Category Archives: Hizkuni

5770, Hizkuni, Numbers, Paintings, Parsha, Pinchas

Cooling Passions

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Numbers Hizkuni: Pinchas

Cooling Passions

Five Kings of Midian Slain by Israel
Five Kings of Midian Slain by Israel

The Midianites have been responsible for the sudden, unprovoked and unconventional death of 24,000 Israelites. The Israelites are mad with a blood hunger and a need for revenge. They have the army, they have the weapons, and they have the motivation and the moral high ground.

What does God tell them to do? He says ‘you will attack’. He says ‘you will avenge your fallen brothers’. He later tells them how many to recruit and how to go about the battle. One item that often goes unnoticed in the text is that they do not attack right away. They are told about the upcoming revenge in Numbers 25:17, right after the demise of the 24,000 Israelites, but are only dispatched later in Numbers 31:2.

Rabbi Hizkiyahu ben Manoach (Hizkuni, 13th Century) asks why God would command revenge right away but only orders the actual battle later on. Hizkuni explains that the timing was not right. Passions were running high amongst Israelites, but in the grander scheme of things an attack would be premature. God needed to calm down the headstrong and vengeful people.

Therefore God tells them, even promises them, ‘you will attack, you will avenge your fallen brothers’, but not just yet. Wait until the time is right, until your thinking is clearer, until you are analyzing matters with a cool head and victory will be yours.

May we remember not to act out of anger, but to harness it to rational considerations.

Shabbat Shalom

Bentzi

Dedication

To our dear friend and neighbor Anat Karsch on her engagement to Yaron Shachar. They’ve happily directed their passion for each other to the rational institution of marriage. Mazal Tov!

5770, Balak, Hizkuni, Jacob, Numbers, Paintings, Parsha

Divine Irony

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Numbers Hizkuni: Balak

Divine Irony

Laban searching Jacob's possesions

God has a long memory and a sense of irony. Our patriarch Jacob flees from his father-in-law Lavan’s home in Aram with wives and children in tow. Lavan chases him heading southwest towards Canaan. He catches him somewhere to the east of the Jordan River. After some harsh words against each other they sign a peace treaty and build a cairn of stones to commemorate the pact.

Lavan swears an oath that he will not pass the stones to harm Jacob (Genesis 31:52), and each go their merry way.

A few hundred years later the sorcerer Bilaam ventures southwest from Aram. He goes to curse the children of Jacob. He finds them camping east of the Jordan River and preparing to enter the land of Canaan.

According to midrashic sources Bilaam is either an extremely long-lived Lavan or a descendent of his with equally hostile feelings towards the family of Jacob.

Bilaam is injured badly in the course of the dance between his donkey and the angel trying to kill him. The Torah describes how the donkey veers into the wall and Bilaam’s leg is damaged as a result.

Rabbi Hizkiyahu ben Manoach (Hizkuni) claims that the wall was actually a pillar of stone and it was none other than the stones that had been erected as a reminder of the pact of non-belligerence. Hizkuni feels that Bilaam received his comeuppance with the precise reminder of his breach of trust. It was no coincidence that the tool of Bilaam’s (initial) punishment should be the very object that he betrayed.

Hizkuni adds that Bilaam’s passionate hatred of Israel blinded the otherwise brilliant man from the obvious fact of God’s displeasure with anyone attempting to curse Israel.

Unfortunately for him, he did not heed the multiple warnings and divine hints he was given but relentlessly pursued his anti-Semitic agenda. His end, as we see later on was catastrophic.

May we appreciate God’s irony and always have faith that He will resolve things the way they should be.

Shabbat Shalom,

Bentzi

Dedication

To God. Amongst other things for His sense of irony and timing, and for sometimes letting us in on it. To France’s national soccer team. One of the leading teams in the world cheated against Ireland in the qualifying round. They have now been utterly humiliated in the first round of the World Cup and eliminated in ignoble defeat. I suspect God is also following the games and administering appropriate comeuppance.

5770, Chukat, Hizkuni, Numbers, Parsha

Paradoxical Reality

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Numbers Hizkuni: Chukat

Paradoxical Reality

“par-a-dox. One exhibiting inexplicable or contradictory aspects.” The American Heritage Dictionary

We are used to human deception. It is natural for us to hide our faults, blemishes and existential angst. Most people pretend to be someone slightly different than who they truly are – and we are usually better off for it. However, none of us should be surprised on those occasions when the true, unvarnished and contradictory other self peeks through. That is the paradox of personality.

The ceremony of the Red Heifer is meant to purify those who have come in contact with death. There is a notable side effect that is often commented upon. The person doing the purification becomes contaminated, while the contaminated person is purified. That is the paradox of purification.

