Each of Us Has a Name

December 20-21, 2013  /  18 Tevet 5774

Shabbat Shemot

Torah - Exodus 1:1-6:1  /  Haftarah - Isaiah 27:6-28:13; 29:22-23

“Each of Us Has a Name”

Dear Friends,

What did it take for the People of Israel to become a people?  Well, the answer is simple.  It took people – individual members of the tribes of Israel who would come together to forge an identity and work together to become a united people!  As the book of Exodus opens, many think that the Torah immediately focuses on the lives of Moses, Miriam, and Aaron – three great leaders and luminaries of our people.  But that’s not what we read first.  Instead, we read a list of names of Jacob’s children and a reference to all the unknown members of their families, seventy in all (the Hebrew title for the book of Exodus or Shemot really means – ‘Names’). “These are the names of the sons of Israel, who came to Egypt with Jacob, each coming with his household…”

There is an important reason why Exodus opens with a list of names and a mention of the unnamed rather than the story of Moses.  The Torah wants us to know that there is a lot more to our people than the celebrities and their well known stories.  In fact, ordinary individuals, of whom little is known, are just as important as the famous leaders.  Sometimes all we have are their names and sometimes not even that. Each individual Israelite, each individual Jew, each individual person has a heroic story of struggle, survival, challenge, success, bitterness, and sweetness.  Within each person is a universe of meaning, understanding, and experience. Each individual matters.  Their names and their stories matter.

This lesson became clear to me when I travelled to India this past summer with the American Jewish World Service (AJWS).  I did my advance reading and learned about the famous leaders of India past and present, amongst them Mahatma Gandhi, Neru, Ambedkar, and Indira Gandhi.  Yet, when I arrived, that’s not who I met on our bus, in the beautiful seminar center, or in the village where we helped fix up a school.  We didn’t meet the celebrities.  Rather, we met the ordinary Indians, working hard and courageously to build their nation, correct injustice, and enable the disempowered to rise.  We met ordinary people doing incredible things.  They all have amazing and moving stories.  They all have names. They all matter.

As we go about our work and go about our lives, let us resist the temptation to be swept up by celebrity, power, and wealth.  Rather, let us remember that each person is special.  Each person is a story of honor and integrity.  Each person is a universe of experience and possibility.  Each person deserves our attention, kindness, honor, and love. Our Torah tradition teaches us that each and every person forms the foundation and bedrock of a people.

The poet Zelda wrote this poem that we read often at our synagogue.

Each Of Us Has a Name

by Zelda (Mishkovsky)

Each of us has a name

Given by God

And given by our parents.

Each of us has a name

Given by our stature and our smile,

And given by what we wear.

Each of us has a name

Given by the mountains

And given by our walls.

Each of us has a name

Given by the stars

And given by our neighbors.

Each of us has a name

Given by our sins

And given by our longing.

Each of us has a name

Given by our enemies

And given by our love.

Each of us has a name

Given by our celebrations

And given by our work.

Each of us has a name

Given by the seasons

And given by our blindness.

Each of us has a name

Given by the sea

And given by our death.

 

Shabbat shalom and have a wonderful winter break.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

Hope

December 13-14, 2013 / 11 Tevet 5774

Shabbat Vayekhi

Torah - Genesis 47:28-50:26 / Haftarah - I Kings 2:1-12

“Hope”

Dear Friends,

My daughter flew back to Israel after a brief and wonderful visit over the Hanukkah and Thanksgiving break.  In ten days she will enter the Israeli army and begin her two years of service.  Watching her go through the security check at the airport, I thought of all the dangers that surround us in our modern and high-tech world.  I said a quiet prayer for Elana’s safety as she left us and headed out into the world.

What a world we live in – filled with so much to fear.  The 20th century was the bloodiest on record during which countless millions were murdered and slaughtered in two world wars and regional and national conflicts.  We live in a world where the fear of terrorism has reached every corner of the globe.  Our high-tech gadgets have brought us identity theft.  The chemicals that brought us abundant harvests are causing biological problems of all kinds. Our fossil fuels are causing the earth to warm and climate to change.  There is a lot to worry about these days.

Yet, we Jews are not ones to despair.  As Edmund Fleg put it in his poem, ‘Why I am a Jew,’

I am a Jew because in every place where suffering weeps, the Jew weeps.

I am a Jew because at every time when despair cries out, the Jew hopes.

We Jews have the uncanny ability to deal with tragedy and hardship.  We find the strength to move on and make our lives a blessing.  Rather than wallow in fear and sadness, we Jews make the best of things, learn, grow and then renew our lives with hope and optimism.

