Always New and Renewed - Thoughts on Parashat Emor - May 8, 2020

Leviticus Chapter 24 begins with a reference to kindling lamps regularly- in Hebrew – LHA-A-LOT Neir Tamid – in the ancient Tabernacle.  This echoes, almost word for word, a similar commandment in the book of Exodus.  

    I have spoken many times of the moment several years ago when I noticed at 6:40 pm, before our 7pm service, that the light bulb in the Neir Tamid above the ark had gone out.  It was the first time that had ever happened to me in all the years of my rabbinate.  I rushed to my car, made the 1 minute, 150 yard drive home, found a Compact Florescent Bulb, and quickly returned to Temple.   One of our congregants graciously and firmly held Temple’s really tall step-ladder from below while I went up on the ladder at least one rung further than I was comfortable. But I had to do it.   I successfully replaced the bulb and it’s still shining today!

       Of course, we aren’t praying in the sanctuary these days.  So the light that we generate comes from our souls, the sounds of the prayers and the music, and the magic of being together, whether or not we can see each other’s faces.   Presenting worship online week after week is probably a lot more like what the Ancient priests had to do to organize worship for the Israelites than OUR normal routine of walking in the building, turning on the lights and sound, putting out the materials we need for worship, and then starting the service.   I can tell you that, from my end, it doesn’t get old or mundane because this is a holy responsibility for me as a leader and for you who are watching and joining us.  

    The next verses in Leviticus 24 describe 12 loaves of bread that were baked for worship, carefully placed out on a table in two rows.   They were to remain out for a week.  The rabbis of the Talmud asked, “Wouldn’t they go stale?”  They said, no, of course not.

     Samson Raphael Hirsch, a great Orthodox rabbi in Germany in the 1800s, responded to the rabbis of the Talmud with an interpretation that said, basicially, “not so fast!”  The bread actually may have gone stale – we don’t really know.  Hirsch taught that we should look at the ritual in a symbolic sense.  He explained that the ancient tabernacle was immune to the possibility of boredom and habit setting in, where the rituals would no longer have meaning.  It was their special place in a sacred space that didn’t go stale.

   So, look at us now.  We pray to God as a creator who rested one day every week, so that we now have that landmark in time that keeps us on schedule.   We acknowledge in our prayers that our tradition can lead us to love, to hope, to see our days as meaningful, to view our lives through a lens of gratitude, to create peace where there is strife, and to remember loved ones no longer with us who still inspire us.

    If those are repeating habits, we need them, because they keep us balanced and grounded.  They can assure that our souls, like the 12 loaves of bread in the ancient place of worship, will not become stale.   May we find something special every day to keep us moving forward with a sense of connection with one another, with unbridled optimism, and with amazement that our gatherings at a distance can still bring us together as one. 

Shabbat Shalom

 

Words of Torah - Purpose and Light - Parashat Emor - May 7, 2020

WORDS OF TORAH – PARASHAT EMOR

MAY 7, 2020

     It’s Thursday.  

     These days, we may find ourselves needing reminders of what weekday it is.   Classes and webinars on my schedule have helped me keep track of the passing of the days, in addition to the coming of Shabbat every week.  I hope that you also have indicators that mark the days of the week for you. 

     The preparation that I do for Shabbat often occurs in earnest on Thursday.  With worship and study times approaching, I find myself necessarily engaged with developing interpretations of our portions of the week.   

     We are looking, these days, perhaps more than ever, for kindness, consideration, support, wisdom, and hope, as well as signposts for keeping time in our lives.  

     The Torah portion for this week, EMOR, addresses some of those concerns. 

      Leviticus Chapter 23 presents the Israelite holiday calendar.  It includes a description of the “OMER (SHEAF)” 49 day count-up from the second day of Pesach to Shavuot (which begins on May 28 in the evening this year).  This chapter is the source of the reason why we build a Sukkah every year. 

      The passage begins with an announcement of the “fixed” or “appointed” times dedicated to our focus on God as the author of creation and of our very lives.   The word for “fixed times,” MOADIM, has a root word (YUD-AYIN-DALET) which can mean “to set a place and time to gather for a special purpose.”  The term for congregation, EIDAH, comes from this root.  The word YA-AD is related to these terms as well. It means “mission, purpose, objective, or destination.”   These terms, taken together, describe when we gather, and, more importantly, they point to the underlying purposes of what we do with our personal, communal and Jewish time.

     From the beginning of Chapter 23, we are asked to gain a sense of the “why” of what we do.   The chapter reminded the Israelites to help the poor at the time of harvest, so that their observances of the festivals would be acceptable.   Those observances were not just about the people celebrating the achievement of fostering growth of crops. It required them to assist others because of their success.  This is biblical exhortation that now manifests itself in our Tzedakah donations (righteous giving).   We have been doing this for a long, long time.  Do give to causes that you believe will help people whose needs for support have increased due to our current challenges.

   At the beginning of Chapter 24, the Torah restates the commanded from Exodus to keep lights burning (the Menorah) in their center of worship continually.   One rabbinic explanation noted, “As you among humanity shine your light on me [teaching the world the values which God has taught us], I will shine my light on you.”    It is that light that we offer to one another, and receive from each other, that can give us strength and hope.