Rabbi Hizkiyahu ben Manoach (Hizkuni) claims that we should not be surprised by paradox. Paradox is not only hard-wired into personality and Torah, it is a part of nature itself.

Hizkuni gives two curious examples from the natural world: heat and medicine.

Heat can melt metal, turning a solid into a liquid. The same heat can turn the liquid form of an egg into a solid.

Medicine can cure the sick, but if given to the healthy it can sicken the cured. That is the paradox of nature.

The natural paradoxes are commonplace to us because we are used to them. We understand that according to the laws of nature, different reactions will result from different circumstances.

The same is true in the realm of Torah (and personality). While we may not be used to or understand all of the spiritual and psychological laws, Hizkuni reassures us that what seems like paradox is correct and real.

May we see the paradoxes in the world for what they are and make the most of them.

Shabbat Shalom,

Bentzi

Dedication

To those struggling with the paradoxes of the World Cup. How Switzerland (underdog) beat Spain (top team) while surprising is merely a soccer/football paradox (perhaps related to respective economies). (my bets are on Brazil…)

5770, Hizkuni, Korach, Numbers, Parsha

Losing Gracefully

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Numbers Hizkuni: Korach

Losing Gracefully

A child loses while playing a board game. In a fit of fury he flips over the board, sending the pieces flying in different directions. If such reactions repeat themselves, other children learn not to play with the petulant child. The child grows to be lonely, avoided, socially inadequate and ruled by his passions and anger.

In the power play between Korach’s followers and Moses a similar struggle unfolds. Rabbi Hizkiyahu ben Manoach (Hizkuni) explains that Korach’s group were nothing more than sore losers.

Hizkuni wonders as to the identity of the rest of Korach’s esteemed assembly. He answers that they were none other than Firstborns who had lost the honor and responsibility of serving in the Tabernacle. These Firstborns wanted to flip the board, scatter the pieces and reclaiming the role they had lost. Their inability to lose gracefully led them to an unnecessary and damning confrontation.

Winning rarely comes easy, but a clear prerequisite to winning at all is to know how to lose first.

May we be on the winning side of things, but when not, may we take it well.

Shabbat Shalom,

Bentzi

Dedication

To pitcher Armando Galarraga of the Detroit Tigers. As reported, he threw a ‘perfect game’ but his amazing achievement was ruined by an erroneous call by the umpire. He nevertheless kept his cool. That’s the making of a real winner.

5770, Hizkuni, Numbers, Parsha, Shelach

Fairy-Tale Theology

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Hizkuni Numbers: Shelach

Fairy-Tale Theology

Writers and Hollywood producers have been selling us fairy-tales for generations. They presume that life has a happy ending, dreams come true and love conquers all. Apparently, mere feelings and intentions may overcome all obstacles and alter reality.

Real life is typically more prosaic, filled with disappointments, crushed dreams and broken hearts. Often we are confronted with bleak possibilities and our choices are limited to the least painful one.

According to Rabbi Hezekiyah ben Manoach (Hizkuni) there is at least one feeling that can change reality: fear.

The notorious spies return from their reconnaissance of Canaan and instill fear in the hearts of the Israelite nation. They cry out that they cannot conquer Canaan. Ironically they are right.

According to Hizkuni (Numbers 15:43) their fear created a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don’t believe you can win, you can never win. That generation would forever be incapable of conquering the land. God can of course perform miracles, but the human element was deficient. The lack of faith in God and belief in self doomed that generation to wandering and dying in the desert.

If the children of Israel would have been braver; if they would have had more faith; if they would have believed in themselves more, that tale would have had a very different ending. Almost like a fairy tale.

May we reach fearlessness, bravery, faith, be the heroes of our own tales, slay the dragons, win the maidens and live happily ever after.

Shabbat Shalom,

Bentzi

Dedication

To all those struggling with their personal horror stories. Banish fear and hold on to hope.

5770, Behaalotcha, Hizkuni, Numbers, Parsha

Intergenerational Training

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Numbers Hizkuni: Behaalotcha

Intergenerational Training

The Rabbis of the Talmud, when asked to give advice on what career a young adult should pursue, recommend that a person should stick to their family business.

In a seemingly unrelated passage, the Torah explains that the Levites shall take the place of the Firstborns in the service of God in the Tabernacle (Numbers 8:16). This consecration of the tribe of Levi is transferred later on to the service of the Temple of Jerusalem. Most commentators relate that during the Sin of the Golden Calf all the tribes, including the Firstborns participated. The only tribe not to participate was the Tribe of Levi. This distinction gave them the honor, privilege and responsibility of replacing the previous role of the Firstborns.