In this week’s Torah portion, Jacob is dying in the land of Egypt.  As he reached the end of his life, things were not going so well.  His sons were in no way model citizens and he was ashamed of their behavior. He and his family were living in Egypt and no longer in the Land of Israel.  There was every indication that they would stay in Egypt for a long time.  As we will soon see, the 400 year enslavement of the Children of Israel was quickly approaching.  There was much to worry about way back then. 

Jacob could have died a disappointed, broken, and anxious man. But, he chose to see life in the Jewish way – with hope and expectation that things would eventially get better.  Instead of withdrawing, he blessed his sons and offered every reason to hope for a better future.  Hope is the key that we share.  In hope is the power to rise above fear and anxiety.  In hope we can look towards a better tomorrow. In hope we can summon our power and intellect to work towards a better way to live in harmony, understanding, acceptance, love, and peace.  In hope there is life.

So, in ten days Elana enters the Israeli army and starts her basic training.  Sometime in January, she will be sworn in and begin her duties.  On the day of her induction, the Israeli/Jewish national anthem will be played.  It should come as no surprise that our Jewish people’s anthem, called Hatikvah in Hebrew, means… ‘The Hope.’

                                                                                             

Shabbat shalom.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

Optimists All

December 6-7, 2013 / 4 Tevet 5774

Torah - Genesis 44:18-47:27 / Haftarah - Ezekiel 37:15-28

“Optimists All”

Dear Friends,

I am an optimist.  For me, every cloud does have a silver lining.  Every situation, no matter how bad or difficult, has some blessing of meaning that can come forth.  Every challenge can leave us wiser and stronger.  Perhaps that’s why my middle name is Joseph. For what I share with the Biblical Joseph is our optimism.

Here is a young man, Joseph, whose brothers sold him into slavery.  As a servant in a nobleman’s home he was accused of a crime that he did not commit and thrown into jail.  After finally being released, he met the Pharaoh, interpreted his dreams, and was elevated to the position of Minister of Agriculture over all of Egypt.  He stored up lots of grain so that there is plenty of food during the seven predicted years of drought.  When his brothers came to Egypt to purchase food, Joseph kept his true identity a secret to test whether his brothers had repented for their evil deed against him so long ago. Joseph finally removed his Egyptian head covering and revealed himself to his stunned brothers with the words, “I  am Joseph.  Does our father still live?”   Moreover, he did not take revenge.  Instead he told them that everything was meant to be. He explained that all the years of degradation and torment happened just so that he could be in a position to provide food and protection for his family.  There’s an optimist for you!

There is plenty of challenge and adversity in ours lives to cause us to tremendous despair and anguish.  There is plenty of disappointment in our our world to lead us to the Talumudic words expressing doubt in God’s presence, Leit din v’leit dayan – There is no justice and there is no Judge.  Yet, Judaism tells us to be patient, remain positive, and find a bright side, even if it seems non existent.  Find the meaning and seek the blessing in everything that happens. Our tradition instructs us to keep faith in God’s presence in our lives and trust that we are being led on a purposeful and meaningful path of life.  Our heritage describes this phenomenon with a simple Yiddish word, Beshert, meaning, “It is meant to be.”

It took Joseph many years to realize that his most difficult life path had a great purpose.  It took him decades to understand how each step of his life, no matter how hard, made him a wiser, stronger, and better person – able to take on the challenges that were yet to come.

Let the same be true for us.  No matter what life brings to us, the good and the bad, let us see within the challenges opportunities for growth, learning, and strength.  Let us always be optimists like Joseph, finding knowledge, blessing, and meaning in all we do.

Shabbat Shalom.

L’Shalom (In Peace),

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

Thanksgiving and Hanukkah 2013/5774: Be the Answer, Be the Help

Thanksgiving and Hanukkah 2013/5774: Be the Answer, Be the Help

Ma Nistanah – Why is this Year Different from all other Years?

Because this year Hanukkah, our Jewish celebration of independence, and Thanksgiving, our American holiday of giving thanks, come together.  There is so much that Judaism and American society share.  It is fortunate that these holidays and the values they represent come together, because a special message emerges.

On Hanukkah, we focus on the brave Maccabees and God’s strength that helped win the day against the Syrian oppression about 2,200 years ago.  The Maccabees did more than pray. They fought to protect their families, their Jewish tradition, and their precious holy Land of Israel.  They acted to correct a wrong.

