What the Torah says about King making and the Lorax

Shoftim (D’varim 16:18-21:9)                       

This week’s parasha, Shoftim, is full of pithy quotes and memorable statements. “Justice, Justice, thou shalt pursue” (16:20); a restatement (lex talionis from Shmot 21:23-25) of the famous law of civil compensation (that some interpret as revenge) “an eye for an eye . . .” (19:21); laws regarding legal and military justice; accidental death.  But that’s not what I want to talk about.  It’s almost Labor Day, election season is heating up, and I want to look at what the Torah says about making a king.

While I enjoyed an excellent day school education growing up, I don’t remember studying this text until my sophomore year at the University of Maryland.  In my Tanach class with Dr. Samuel Iwry (zichrono l’vracha) we were studying the selection of Saul as first king of Israel in I Samuel, and the question we were trying to answer was, “What’s bothering Samuel?” The prophet was upset that the people felt the need for a king, and were in essence rejecting (or at least considering inadequate) his leadership.  In a beautiful exchange with God (I Samuel 8:6-9) God tries to comfort Samuel that it is not that the people are rejecting Samuel’s leadership, but God’s.

The question remains.  If you subscribe to the traditional understanding that the Torah was delivered to Moses intact at Sinai, and D’varim 17:14:20 already existed telling the people that it was both permitted to select a King within certain parameters and maybe even expected, what bothered Samuel?  One of the answers, posited by the historical/documentary scholars is that the Book of D’varim is a late addition to the Tanach, perhaps as late as the reign of King Josiah in the 7^th Century BCE.  The problem vexed Samuel precisely because D’varim 17 didn’t yet exist, and he had no guidepost for helping the people select a secular leader.  Let’s look at the text.

If, after you have entered the land that God has assigned to you . . ., you decide “I will set a king over me, as do all the nations about me,” you shall be free to set a king over yourself, one chosen by God.  Be sure to set as king over yourself one of your own people; you must not set a foreigner over you, one who is not your kinsman.  Moreover, he shall not keep many horses . . ., and shall not have many wives; lest his heart go astray; nor shall he amass silver and gold to excess. And when he is seated on his royal throne, he shall have a copy of this Teaching written for him on a scroll…Let it remain with him and let him read it all of his life… (D’varim 17:14-19)

It seems the framers of the US Constitution agreed with the first requirement that a leader of a national group must be of that group and not a foreigner.  It seems the injunction against too many horses was intended as a limit on the king’s military, as horses in service of a king were primarily for cavalry. Shall not have many wives?  Avoidance of distraction and immorality both seem like good ideas. Nor shall he amass silver and gold to excess – is this before or after being a king?  Could this be a warning against buying an election?  And then to make sure the King keeps to the right path, we turn him into a mezuzah, moderating the pull of the crown with the push of the scroll-on-board.  Could all this warn about the real purpose of the king, to be a leader and public servant, and not about enriching oneself while in political power? 

I plan to re-read this section as an antidote to the barrage of political ads this fall. Knowing what the Torah says about selecting a leader, there are, apparently, things we need to keep in mind as we face the election of our next national leader.

On another note, in the section of the parasha about the way to conduct a war, we have an interesting ecological imperative that seems like it could have inspired Theodore Geisel in writing the Lorax: 

When in your war against a city you have to besiege it a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its trees, wielding the ax against them.  You may eat of them, but you must not cut them down . . . Only trees that you know do not yield food may be destroyed; you may cut them down for constructing siegeworks against the city that is waging war on you, until it has been reduced. (D’varim 20:19:20)

The importance of trees to sustaining life, even if imperfectly understood at the time the Torah was written, is such a great message.  Even Jewish warfare has to involve concepts of conservation and kavod (respect) and we are not permitted to slash and burn our enemies out.  Trees, as life-sustaining objects take priority over offensive operations.  What a great lesson for us to teach our children. This reflects well in the modern Israeli military value of tohar haneshek, the purity of weapons doctrine, that they are to be used for defensive purposes and for the ultimate value of preserving lives, not destroying them.

As I said to my editor (and teacher, Avi West) this week when he asked me if I loved parashat Shoftim, I was quick to answer “I love Torah”.  I love Torah when it speaks and we hear the relevance after 3000 years.

For further discussion:

1.    What qualities should we require of our leaders?  What skills and experiences should they have before they start the job?