Rabbi Hizkiyah ben Manoach (Hizkuni) gives a completely different, but very practical reason why the Firstborns were supplanted. It is entirely likely and statistically inevitable that a majority of children will not be Firstborn. Furthermore, a majority of Firstborns will not have fathers that are Firstborns (this is becoming less true in modern times with declining fertility rates).

As such, Hizkuni explains that a majority of Firstborns will not have a Firstborn parent that could ‘teach them the ropes’ of the Tabernacle service. This will lead to unfamiliarity and potential mistakes. Because of this susceptibility to error a new arrangement was devised: the Levites. To have an entire tribe dedicated to the Tabernacle service would ensure that the traditions, laws, procedures and ceremonies would be properly handed down from one generation to the next, with minimized possibility of error from lack of intergenerational training.

Hence, the Talmud’s assertion of the great value as well as the increased chances of greater material success of sons following the footsteps of their fathers and grandfathers in their choice of profession.

May we value the work, direction and choices of our ancestors and may we leave a worthy path for our descendants.

Shabbat Shalom,

Bentzi

Dedication

To Mikhail and Alexei/Eliyahu Bezeliansky on their extraordinary hosting and for their courageous continuation of intergenerational tradition.

5770, Hizkuni, Naso, Numbers, Parsha

Strangers Amongst Us

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Numbers Hizkuni: Naso

Strangers Amongst Us

The Tribe of Jews can be fairly ethnocentric. A popular game when two Jews meet for the first time is “Jewish Geography”. The longer one plays it the more connections, acquaintances and even relatives one can find.

In Jewish law, the widespread nature of Jewish families can be helpful when finding an heir. There is always somebody, if you go back far enough on the family tree. This however is not the case with most converts to Judaism. According to Jewish law, a convert’s identity is completely renewed. There is no further legal Jewish connection between them and their natural parents, siblings and other relatives from their previous life.

Taking this into consideration, the Torah goes out of its way to describe the specific case of a financial debt that needs to be paid back to a deceased, but who has no heirs (Numbers 5:8). The Rabbis explain that in Jewish law, the only person that could possible have no heirs is a convert that died without children. The law is that in such a case the repayment of the debt is made to the Kohen.

Rabbi Hizkiyah ben Manoach (Hizkuni) explains the payment for the convert to the Kohen, not as a lack of Jewish parentage. Rather Hizkuni claims that a convert is considered according to Jewish law nothing less than a complete child of God. Therefore, the Kohen, as an earthly representative of God, becomes the natural recipient of any material wealth the convert can’t bequeath directly to his Jewish parent – God.

May we always treat and welcome the converts amongst us as is their proper due – as our full brothers and sisters under the parentage of God.

Shabbat Shalom,

Bentzi

Dedication

Mazal Tov to Brian (Yosef) Maccaba and Hilary (Chava) Guiney on their upcoming marriage.

Correction: For several months now, I’ve been calling Hizkuni, Rabbi Yaakov ben Manoach. When I first did my research on him, I came across that reference. One of my readers pointed out that it is really Hizkiyah ben Manoach (makes more sense). I double checked and could not find the original reference, but rather many others that indeed refer to him as Rabbi Hizkiyah. I apologize for any confusion.

5770, Bamidbar, Hizkuni, Numbers, Parsha

Color-Coded Conquest

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Numbers Hizkuni: Bamidbar

Color-Coded Conquest

Recreation of Tribal Flags
Recreation of Tribal Flags

Seasoned world-conquerors know that there is a tactical advantage in the early conquest of the small purple-colored continent of Australia. In the popular board game “Risk”, it’s an almost guaranteed two extra armies per turn with only one border to protect.

The “Risk” board is an excellent introduction to general world geography if not military geo-politics (“never fight a land war in Asia”). While some of its “countries” have little relation to modern divisions (Irkutzk?), a few of them have been impressively prescient (who remembers playing when Ukraine was still an undistinguishable part of the Soviet Union?).

Modern maps and globes are often a patchwork quilt of multicolored entities, their land-masses clearly visible thanks to contrasting colors. It wasn’t always so. Millennia ago maps were mostly boring monochromatic parchments with sketches of whales filling up the seas. The Israelite nation was apparently the first to introduce color as a distinguishing characteristic between physical locations.

More recreated Tribal Flags
More recreated Tribal Flags

In the beginning of the Book of Numbers, the number, position and leadership of each tribe is given. Rabbi Yaakov ben Manoach (Hizkuni) claims that the Israelite nation was the first to use color coding for their tribal flags and to demark their domain. Hizkuni further explains that the nations of the world learned this practice from Israel and transferred the practice to cartography as well.

Therefore, France is a different color than Germany and yet a different color than Spain all because of the flags of the twelve tribes of Israel.