On Thanksgiving, we come together as families to give thanks for the abundance that surrounds us – the amazing food, the plenty, and the unending sustenance that fill our lives at all times, morning, noon, and night. We are truly blessed.

So this year, let’s put those two ideas together and seek ‘action’ on behalf of ‘abundance.’  This summer, I was in India with the American Jewish World Service and I saw what strong action can do to help those in need in developing countries across the globe.  There are so many hungry, cold, and homeless this evening and every day throughout the world.  There are victims of the super typhoon in the Philippines, those who suffered terrible losses in recent tornados that roared through the Midwest, and so close to our homes – in Washington, Illinois.  There are hungry in the Land of Israel of all faiths, Jewish, Muslim, and Christian. There are the poor and the hungry in America’s rural towns and big cities.

This year, with the help of God the Eternal Source of Life, let us be like Hanukkah’s Maccabees and commit our selves to ‘action.’  Let us invoke the blessings of Thanksgiving and see to it that those in need will find ‘abundance’ from our own hands.  That in times of despair, we Jews will act and we will help.  That in times of loss, we Jews will act and we will help.  That in times of hunger, we Jews will act and we will help.

For me, that is the real meaning of the Hanukkah candles.  They are the light of freedom. The light of hope. The light of action.  The light of abundance.

When we sing Ma’oz Tzur – Rock of ages, as Reconstructionist Jews, let us recognize God’s energy, spirit, and awareness that is within us moving us to action and to making a difference.  This year, when Hanukkah and Thanksgiving come together, and every year, let us be the answer to those in trouble.  Let us be the help to those in need.

L'Shalom (In Peace),

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

The Blessing of Family

November 22-23, 2013 / 20 Kislev 5774

Shabbat Vayeshev

Torah Reading: Genesis 37:1-40:23 / Haftarah Reading: Amos 2:6-3:8

“The Blessing of Family”

Dear Friends,

As I write, my daughter Elana is flying home from Israel.  She will be visiting for two weeks before returning to enlist in the Israeli army.  My mother is flying in from Las Vegas.  My nephew is driving in for a visit, too. We are all so excited at home and looking forward to a real family reunion.  My father will not be with us.  Actually tomorrow is his yahrtzeit – the first anniversary of his death. My how time flies – a year already. Thanksgiving and Hanukkah coming together give us added cause to get together and renew the ties that bind us together.

I find it interesting that this week’s Torah portion is precisely about an event that nearly destroyed a family.  Jacob’s sons sold their conceited brother Joseph into slavery and then told their father that wild beasts had killed him.  What seemed like a quick and easy way to solve their annoying problem turned out to be a long and difficult journey that devastated and shattered their family.  Yet, next week, when we are celebrating both Thanksgiving and Hanukkah, we will read how the brothers and Jacob learned that Joseph was not dead after all and that he was living well in Egypt.  The family reunion was one of joy, relief, and true healing.

May this be a season of family harmony, reunion, and love.  This Friday, as we gather at OLB (Our Lady of the Brook) for our annual “Hanukkah: Lights & Miracles Service,” may we enjoy the warmth of our extended Shir Hadash Synagogue family – a whole community caring for each other through the most joyous and most difficult times of the year.  Next week, as we sit to enjoy festive meals and light the Hanukkah menorah, may the glow of the candles bring warmth to our hearts.  And even if we cannot be physically together, may phone calls and Skype chats bring us together just the same.

May this be a time when we reach out to those who have no families with whom to celebrate.  May this be a time when we reach out to those families that are hurting from tragedies and challenges, including the recession, illness, death, poverty, and hunger.  May we assist those suffering from the devastating super typhoon in the Philippines and the tornados that recently cut through Washington, IL and other towns through the Midwest.

Like Joseph, his brothers, and his father Jacob, may this be a time to appreciate the blessing of family.

Happy Hanukkah and Happy Thanksgiving!

Shabbat Shalom.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

Change and Growth

November 15-16, 2013 - 13 Kislev 5774

Shabbat Vayishlach

Torah Reading: Genesis 32:4 - 36:43 / Haftarah Reading: Obadiah 1:1-21

“Change and Growth”

Dear Friends,

Sometimes I wonder if it is ever possible for us to really change and grow.  Despite all the promises of New Year’s Day to do better, we often fall back on old habits and resume our previous ways.  And yet, there are times in our lives when breakthroughs occur that launch us to new understandings and awareness that bring significant transformation to our lives.  We are never the same.