2.    Does our voice count?  Why does it matter if one votes in a national election, one voice in 300 million?

3.    Can you make a job description for a leader based on the Torah’s requirements?

4.    If there is a proper way to treat trees in times of war, what do you think that implies on how to treat prisoners or those civilians captured by a conquering army?

Steve Kerbel, Director of Education, Congregation B’nai Tzedek, Potomac, Maryland, Chair, Education Directors’ Council of Greater Washington. 

Senior and junior Mitzvot - USY group 5, getting ready for Shabbat and Tisha B'Av

Thursday July 26

Our last USY group of the summer, quite a few kids from Seaboard.  We went to learn from Linda Mosek at Click in Hod Hasharon.  Linda, most innovative of Mitzvah heroes, runs several senior centers, workshops and programs (including groups of Seniors who have hiked part of the Israel Trail, Shoah survivors and many others) providing them with community, meaningful work creating handicrafts and art kits.  Click's Savi project creates art kits sold to schools and gift shops (I have their Rosh Hashanah catalog electronically, if you want to order things, contact me separately).  45 USYers worked with 15 elder craftspeople to create penguins, pillows and other things that will later be donated to kids in need.  We had a great morning with a flautist playing while we worked, and enjoyed a home-baked snack as well.  Even Aviva, the deputy mayor of Hod HaSharon came to greet us and thank us for coming.

Linda Mosek (standing)

USYers working wearing visors made at Click

I'm very attracted to the idea of social entrepreneurship, and Linda had created a great model to help seniors stay busy, cared for and which also helps them supplement their pensions.  The one thing they (and everyone else here seems to need) are more donors, particularly corporate sponsors to cover large expenses.

After a mediocre hostel lunch (pizza, probably frozen, and cold corn schnitzels) Dov Ber Cohen again came to inform and entertain - he is outstanding.  I don't know if the group was worn out or just didn't connect with us, but we had the least exciting wrap up of the 6 groups we met with this summer.

After the group I collected all the in-kind donations USYers made so far; school supplies, clothing and shoes left behind and put them in the car.  Danny and I went up to Machane Yehuda so I could get a few things for people and to get my elusive first 1/2 schwarma.  It was yummy.  In the evening it was write, write write - 2 long blog entries.

Friday July 27

It was a quiet Friday morning to start (no construction on the street outside my window) but we started the day with a few mitzvot.  All of the donated clothes and school supplies went to Harel Moyal, as well as some Mitzvah Heroes Fund tzedakah, some USYer tzedakah and a picture one of Michelle's campers made of Harel doing Mitzvah work while fixing someone's car.  I now have a surplus of brachot before shabbat.  I ran a few errands including buying a challah, and delivered another donation to someone in immediate need, and so I feel like I will start my shabbat with a sense, like the guy with the starfish on the beach, not of changing the world but of "having helped that one".

Sunday is Tisha B'Av - I'm guessing a lot of businesses will be closed and there won't be a lot to do around town.  I'm getting together with the "girls" again Sunday night after the fast, and then I have Monday and Tuesday to finish my goodbyes, ruggalach shopping and packing,  Tuesday night I'll go the the Israel Museum wine festival, and at 2:45 am I'll leave for the airport.  I've done a lot, and there is a lot I didn't do.  Hopefully my next chance will come soon.  Shabbat shalom.

On the Road - Two days mixing enjoyable work and a delicious hobby - Part 2

Wednesday, July 25

I know there are some things I'm lucky about.  I love my wife of 30 years, I have two spectacular daughters who have the misguided sense that I'm some kind of role model and they are both following my career path more than Judy's, I have a very cute dog who apparently is still looking for me after two weeks.  I have parents who are good role models, and I have some amazing friends.  Among my friends, perhaps the closest after 33+ years is Yossi David.

We don't have to plan to have a good time together.  We can sit quietly each reading a book Shabbat afternoon satisfied the other is there.  Other than planning to spend the day together, we had no specific plan.  I wanted to head south (last year we spent 3 days in the north, but next week Yossi and Dina are moving so 1 day was all I could ask/expect) but other than that, we had so specific plan other than to look for small wineries that would be willing to have guests in the middle of the week (it's more of a weekend thing here, particularly Fridays) and worst case scenario was we would spend the day together and not find an open winery.