May we be happy with the flags we bear, and if not, switch colors quickly.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Shavuot Sameach,

Bentzi

Dedication

To the movie “Invictus”. Highly recommended and highly moving. It shows the value of sticking to your colors.

5770, Behar, Hizkuni, Leviticus, Parsha, Torah U'mada

“Because I Said So”

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Leviticus Hizkuni: Behar

“Because I Said So”

There are few sentences as frustrating to a child to hear as “Because I Said So.” Conversely, there are few sentences as gratifying to a parent to say (and be obeyed) as “Because I Said So.” In typical parent-child relationships, there is an understanding that some requests must be obeyed with no questions asked. A child’s natural curiosity and delaying tactic of asking “Why?” is run over in the quest to do (or not do) whatever the parent has demanded.

God is apparently not so different. According to Rabbi Yaakov ben Manoach (Hizkuni) God’s commandments are to be obeyed merely because He commanded them. The reasons behind the commandments are secondary or incidental.

Hizkuni illustrates this concept from the command to lay ones field fallow every seven years. The verse states that this should be done “for God.” Since antiquity, farmers have known of the beneficial effects for soil of leaving the field uncultivated for a period of time. Notwithstanding the value of such a practice to the farmer, Hizkuni highlights that the motivation to perform the command should be simply because God commanded it.

There has been a growing awareness that multiplicities of Jewish practices are good for ones mental, emotional and spiritual health. Kosher food has long been lauded as healthier than non-Kosher food. Ritual immersion is credited with saving Jewish communities during the Black Plague and to this day is seen as being an intrinsic part of the success of many Jewish marriages. Chinese scientists have discovered that the exact points on the body where Tefillin are placed as well as covering ones head, is conducive to a greater spiritual and positive state of mind. Jewish mourning practices have been recommended by psychologists as the best way for an individual, families and communities to overcome the tragedy of death. There are endless further examples.

Nonetheless, all of the above does not affect our obligation to perform and obey commandments. If we were to ask God why we need to perform any specific commandment, His answer would be simple: “Because I Said So.”

May we perform commandments out of a sense of such obligation, despite knowing the good effects they may have on us.

Shabbat Shalom,

Bentzi

Dedication

To Eric Greenberg who reminded me of the Chinese scientists/Tefillin connection.

5770, Emor, Hizkuni, Leviticus, Parsha

Homeless Bigotry

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Leviticus Hizkuni: Emor

 

Homeless Bigotry

Real estate often determines ones social standing in the world. A homeless person is generally at the lowest socioeconomic level in our society, while the owners of the largest and most opulent mansions are typically masters of the world. The rest of humanity fills some spectrum in-between, with gradations as to neighborhood, size and quality of ones dwelling, number of occupants per room and more distinctions commensurate with ones financial standing, wherewithal or social predilection.

The Torah is highly sensitive to disadvantaged classes and repeatedly goes out of its way to include consideration of women, slaves and strangers in our cornucopia of commandments.

Rabbi Hizkiyahu ben Manoach (Hizkuni) wonders why specifically for the Festival of Sukkot (when we leave our homes and sit in huts) does the Torah single out the “resident” as having to leave his home and does not include the “stranger.”

Hizkuni explains that the Torah does not mention the stranger for the very simple reason that the stranger in those days was typically a person with no permanent abode. He was at best subject to the vagaries of some landlord and did not have the wealth, inheritance or ancestral land to have a stable residence called home. The Torah does not need to tell him to leave his cushy home and live in a hut. His existence is already precarious.

It is the land owner, the “resident” with a permanent dwelling that needs to be commanded to abandon his home temporarily. Hizkuni highlights that Sukkot is celebrated at the end of the harvest. It is celebrated at a time when the house will be overflowing with produce as well as all the results of a person’s material gain. It is exactly at that point that the Torah commands us to leave our comfortable existence. Hizkuni is afraid that the success will get to our heads. We will think that it is “our hand” that achieved this success. We may forget that it is purely God’s blessing that has bestowed wealth upon us.

Therefore, it is exactly at the height of our achievement that the Torah needs to command and remind us that nothing is permanent. That the walls and roof that surround us should not be taken for granted. That at a moments notice, we too can become homeless and our material possessions turned to nothing. The stranger, the homeless, know this lesson in their bones. It is the comfortable class, the home owners, the “resident” that needs to be specifically commanded and taken out of his comfort zone to better appreciate God’s munificence.

May we always remember to appreciate the most basic elements of life. They may seem trivial and mundane, but they are blessings nonetheless.

Shabbat Shalom,

Bentzi

Dedication

To my sister and brother-in-law, JJ and Elisha Kahen. Though they are surrounded by comfort they are ever-humble. Their hosting makes one feel like a visiting monarch.