Judaism understands that human beings are always growing as we analyze the situations we have been in and how we performed.  It is part of our nature.  When we are disappointed with our actions, our tradition tells us to adjust and do better the next time.  One of the definitions of true repentance involves being offered the same opportunity to commit the same sin again.  If one realizes the situation and elects not to sin, then a true change for the better has occurred.

In addition to changing ones behavior, we must offer sincere apologies to those whom we have hurt through our actions.  This is what we encounter in this week’s Torah portion.  Jacob, who ran away from his brother Esau after taking Esau’s birthright and blessing of the first born, is finally returning home.  He knows that in order to move on with his life, he must face Esau, apologize, and make up for his misdeeds.  After sending his family ahead to safety and spending a fitful night alone, the day comes when the brothers meet.  The Jacob that steps forward is not the cunning and scheming youth that he was so many years ago.  Rather we find a mature man who has wrestled with his demons and emerged wise, aware, repentant, sensitive, and kind.  The change is so dramatic, that he even bears a new name, “Yisrael,” which means “God-wrestler.”

Jacob finds the awareness and sensibility to own up to his misdeeds, apologize, and truly change his behaviors for the future.  May each one of us do so as well.  For that is the Jewish way to a life of maturity and responsibility.

As Thanksgiving and Hanukkah approach, may we be like Jacob, ready to review and change our bad behaviors and apologize to those whom we have wronged.  May this holiday season be one of growth, change, improvement, family, community, and love.

Shabbat Shalom.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

Kedushah - When God’s Presence Creates Holy Places and Times

November 8-9, 2013 / 6 Kislev 5774

Shabbat Vayetze

Torah - Genesis 28:10-32:3 / Haftarah - Hosea 12:13-14:10

“Kedushah - When God’s Presence Creates Holy Places and Times”

Dear Friends,

This week’s Torah portion speaks about the miracle of marriage. The Torah reading this week begins by noting that "Jacob left Beer-Sheba and set out for Haran." According to last week's portion, his parents sent him there to "take a wife there from among the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother." Jacob went from his home to seek the comfort of love and marriage.

Marriage - that two people, two entire universes of ideas, experiences, preferences and quirks, can share their lives as one is astounding. In fact, the rabbis considered the existence of a good marriage to be one of the most astounding of God's miracles.

The Talmud tells the story of a wealthy Roman woman who asked Rabbi Yose what exactly God has been doing ever since completing the creation of the universe.  Rabbi Yose answered her that God "sits and makes matches, assigning this person to that one, and that one to this."

The woman scoffed, thinking that this was not difficult at all. So, to demonstrate her power and wisdom, she matched all of her slaves, one to another. After a few days, her estate was in an uproar, as fights were constantly erupting among ill-matched couples. She then returned to rabbi Yose and declared "there is no god like your God: it is true, your Torah is indeed beautiful and praiseworthy."

Rabbi Yose replied that creating loving couples is "as difficult for the Holy Blessed One as was splitting the Reed Sea."

While Rabbi Yose's story speaks about marriage, the same applies to our relationships with family and friends.  Creating loving and nurturing relationships is how God has spent the intervening time since the creation of the world.

All too often, we look in the wrong places for miracles. Rather than waiting for special effects from heaven, the strongest evidence of God's presence is to be found in our sacred and trusting relationships of lovers, family and friends.

Shabbat Shalom.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

Real Strength & Power

November 1-2, 2013 / 29 Heshvan 5774

Torah - Genesis 25:19 - 28:9

Haftarah: I Samuel 20:18 - 20:42 | Shabbat Machar Chodesh

“Real Strength & Power”

Dear Friends,

Isaac understood the difference between his two sons, Esau and Jacob.  Esau was the bold hunter and man of the field – who quickly and eagerly sold his birthright for Jacob’s lentil soup – because he was hungry.  Jacob was the ordinary shepherd and dweller in camp that saw a way of rising in leadership and status – and was willing to skip a meal if that’s what it took.  In the Torah, Esau symbolizes physical strength and impulsiveness and Jacob, intellectual knowledge and planning.  Esau symbolizes simplicity, while Jacob represents the complex.

Our society prefers the strong man to the smart man.  We are drawn to his muscles, his courage, and his confidence.  We idolize a man who acts spontaneously on passion and impulse.  American culture portrays the cowboy, the biker, and the outlaw as symbols of raw masculinity and real manliness.  We put our sports heroes on trading cards and celebrate their statistics.  Yet, our intellectuals, scholars, artists, and scientists go barely noticed – and at times teased and derided for their intellectual pursuit and seeming weakness and timidity.

