Elevated by words of Torah

By Rabbi Dr. Stuart Fischman

How Chasidut Studies the Chumash

The weekly Torah portion can and ought to be studied on many levels. The Torah portion of the week (the “parshat hashavuah” or simply “parshah”) contains information which we need to know and understand in a straightforward manner. This information is called in Hebrew, by some, “p’shat”- the readily apparent meaning of the text. But there is another level of meaning in the Torah which needs to be explored. This level of meaning is, one could say, the spiritual meaning. The Torah is God-given and the serious student of the Torah is correct in asking how does the week’s passage from the Torah bring her or him closer to God.

So what makes Chasidut special?

The teachers of Torah who took this search for spiritual meaning very seriously were the Chasidic teachers. As the Chasidic movement took shape one of the significant innovations in the movement was the lesson on the parsha. This lesson was given by the Chasidic rebbe during the third Shabbat meal. The Chassidic rebbe understood that what his followers needed was something that they could take home. They needed something that could help elevate the mundane and bring them closer to God. The questions that the Chasidic Rebbes raised in their parsha talks were not the ones raised by the great medieval commentators. Foe example, when someone wishes to understand what a sentence means in its context one looks to Rashi or ibn Ezra for an answer. But if someone wishes to know how does knowing this or that verse bring me closer to God, then the answer is found in the Chasidic works. Today I wish to share with you a teaching from the renowned Chasidic work, Sfat Emet, on the parsha.

Mosheh Rabbeinu and Stuttering

Our parsha begins, “These are the words that Moses spoke to all of Israel...” For the perceptive reader who has followed the Torah reading throughout the year this verse marks a remarkable change in Moses. For when God approached Moses for the first time and instructed him to speak to Pharaoh, Moses refused to go. Moses replied to God, “…please God, I am not a man of words…” And eventually it was Moses’s brother Aaron who spoke. So how did this transformation occur? How did Moses become a man of words? The Sfat Emet (based on the early Rabbinic text Midrash Rabbah) explains that what changed Moses was the Torah itself.

Elevated by words of Torah

The Torah is what gives life. The Torah was God’s blueprint for all of creation. When God first met Moses, Moses was truly “not a man of words.”  But what did Moses mean when he said that? When Moses said that he was “not a man of words” he did not mean that he could not speak clearly. What he meant to say was that his words could not reach the hearts of the Jews. But the Torah that Moses taught for forty years elevated his speech. His speech acquired the sanctity of the Torah. Now his words could enter the hearts of the people. So what is the lesson for us? Speech, the Sfat Emet says, is an immensely powerful tool. It is can cause great harm. But it can also bring about great good. The Torah certainly changed the speech of Moses, and if we open ourselves up to the Torah it can change us as well.