So may we continue to connect, and to give the best of ourselves, in the coming days. 

A Sabbath of Connection Online is still a Holy Connection (or..The magic of Passover while staying at home) - Column for The Las Cruces Bulletin, May 1, 2020

    Our cars mostly sit idle in the garage.   

           We venture out mainly for medicine and groceries.   I have visited my congregational building every few days when I need something from the office. 

           My office lap computer sits at home, always ready to be pressed into service. 

           I lead classes on Zoom and services on the Temple facebook page from my dining room table or from our den.  Our Religious School meets together for a Zoom assembly once a week as we near the end of our current year of learning. 

          In Judaism, a home is called a Mikdash M’at, a small sanctuary, at most any time.  That term describes the many home ceremonies for the Sabbath, for festivals, and for daily life that can be observed at home, individually or with others.  

          This year, in our “stay at home” time, one of the greatest challenges throughout the Jewish world was organizing a Passover seder, the meal that is usually held around a table (or tables) with family and friends, reading from the Passover Haggadah, the book that guides participants through the prayers and rituals that recall the deliverance of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.   Haggadah is a Hebrew word that means “telling.”  

         Perhaps we will need a supplement for future Passover celebrations, remembering how we used technology in 2020 to be together on this Festival of Freedom.

       The Seder is held on the first two nights of Passover.  Congregations may choose to host a Seder on one of those nights for those who want to take part with the community.  

        Temple Beth-El Sisterhood has customarily hosted a second night Seder meal every year.  This year, that plan could not materialize.   By the time I watched the internet buzz with articles about “how to enliven your online Seder,” I had already realized what I needed to do to approximate our in-person Seder on the Zoom platform on April 9.

        Having already become somewhat adept at Zoom, I asked congregants to pre-register.   Several friends from our previous congregations asked to join us.    Everyone received a special Haggadah I had prepared for this year’s experience

        Before that night, I took part in three other Seder experiences.  I joined Rabbis Scott Rosenberg and Ben Zeidman of El Paso to record a Seder that was posted to YouTube, which people could use at home to direct them through the Passover rituals. 

         My wife Rhonda and I joined in two family Zoom seders on the first night of Passover, April 8.  One was with our son Adam and daughter-in-law Juli, and our grandchildren (and Juli’s family).  The other was with our niece Samantha and her husband Rob (including other family members).   Ironically, this year’s challenges maximized the number of loved ones with whom we could celebrate the holiday.

         When April 9 arrived, I noticed that people were still registering that afternoon.  Our Temple Seder began at 5:30 pm.  I had assigned reading parts to particular registrants.  We could hear them all and see them all clearly.    It was special to see everyone’s faces all together on our computer screens.  We were a community!  

        The zoom seders demonstrated for us that, even when we are somewhat confined to our homes, we are not captive at all.   We have ways of reaching out, connecting, and tasting the freedom that the Israelites gained so long ago.   Even now, may we find ways to maintain ties that can bind our hearts together.  

    

Words of Torah - Holy Pursuits - Parashat Kedoshim - April 30, 2020

WORDS OF TORAH – April 30, 2020

   For this week’s “Words of Torah,” for the combined portions Acharei Mot-Kedoshim, I am offering a commentary on the last verses of Leviticus, Chapter 19.  Our Adult Bar/Bat Mitzvah students will be sharing their insights during their Adult Bar/Bat Mitzvah on May 2, 2020, which will focus on their readings in Leviticus 19:1-18.

       We read from Leviticus 19, known as the “Holiness Code,” on Yom Kippur afternoon every year, as the Reform movement decided years ago that this section demands to be shared on that day when we are considering how to improve our behavior and to reach for new levels of sanctity in our actions for the coming year.   In this case, this passage is the weekly Torah portion.

    Here are my comments on the final verses of chapter 19. 

32] You shall rise before the aged and show deference to the old; you shall fear your God: I am the Eternal.

       This portion earlier states not to show deference either to people who are poor or rich in court.    In this case, it is not talking about court proceedings.  It offers moral direction for daily life.   It calls on people to show respect for elders because that is the right thing to do.   Buses in Israel, at one time, posted a sign quoting this verse to remind passengers to offer their seat to the elders among them who might not be able to stand.   Another way to state this commandment could be:  “Show respect for elders because YOU will be that person in the future.”

 

33] When strangers reside with you in your land, you shall not wrong them. 34] The strangers who reside with you shall be to you as your citizens; you shall love each one as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I the Eternal am your God. 

    The ETZ HAYIM commentary notes that this verse may have referred, at the time, to strangers who were foreign merchants, people who worked in crafts, or hired soldiers from other countries.    

    The greater point, though, is that we have all been the “stranger” at some time in our lives.  Each of us has likely been the “new” person in a community or organization, or even in another country during a short-term visit or a longer stay.    The essential lesson here is similar to verse 32:  do not wrong strangers, and love strangers as yourself, because YOU have been that stranger, and you know how you would have liked to have been treated at the time (and, hopefully, you did receive the welcome you deserved). 