However, Isaac’s blessing of his sons sends the message that for Judaism, the opposite is true.  We value knowledge and planning over physical strength and impulsivity.  Isaac blessed Jacob for his preparation, planning, and vision of the future. He awarded Jacob, the second born, with the leadership and riches becoming the first born.  Isaac blessed Esau, the first born, with a life of following his younger brother.

For Jews, Jacob is the model of a real man who finds his strength in knowledge, understanding, wisdom, and study.  The Talmudic book, Ethics of the Sages, asks the question, “Who is strong?”  The answer is, “The one who can conquer his own evil impulses.”  Jacob is such a person.  He can rein in his desires and cravings in order to pursue and dream for the future.  He is one who can plan, prepare, and act effectively in order to create a better tomorrow.

That’s real strength and real power.

Shabbat shalom,

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

To Do Instead of Merely to Pray

October 25-26, 2013 / 22 Heshvan 5774

Shabbat Chayei Sarah

Torah Portion: Genesis 23:1-25:18 / Haftarah Portion: I Kings 1:1-31

“To Do Instead of Merely to Pray”

Dear Friends,

I am always so impressed by Rebecca, the second matriarch of our Jewish tradition.  She wasn’t one to wait around for someone else to initiate.  She was a self-starter and one who could take matters into her own hands.

This week’s Torah portion opens with the death of Sarah, Isaac’s mother.  For whatever reason, Isaac was incapable of going out to seek a wife with whom to spend the rest of his life.  So, Abraham his father sent a servant to bring a wife from the ancestral home in Mesopotamia.  When the servant, Eliezer, reached his destination and approached a well to water his animals, it was Rebecca who showed up and took care of things.  In Rebecca Eliezer found a woman who had tenacity, assertiveness, and daring.  He also found a woman of great caring, sensitivity, and love.  When he told her of his mission to bring a wife for Isaac, she readily agreed to travel to Canaan to marry. The portion ends with Isaac’s marriage to Rebecca.

Rebecca thus becomes a model of action and courage.  She is not one to wait around for something to happen.  Rather, she gets involved and makes things happen.  A reading found in our Shabbat prayer book expresses this concept through contemporary Reconstructionist eyes.

Social Action

-by Rabbi Jack Riemer (Adapted)

We cannot merely pray to God to end war;

For the world was made in such a way

That we must find our own path of peace

Within ourselves and with our neighbor.

We cannot merely pray to God to root out prejudice;

For we already have eyes

With which to see the good in all people

If we would only use them rightly.

We cannot merely pray to God to end starvation;

For we already have the resources

With which to feed the entire world

If we would only use them wisely.

We cannot merely pray to God to end despair;

For we already have the power

To clear away slums and to give hope

If we would only use our power justly.

We cannot merely pray to God to end disease;

For we already have great minds

With which to search out cures and healings

If we would only use them constructively.

Therefore we pray instead

For strength, determination, and will power.

To do instead of merely to pray

To become instead of merely to wish;

That our world may be safe,

And that our lives may be blessed.

I am sure that Rebecca would agree.

Shabbat shalom.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

The Stories We Tell

October 18-19, 2013 / 15 Heshvan 5774

Shabbat Vayera

Torah Portion: Genesis 18:1-22:24 / Haftarah Portion: II Kings 4:1-37

“The Stories We Tell”

Dear Friends,

Helping to bring peace and healing to our troubled world often seems an insurmountable task.  Yet, our Jewish tradition teaches us to do what we can, even if we feel that we cannot complete the task.  We must still do our best to make some progress.

This week’s Torah portion offers us a unique way to help make a small difference that may turn out to be a huge one in someone’s life.  It revolves around how we tell stories about others.  In this week’s Torah portion, Vayera, God tells Sarah that in her old age, she will finally bear a son.  Sarah laughs and questions God, saying “Now that I am old, and my husband is aged, how am I to give birth?”  Who knows what was going through Sarah’s mind.  Perhaps she thought that God was joking.  Perhaps she was reacting in frustration and bitterness after all the years of dashed hope and disappointment.  What is fascinating is how God reported to Abraham that Sarah said, “Will I really give birth to a child, old as I am?”  God nicely left out the part about Abraham being so old.

Here’s the point.  God could have told Abraham what Sarah really said about him.  But what good would that have done?  It would have only created resentment and disappointment for the couple.  So, God left that phrase out.