But, such was not the case.  We hit gold with our first call, and reached Max Herzberg at his home winery in Sitra, near Rehovot.  Max has his own vineyards behind his house where he grows Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec.  Max is from France and makes his wine in a very French style.  The winery is kosher, certified by the OU, and I thought his wines were fantastic.  We drank a 2009 Malbec, spicy, plummy, 12 months in oak, a wine that was dying for some food to go with it.  We tasted a Merlot, lighter, with a lot of minerally feel of tobacco and bitter chocolate, and a blend, his Reserve, of Cab, Merlot and Malbec.  We passed a very pleasant hour, and I hope to make connections between Max and some American importers to get his wine in the US.

We struck gold again at La Terra Promessa at Kibbutz Gat.  Yossi has known the winemaker, Sandro, for many years, and I had simply never made it down to see him - but I'll go back now.  Sandro, an italian chef by training, makes amazing wines that I had tasted at Yossi's from time to time.  they have a beautiful restaurant winery at the entrance to the Kibbutz.  We tasted a very dry Riesling that drank like a Sauvignon blanc, light, grassy with a hint of citrus (grapefruit and lemon grass) and 3 delicious red blends: 2008 Primitivo with Zinfandel and something else I didn't write down (it wasn't listed on the bottle), the 2008 Le Crime Reserva, my favorite, a blend of Sangiovese, Syrah and Cabernet Franc, and mixed together at the time of the crushing (a very unique process - usually wines are fermented separately and only blended together later) and if had hints of coffee and spend 2 years in the barrels.  What a wine!  The last was a very pleasant Rubino, a Cab-Merlot blend (60-40) witha lot of blum and black cherry notes.  It was really a lovely morning - and we tasted 7 wines before lunch.

Yossi holding tikki (short for Tikun Olam)

Avshalom Beni with Serius (bought by MHF) in foreground

Begal-D, bought by MHF in memory of Bill's dad 

David, who is the king of the castle and the sweetest dog ever

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ilsa, a Boston Terrier, who Abby once considered kidnapping, so this photo is for her

The one meeting kind of driving the day's schedule was my desire to see Avshalom Beni of HAMA, during his break between therapy sessions between 2:15 and 3:15 in the afternoon.  Avshalom, the master of animal assisted therapy, was at the Parent-child center in Nes Tziona and Yossi and I met him there.  Two Persian cats,  Tiki and Serius and 3 dogs, Ilsa, Gosha and Begal D.  We had a great time catching up on needs and projects and interacting directly with the animal co-therapists and even a social worker at the center.

After our visit with Avshalom we headed south again for Kiriyat Malachi to visit the new winery of Meir Kfir.  We are fb fridns, and i visited Meir about 4 years ago at his home in Gan Yavne, but it was time to reacquaint ourselves with his wines and his winery.  We had a great visit in a nice wine bar in a weird industrial neighborhood (no foot traffic for a wine bar) just off a high way is a development town.  Meir makes exquisite wines - i have notes on 2 whites a Gewirtztraminer, which is too sweet for my taste and a delicious chardonnay (which reminds me of Tsuba's, which is where he gets his grapes) even though I'm not a huge chardonnay drinker.  I'm a minimalist when it comes to Chardonnay and oak, and Meir's wasn't too oakey - I'm a fan of Dalton's unoaked chardonnay for this reason.

The reds, in order, were his Leopon, a Cab-Merlot-Cab Franc blend which I enjoyed very much a Barbera that reminded me of sour cherries in a very pleasant way, a Malbec Cab Franc blend (also grown at Tsuba) and a 2005 Sangiovese Nebiolo-Zinfandel blend that is either past its prime or more likely, so just open too long.  It turns out I enjoy Italian style wines, but on a day where I tasted 13 wines to be please by all but one is a damn good day.  We ended the day with a brief visit to wine store owner Avi Ben in Mevasseret Tzion (he owns several stores and is a big deal in the wine industry in Israel) and he was really nice.  We joined Dina for dinner in Abu Ghosh, where like I said I'm not happy about driving between the narrow steep winding roads and the crazy young careless residents, but I had a lovely steak at a great price and finished the day more than satisfied.

Score - I think I count 8 wineries so far this visit (and yes, visiting friends count) so Yehuda (2 times), Ben Hanna, Gush Etzion, Tsuba, Carmel, Herzberg, La Terra Promessa and Kfir.  I don't think I've missed any.

I don't think I'll get all the way caught up to Thursday's USY group tonight.  It took long enough to write about two days in one evening.  Maybe before shabbat. and I'll be spending shabbat in a new location for me, so I'm kind of excited.  Laila tov.