35] You shall not falsify measures of length, weight, or capacity. 36] You shall have an honest balance, honest weights....I the Eternal am your God who freed you from the land of Egypt.

       This biblical commandment has a modern counterpart: “Don’t put your thumb on the scale.”   That phrase refers to employing clandestine efforts to change the outcome of a transaction or a situation in your favor; in a word, cheating.    The Torah strives here to lead us to the values of equity, justice and honesty.

      And it adds the refrain about being freed from Egypt as a reminder that, now that we are free, we should use that freedom to reach our highest moral potential.  

      May that be our goal every day. 

L’shalom,
Rabbi Larry

Seeking Purity of Character - for Tazria-Metzora - Words of Torah for Temple Beth-El Las Cruces - April 23, 2020

WORDS OF TORAH

Seeking Purity of Character – April 23, 2020 (Based on an original Torah Cybercommentary on April 16, 2010) 

Shabbat Shalom!
The Torah reading for this week, TAZRIA/M’TZORA, deals with a variety of priestly diagnoses made necessary by challenges to human health as well as the well-being of a home/building environment. The main focus of the portions is leprosy and other skin afflictions, but there is also a section that deals with growths on houses (the unfortunate result of too much moisture in a closed space). Rabbis, bar and bat mitzvah students and commentators see this portion from the Torah as a true challenge for drawing lessons for today.
    The Israelite priests were directed to examine both people and places and make a determination about the continued presence or the eventual absence of the disease or growth. They would make their declarations with the words TAMAY (impure) and TAHOR (pure and acceptable). These terms applied mostly to biblical definitions of required sanctity, but they can just as well be used for aspects of behavior and personal attitudes to help us to express our perspectives about what is acceptable in community life.
     Making a “behavioral purity” list offers us an opportunity to define the boundaries which we would set for ourselves and what we could expect and accept from others.
     Here are possible TAMAY and TAHOR lists for individuals, groups, organizations, families and communities:
TAMAY: dishonesty, excessive negativity, bullying, cruelty, discourtesy, disrespect, extreme impatience, selfishness, name-calling, closed communication, destructive criticism.
TAHOR: honesty, optimism based in reality, respect, patience, courtesy, joy, open communication, generosity, compassion, appropriate praise, constructive criticism, menschlikhkeit. 
    These lists are only a beginning. Each of us has our own sense of how we try to present ourselves and how we hope to treat other people in order to engender greater fellowship in our families and in our community.  And at this challenging time, we are required, even more, to exhibit generosity, patience, compassion and optimism.  

    May we continue to reach for our own goals of creating TAHARAH – a sense of openness and purity – in our lives.

Invocation- Temple Beth-El Las Cruces Board Meeting invocation - April 16, 2020

God of Deliverance, Source of healing,

Our Guide and Companion, 

Walk with us as we gradually cross a new sea.

The waters are slowly splitting, 

And we continue to proceed with caution. 

May we learn from our history 

From the Israelites in ancient times

To Jews throughout the ages

Who have found solace in their homes

Making each of their dwelling places

A small sanctuary, a Mikdash m’at, 

even when there were forces at work 

In the countries where they lived

To deny them their freedom, their rights

And their very lives. 

Help us to appreciate the gifts that we have been given

That can sustain us in narrow straits

And difficult moments. 

As we count the days between 

Passover and Shavuot, 

May we count the blessings we enjoy

That keep us connected to one another

Even at a time such as this. 

May we tread carefully in the days to come

Based on wisdom and accurate information

Provided by professionals truly in the know

Who possess your special gift of knowledge. 

Help us lead our community through these challenging days

With a sense of caring, compassion, and hope.

Five Promises - Passover 5780/2020 and an introduction to Chad Gadya - for the Passover Seder

Five promises: Passover 5780 - Rabbi Larry Karol

And God promised the people again, 

Safe in their homes during this challenging and precarious time, “I am the Eternal One. 

You have gathered for many years to seek My presence. 

Now, I am, as I have always been, with you. 

I will create connections between you even though you may feel isolated. You are not alone. 

I will grant you a sense of freedom and openness in your places of refuge and safety. What you have will be not only enough, but more than enough. 

I will liberate your souls with ingenuity and creativity so that light will dwell inside you and around you. 

I will link every home, one to another, so that a virtual BEIT K’NESSET, a House of Gathering, will

encompass all of you. I will be at your side as you move through this passage to a promised land of hope. 

And I will accompany you to a place of health and love. 

I, the Eternal One.”

Before the singing of Chad Gadya in the Seder...

Life is short. Life is precious. Sometimes we forget, and the world forgets. There is violence. There is

disease, and we do our best to contain it, to control it, and to bring healing. There is a thirst for power.

There is selfishness. There are attempts to protect and defend ourselves that may deny life’s value. So let us remember: when Chad Gadya ends, God is there. The father/parent is there. The narrator - the child - is there. May we be Angels of Life for one another in a world that needs our love, our perseverance, and our hope. (Rabbi Larry Karol, April 2, 2020)