The Jewish lesson here is that each of us can be more sensitive and caring when we report a story to others.  Why stir up bitterness and hatred when it is not necessary?  Why engage in gossip when it will only lead to hurt and upset?  It is better to follow God’s lead and take the higher path.  Judge others based on kindness and merit.  Sometimes it’s good to leave some of the bad parts out of a story if it will avoid hurting feelings.   Zay a mentsch.  Be a good person.  Help bring peace and healing to the world in a small way.  The effect will be huge.

Shabbat shalom.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

Renewing the Connection

October 11-12, 2013 / 8 Heshvan 5774

Shabbat Lech Lecha

Torah Portion: Genesis 12:1-17:27 / Haftarah Portion: Isaiah 40:27-41:16

“Renewing the Connection”

Dear Friends,

Can you hear God’s call to Abram?  Four thousand years ago, the Torah tells us, God called to Abram and told him to leave his Mesopotamian home and family behind and go to a new land, the land of Canaan.  There Abram’s name would change to Abraham, he would raise his family, and become a great tribal chieftain.  Within only three generations, the region would be known as the Land of Israel.

It was in this land that our people’s identity would emerge.  David’s capital city of Jerusalem would be the very place where his son Solomon would build the First Temple.  The Land of Israel would be the place where the Torah stories were told in the marketplaces and synagogues of the villages and cities.  It would be the place where the prophets spoke their words of moral truth and ethical conduct.  Israel would be the place where the great Temple of Jerusalem, built by Herod, stood - considered to be the most magnificent building in the whole world at that time.  Israel was where the great rabbis argued and taught the lessons of the Mishah and Gemarah – The Talmud.  Israel would be the place of intense Jewish pride and independence witnessing the revolt of the Maccabees and two revolts against Rome.  Thought cast out into exile, our ancestors never lost connection to the land as they daily prayed to one-day return to the holy Land of Israel.  They knew that if they were not to merit the opportunity to return themselves, then soon some descendant of their family would return to the Land of Israel and walk the streets of Jerusalem, again.

Perhaps that person is you.

Each time I read of God’s call to Abram to go to the Land of Israel, I feel those words deep in my soul telling me to go, too.  So, I urge you to renew your connection to the Land of Israel.   As Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson says, “By renewing our connection to Israel, by traveling there, studying there, living there, we establish our claim to the land, and allow the land to exercise its claim on us.”

Shabbat shalom.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow

Righteousness

October 4-5, 2013 / 1 Heshvan 5774

Shabbat Noah

Torah Portion: Genesis 6:9-11:32 / Haftarah Portion: Isaiah Isaiah 66:1-24

"Righteousness" 

 

Dear Friends,

Are we really good and righteous individuals?  Certainly each one of us hopes to be thought of as a mentsch - as a good, kind, and thoughtful person.  Such was the case with Noah.  The Bible tells us that he was indeed a good person and that he was “righteous in his generation.”  This phrase has puzzled commentators for centuries.  On one hand, it could mean that Noah was a true pillar of righteousness for all time.  On the other hand, the Torah could be telling us that compared to all the dreadful people in the world at that time, Noah was better than the rest.  In other words, he was righteous, especially when you compared him to everyone else around him (whom God was ready to destroy because of their incredible wickedness). This is not most glowing of references.

The 18th century rabbinic master Rabbi Elimelech of Lizensk once taught that there are two schools of ‘righteous’ people.  One of them is a true tzadik – a righteous person of impeccable credentials and a model for the ages.  The other is only dressing the part.  Each one of them will find warmth on the coldest of days in different ways.  The truly righteous person will go out into the forest to collect firewood.  He will light a warming fire and invite all who are cold to come and join him.  The other will wrap only himself in a thick fur coat.  The one who lights the fire warms himself and others.  The one in the fur coat, indeed brings warmth, but only for himself while everyone else freezes.

So which kind of righteous person was Noah?  He knew of the upcoming flood, but did not tell anyone.  He did not spread the warning nor sound the alarm. Instead, he built the ark for himself and the animals. With the onset of the rain, he entered the ark and left everyone else to fend for themselves.  He is like the man with the fur coat.  He saved himself, but did not extend the favor to the rest of humanity and other living creatures.

Yes, Noah was righteous for his generation.  However, the Torah is teaching that he was not a model for the ages.  Thus, we learn not to be like Noah.  Rather, each one of us must strive to be the mentsch that shines amongst the generations.  To do that, we must think about more than ourselves. Each one of us can rely on our Jewish tradition of wisdom, kindness, fairness, justice, and love to live our lives in the service of family, friends, and community. That’s righteousness.

Shabbat Shalom.

Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow