1953-2007
THE CYBERSHUL

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TORAH READING

Ekev

The reward for observing God’s commands is abundance: children, crops, livestock, health, etc. That conquest of Canaan should inspire no fear, for God will fight for the Israelites. Yet it is important that Israel adopt no pagan ways, especially the worship of their gods. The hardships of the wilderness were a test that Israel has passed. Now they know that "man does not live on bread alone." The land they will soon possess is full of wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives and honey (the seven species of Israel), and it is "a land flowing with milk and honey." Their new challenge will be to remember God in a time of abundance and wealth. Israel’s stiff-neckedness is mentioned as are all the sites of their rebellions against God. Moses reminds the people that he did not eat or drink for 40 days following the incident of the golden calf in order to assuage God. But now God asks only that the people love and revere Him. They must teach their children to love God, to bind the divine words upon their hands and for symbols upon their foreheads.

A SHABBAT THOUGHT

Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.

~~ Robert Breault ~~

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SOCIAL ACTION—WHAT IS IT, EXACTLY?

Dear CyberRav,

While speaking to people about the Social Action Committee at the synagogue, the question that repeatedly came up was "what exactly is social action?" We understand that it has to do with making the world a better place, but in what way is it connected to the synagogue or Judaism, and how do you choose a social action program that is fitting for a synagogue?

Ready to Act Socially—I Think

THE ANSWER

Dear Ready to Act Socially,

The best person to answer this question is dead. Fortunately, the words of the prophet Isaiah live on, and are in fact read every Yom Kippur. Isaiah was a bit of an iconoclast. He challenged the religiously observant for paying more attention to ritual than the injustices surrounding them. Religious ritual that does not motivate us to greater acts of goodness and kindness are useless. And so Isaiah mocked the people for fasting—a typical ritual procedure—and then redefined what the Lord really wants in terms of piety: "to unlock the fetters of wickedness, and untie the cords of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free; to break off every yoke. It is to share your bread with the hungry, and to take the wretched poor into your home; when you see the naked to clothe him, and not to ignore your own kin" (Isaiah 58:6-7).

I think Isaiah’s words should challenge all of us to make this world a better place. Some people might understand by that to become more aware and involved politically, and that is fine, but for synagogues that really need to remain politically neutral, there nevertheless remains an abundance of good acts to do. We can:

• Give blood;
• Help an illiterate person to read;
• Volunteer at the local hospital;
• Visit the residents of a nursing home; Raise money for struggling Masorti / Conservative communities;
• Hold a food drive for the hungry
• Serve meals at a soup kitchen;
• Become a Big Brother or Big Sister;

There is no end to the possible ways we can help our neighbors. There is, on the other hand, a way to kill religion and that is to render it an exercise in rituals that lead no where but to more ritual practices. A religion like that is already dead, which is why it is so important for an entire religious community—children and adults alike—to commit themselves to ma’asim tovim, good deeds, on a daily basis.

There is one other aspect of social action that is so very important and that is this: If we are the agents of God on earth, then our acts of goodness concretize the presence of God on earth. I sometimes wonder if the prevalent atheism in the world is not in someway linked to the religious community’s failure to make God a more living presence in the world via acts of ma’asim tovim. When we are able to help a needy person, that is when that person can truly thank God. We need to heal this world for the sake of the needy who deserve better and for the sake of God who guides us to do His will every waking moment of our lives.

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