On the Road - Two days mixing enjoyable work and a delicious hobby - Part 1

Tuesday July 24


A few introductory notes:
1.  I rented a car for my whole stay this time.  Thanks to my friend and teacher, Mordechai Rackover, I learned this spring that there were great deals on rental cars via Orbitz.com with Budget here in Israel.  I am paying $65 a week, or essentially $9.50 a day for a Hyundai Accent (here called the i25).  It is a comfortable, neon green, 4 door sedan that despite the layer of dust because of the construction on our street, I have yet to lose in a parking lot.

One must be brave, slightly aggressive and willing to use the horn as a communication device to drive here.  While aggressive is not generally my attitude, I put it on like a comfortable sweater when I am here, and take a few days to let go of it when I get back to Rockville.  I drove Wednesday night in Abu Ghosh, and I wasn't sure I was going to make it out of there.

2.  Steve's flexible view of tradition and halacha:

I know during the 9 days many traditional Jews of which I sometimes consider myself one, abstain from both meat and wine.  I love, yea crave both of those nourishing substances and rationalize that my summer pilgrimage to Israel and the mitzvot that I am privileged to fulfill here trumps this traditional sign of mourning (plus, it seems silly to mourn for a city as thriving, vibrant and full of construction projects as Jerusalem).  I will observe Tisha B'Av, but I can't say I'm campaigning for the the rebuilding of the Temple.  I'm more in the mode of campaigning for the Return of Norman's Steak and Burger to Emek Refayim (bimheira b'yameinu, speedily in our day, Amen).  I will now report, in part, on some wine and meat events that occurred, along with two Mitzvah related events, in recent days.  If this will offend you, you can stop reading here.

3.  If you have read the book, The Tipping Point, you will recognize the concept that I consider myself (and am considered by some others as) a connector.  This is important to understanding Tuesday's meeting.

Tuesday

Tuesday was the date for a long-planned for meeting at the Yemin Orde Youth village in the Carmel, in the midst of the zone affected by the fire of 2010, just south of Haifa.  Yemin Orde, founded in memory of British General Orde Wingate in 1953, is a residential religious school that has helped with absorbing new olim, particularly high school students who were orphaned post World War II, or who otherwise came to Israel without parents.  The 300+ students now in residence (their capacity was reduced by the fires last year from around 500) are primarily Ethiopian, Russian and Brazilian.  The school is co-ed.  Many of the teens are at risk, come from difficult family situations.

Let me be clear.  Yemin Orde is not a beneficiary of Mitzvah Heroes Fund, they have their own development staff, and I do not know enough about them to recommend them as a beneficiary for anyone's tzedaka money.  I'm not saying they're not worthy; I'm saying I don't know, and haven't looked into it.  It is a big operation, spreading now over various campuses in the Galil, it gets government funding as well as many donations from abroad, but at least for now, supporting them financially is not an interest of mine.

I went to Yemin Orde as an educator.  I met the director emeritus, Dr. Chaim Peri during a recent visit to the DC area, heard him speak, and wanted more time with him (and he was very generous).  He wrote a book, The Village Way, available at Amazon, which I read over the Shavuot holiday, and I was impressed by his empathy, philosophy, clarity and tone.  The book describes the model of an Israeli youth village, raising children without the  [you fill in the blank - assistance of, interference of, support of, love of or the term of your choice] parents.  I have spent most of my life, even my time as an attorney, working at least part time with teens.  The book spoke to me.

We have a Mitzvah hero, Robbie Sassoon, a social worker by training, that has, for the past 2.5 years, been running the non-profit, Crossroads, in downtown Jerusalem.  Crossroads reaches out to primarily Anglo (English speaking) teens in downtown Jerusalem who are just hanging out, getting into trouble, homeless, dropouts, into drugs and goes out to the streets to help them, engage them and runs a clubhouse where they can hang out. learn skills, participate in art therapy programs, get their GED, practice for the SAT, write a resume - all important life skills to get their acts together.  I thought, as a connector, that it would be cool for me to connect Robbie and Chaim, who work with similar youth in very different settings (both in Israel) and they were mostly unaware of each other, so I set up the meeting and I took Robbie with me.

Chaim was not feeling well, but he spent about 45 minutes with us.  The we had lunch with Itai, a teacher and Dr. Benny Fisher, the new director, and talked about Crossroads, Yemin Orde and things they could do with each other, for each other and maybe share some acquired knowledge and experience.  I went without an agenda, without expected outcomes, more or less to make some introductions to see if it would lead anywhere.  Could Yemin Orde host Crossroads for a shabbaton, weekday getaway or staff training?  I don't know, but these were the kinds of ideas that we share during our 3 hours in the village.

As we were leaving, we were only about 20 minutes from zichron Yaakov, so we decided to make a stop at the Carmel winery (Robbie sniffed and listened, I tasted).  Let me say that I don't know how Carmel has managed to hire the most knowledgeable and friendly people in the whole country to come work for them, but if I make aliyah, I hope they will hire me as well.

On Tuesday I had called Ruthi Ben Israel (who hosted the JEA group at the winery in February) to say I was in Israel, and that I had a meeting Wednesday at Yemin Orde in the Carmel, and would she be around if I wanted to bring a friend to visit the winery.  She knew exactly who I was, remembered my visit in February and was sad she wouldn't be there, but she would put me in touch with Valerie, who would be at the winery on Wednesday.

Before I could even call on Wednesday, Valerie called me, checked my schedule against hers, and we decided on a time for me to visit with Robbie.  We visited, and again, I felt like a guest in Valerie's home.  There were only two of us, but we got the royal treatment and I truly feel like a ben bayit of Carmel; I have become a loyal customer  and I'm telling everyone.  The wines are delicious.  We tasted a lovely Riesling, a great light chardonnay, not too oakey at all, a Carignan and an amazing Kayoumi Cabernet Sauvignon.  I was blown away.  We drove back, stopping for gas, and I took Robbie all the way home and got me meet Jenny, and his 3 kids.  Disappointingly, Doron's was out of shwarma when I got there, but the schnitzel was as good as ever.  Another successful day in the holy land.  I was going to include Wednesday's adventures in this post, but this is already a long read, so I'll break it into another post.

Monday, Monday: USY Group 3, dressage and massage mitzvahs

July 22, 2012

USY Group 3 blew us away today.  The small yet powerful L'Takayn Olam group really got the concept of the Mitzvah hero, and got to meet some spectacular examples in the process.  After our opening (and french toast sticks for breakfast) we drove to the Neurim youth Village to visit INTRA (Israel National Therapeutic Riding Association).  Anita Shkedi, founder and Mitzvah Hero spent time describing her motivation and passion to the USYers, and talked about ongoing projects for children and soldiers with PTSD and head injuries.  The USYers did some work grooming horses and cleaning out stalls, but they were great and got the importance of the work being done.

After a so-so lunch back at Agron, we met Ruth Schlossman, the charismatic and humorous founder and Mitzvah hero of Gift of Comfort which since 2001 has been providing alternative treatment sessions to survivors of terror and soldiers recovering from injuries.  While right now the organization is experiencing a bit of a lull, Ruth was great at drawing on the Mitzvah power of the teens, exhorted them to follow their passion and had a great session with them.  The teens shared mitzvah work they've been doing and they were really inspiring. 
Great kids, great staff (Including Seaboard's Ally Turkheimer).

I spent a quiet hour at the end of the day taking laundry off the line and eating leftovers for dinner.  At 8 I went out to the new Grand Cafe on Derekh Beit Lechem to meet with Dennis Alon, the new Director of Resource Development at the Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind.  Interesting game of Jewish geography.

Tomorrow is another day; heading north with Robbie Sasson from Crossroads to visit Yemin Orde, hoping to meet with Chaim Peri as well as other members of the staff.  and maybe, just maybe an educational visit to either the Tulip or Carmel wineries.  Who did you think was writing this blog?

One week ends, another one begins: Shabbat, Mitzvahs with USY Group 8, Father-Daughter stuff and dairy meals

A quiet shabbat and some father-daughter bonding time.  It's been a long time since Abby and I have been together without an agenda, and I really enjoy her company.  After being in Haifa and Tel Aviv this week, Abby came to J-lem to spend Shabbat with her Abba.  We had dinner just the two of us, went to Shira Hadasha Friday night and Yedidya Shabbat morning.  We had lunch with Shaiel and Charlie Yitzchak and some of their friends and had a very nice time with 6 small kids (and one about to be delivered) in Baka.  Then a quiet afternoon napping (me) and reading (Abby and me).  After shabbat Abby went dancing in liberty bell park, and I went to a lovely coffee house in Beit Zayit, just outside J-lem called Derekh HaGefen with the "4 Kerbel girls" who stayed with us the winter of 2011 from the Gandel group that visited DC; Dafna is about to move to Rockville as a shlichah and will teach at CESJDS, Orit, Rinat and Etty.  Yossi and Dina also joined us and we had a lovely evening.

the Kerbel Girls

Mitzvah hero Moshe Kott

Sunday morning we stated working with USY group 8 (Eastern Europe) - an outstanding group of teens.  Because they are a large group we divided them in half; half went to the Diplomat Hotel to meet Alice Jonah and the Russian residents, many veterans and survivors of WWII, and half to Mitzvah hero Moshe Kott of Lev Ramot.

Rabbi Jonathan Porath gave an overview of the Soviet Jewry movement of the 70's and 80's and of the FSU aliyah of the 90's.  Then the group with Alice met residents and heard their stories and the group with Moshe packed bags of groceries to be donated to 250 families in the Ramot neighborhood of Jerusalem.  Each bag had 10 items, and then the USYers heard from Moshe how Lev Ramot operates to preserve the dignity and kavod (respect) of the volunteers and recipients. Lev Ramot provides both cooked prepared foods from catering halls and corporate kitchens, as well as groceries to families.  The USYers were excellent Mitzvah food packers.

Later the group at Lev Ramot returned to the Diplomat to meet Alice, who has retired as program director at the diplomat, but continues to volunteer there, and to hear a concert by the choir of the Diplomat, pictured below:

The choir continues to inspire - the USYers were singing and dancing and a great time was had by all.  After a fine youth hostel lunch of fish sticks, Bradley Dov Bear Cohen our Mitzvah hero with the wisdom of the East, the youth of Israel and the spirituality of a Hasidic master did a two hour program with the group.  Dov Bear's personal story or rediscovery, enlightenment, d'veikut (closeness to God and appreciation of life and love of the Mitzvot) was inspiring and motivational.  His new venture providing experiences of self discovery http://www.selfdiscoveryexperience.org/index.html, could truly change the world.

I had a quiet dinner with Arnie at Waffle Bar (after the 2nd try they got my Pizza Crepe, no olives) correct and it was delicious, served with a small salad.  Abby, who was with us most of the day, returned to Tel Aviv, and I'm looking forward to more quality time together this fall.

Tomorrow, we're off to the Israel National Therapeutic Riding Association, and in the afternoon, a presentation by Mitzvah hero Ruth Schlossman of A gift of Comfort, providing therapy sessions and alternative therapies to survivors of terror, civilian and military.  Just something to look forward to.

Ad machar . . .

Group 8 packing donated food

ir

Mitzvah hero Alice Jonah (center)

Just another day of amazing Mitzvah work.

Jori from Adas Israel in the Tomato fields

Arnie showing the USYers the Gaza border from Sderot, only 800 meters away

Odelia Ben Porat, Project director of Reut

USY Group 1 painting and gardening in the mid day sun

I'm writing on Friday just before Shabbat trying to get as much down as possible, because it is so hard to fall behind with the things we are doing.  Thursday 19 July was a packed day with USY.  We went back to the tomato field (but I have a new story to tell) and then we went south to Sderot, just two days after the last 2 rockets fell, to work with the Reut Non-profit, who we have been working with for the last several years.

Group 1, though a bit less involved in USY, was outstanding, as was their staff.  While we were picking tomatoes with Leket there was another group in the field, from Mexico.  They were tossing tomatoes to each other, and not treating the food as if it was not going to be eaten by others.  There is a level of holiness (as I said to the teens later) that is involved in Mitzvah work, and I was extremely proud that our USYers attained it without being prompted and had the proper kavod (respect) for the food and the people that would be eating it, especially if they were beneficiaries of tzedakah.

I find Sderot, and the people who make up Reut amazing.  They literally risk their lives and those of their family members to contribute and improve the lives of their neighbors who don't have a choice in where they live.  They provide after school programming, a clothes closet, food pantry, classes in Judaism and text, clubs and classes for all ages, and great personal sacrifice.  The USYers helped clean up the landscaping around their headquarters and club house and stained a pergula.  It was very hot but the USYers got into their work, never complained and had a great time doing it.

At the end of the day, I took off for parts north to rejoin my Israeli poker game in pardes Hanna.  I've been a "visitor" of this fame for more than 10 years and I really like the guys.  It was worth the 4 hours of travel it took to get there and back (at 2:45 a.m.).

Friday, I mixed pleasure (Mitzvah work) and pleasure (wine tasting).  I starting the morning at Kibbutz Tzuba, where I met with Moti and Meir at Yaakov Maimon volunteers about projects they're working on and to discuss and allocation with them.  Then I met Eiton Green at the winery for a taste of 3 great wines, the 2011 Chardonnay (1/2 unoaked, half only 3 months in oak and then blended together), the 2009 Harmony (Sangivese-Syrah blend) and the Metzuda 2009 blend (Cab, Merlot, Cab Franc).  Each was excellent.  I opened a bottle of the pinot noir later with friends at the Yehuda winery at Shoresh and it just shows that Pinot Noir is not really yet thriving here in Israel.  It did improve over about an hour of time exposed, but still was not a great Pinot.

I spend a fun few hours with Avi Yehuda and the Friday regulars at Shoresh, and we tried a horizontal blind tasting of 3 wines from barrels that were completely different in character that turned out to be from the same vineyard and harvest, but aged in different kinds of barrels (1 new oak, one 4 years old and one former shiraz barrel.  I only guessed right that one was a cabernet sauvignon, but I identified the one from the Shiraz barrel immediately.  I impressed my fellow tasters.

In the afternoon I picked Abby up at the bus station so we could spend shabbat together, and then Alex Simone, a young man now in the army here who used to teach for me at B'nai Tzedek stopped by to say hi and schmooze for a while.  It was a nice surprise.

Alex Simone, former Bnai Tzedek teacher, current defender of Israel

 

Well, I have to finish getting ready for Shabbat.  Saturday night I have a reunion with the "Kerbel Girls" from the Gandel group that visiting Washington 2 years ago, and then Sunday is USY 8 day, followed by USY 3 on Monday.

Shabbat shalom, from Jerusalem, which is starting to cool down.

USY Group 4 - connecting to the land and going to the dogs

USYers Picking tomatoes

 So today started well with USY Group 4 (1st Departure, Poland).  Shakshuka for breakfast at Agron, followed by a trip to a field between Hulda and Rehovot to pick tomatoes with Leket Yisrael.  Leket Yisrael (formerly Table to Table) is the largest food recovery and distribution organization in Israel.  They enlist approximately 30,000 volunteers a year, including us, to help pick fruit and vegetables that might otherwise go to waste be unharvested due to market prices being too low or size or color making them difficult to sell.  Unfortunately the enthusiasm for the vision of the Mitzvah hero who founded Table to Table, Joseph Gitler, doesn't seem to be shared by the staff "in the field" (literally) and the passion of the staff members from Leket we encountered in its early years (they're only about 7 or 8 years old) is not found in the staff people we encounter now.  It was a beastly hot day, and while we did pick about 300 kilograms of Tomatoes (which will feed about 100 families within the next 48 hours or so) we only lasted about 40 minutes in the field and the staff was not as well organized as past programs have been.  Still, we made our points about eradicating hunger, the biblical direction to leave gleanings in the field for the less fortunate in our community and connecting to the land.

A puppy in the kennel for training

Noah Braun

We then continued to Beit Oved to visit the Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind.  Fortunately, founder and Mitzvah hero Noach Braun was there to greet us and was able to speak to the group, though we were unable to play with the puppies due to a sever allergy to dogs by one of the participants.  As luck would have it, Leah Zebovitz, daughter of our friends Tammy and Steve Zebovitz, was volunteering in the kennels and I got to see her.  I've stopped being surprised by who I run into in Israel.  We didn't have the best volunteer guide, and she really didn't understand our reasons for bringing the group there, but Noach was there and we filled in where necessary.  The IGDCB provides trained guide dogs to blind and vision impaired people at not cost, and currently they breed, raise and train their own dogs, at a cost of about $25,000 each, and they provide about 45 dogs a year.  As Israel doesn't have as developed a culture of house pets as the US, it seems to be taking a while to convince many Israelis of the love and utility of bringing a guide dog into their lives.  They report they are able to keep up with the demand for guide dogs at present.

I packed my own lunch today (turkey breast and a couple of plums) because I've learned not to rely on a USY box lunch.  Danny and I finished the day by taking a quick tour of Har Homa while taking Arnie home, and just going out for a quick burger at Burgers Bar (this time I managed to finish my 150 gm burger).  Not much else to report.  Tomorrow afternoon I head east to see Mitzvah hero Libby Reichman, formerly of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Israel, maybe stop by the Gush Etzion Winery and who knows what else along the way.

Lehitra'ot for tonight.

USY Group 2 - Girlfriends of Fallen IDF Soldiers and the Righteous Among the Nations living in Israel

Days with USY groups start early - today started at 7 am - After a youth hostel breakfast (light in my case) we were off to Kiriyat Ono, north of Tel Aviv to meet Phyllis Haimowitz, who started the non-profit to provide support to girlfriends and fiancees of fallen IDF soldiers 12 years ago.  I've told Phyllis' story before and that of her daughter Michal whose boyfriend Avi was killed in Lebanon.  Phyllis' effort to literally save her daughter's life has led to providing therapeutic and other support to over 350 boyfriends and girlfriends of fallen Israeli soldiers from any cause, whether in battle, training of driving accidents or otherwise.  We provided donor-directed support for other things (tuition, other therapies and other necessities ) that Phyllis and Rina provide to the girlfriends.

We then went back to Jerusalem, and after another youth hostel meal (nondescript except the pea soup was good) Danny did his afternoon session about practical mitzvot, and then we heard from one of our youngest Mitzvah heroes, Yael Rosen, who spoke about her work for Atzum providing support and friendship to the Righteous Among the Nations, non Jews who risked their lives, with no personal gain, to save Jews during the Shoah.  Yael speaks knowledgeably and lovingly about the 35 or so remaining righteous still living in Israel and she is a great teacher. Mitzvah Heroes Fund is proud to be an early and regular supporter of this project, paying for individual needs and group get-togethers for the Righteous. The USYers wrote some terrific Rosh HaShanah cards that will go to the clients Yael serves.  We had a great end to the day.

Since I have the freedom of a car, Danny and I drove up to Agripas St for a brief stroll through Machane Yehuda (I finally stopped at the Kingdom of Halva, literally in Hebrew Mamlechet HaChalva) to buy a chunk (chocolate-coffee) and then we went to dinner at Steakiya Hatzot (where we shared one steak dinner with salads).  It was nice, and I had a glass of the House red which was a Binyamina Cabernet to go with the steak;  It was nice and its worth a future visit.

And now I'm writing about all of this to you.  It's 9:30 and its almost bedtime.  Another USY group (4, Micha's group) tomorrow where we will be picking some vegetable with Leket Yisrael (Israel's Largest Food Recovery Network) and going to the Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind, my first visit there in maybe 3 years.  Very excited, since in addition to missing Judy and Michelle, I also miss our cute dog Waldo, who I don't think is qualified to guide anything.

And it was evening at it was morning . . .

I know I need to catch people up.  I arrived last Wednesday, July 11; unfortunately, my luggage didn't catch up with me until Friday afternoon, July 13.  Here is how I described my first couple of days before shabbat on facebook:

No time to blog so the last two days in a nutshell: Museum on the Seam, meh; Going to mahane yehuda with Abby Kerbel, fun; Big Apple Pizza - passable; hanging out with Dina G-David at Cafe Lev Smadar - fun; waiting around apartment for 6 hours for luggage that doesn't come - sucks; only getting 2 hours sleep - sucks; waking up queezy - sucks; getting baked goods from Pe'er for Shabbat - yummy; seeing the Rabbanit Kapach, even for just a few minutes - awesome (in the true sense of the word); receiving luggage - relief; hanging out at the Yehuda Winery - Excellent. Shabbat dinner (chicken oregano, pasta, zucchini-carrot mixture, green beans, water melon paired with a tishbi French Reisling and a Yehuda shiraz) prepared. going to shower before Shira Hadasha. Shabbat shalom everyone from the very quiet city of Jerusalem.

 It was a quiet shabbat in Jerusalem.  Friday night Abby and I went to Shira chadasha with our friends Yossi and Dina David and their daughter Adva; Daniel Novick was there (he's at the Conservative Yeshiva) and Abby saw a lot of friends from New York.  We had a nice dinner in the apartment that I cooked with some help from Abby.  We were well satisfied.

 Abby and I got up early for a Shabbat morning (7ish) to walk to Agron Street to pick up my nephew Micha, who is on Pilgrimage (Group 4); we went back to Shira Chadasha; singing was only so-so, no dvar Torah and the locals never introduce themselves (unlike what I've grown used to at all of my shuls in Maryland - at Shaare Tefilah, Ohr Kodesh, Bnai Israel and Bnai Tzedek newcomers are warmly greeted and introduced around).  We then had the honor of being hosted for lunch in the home of Mitzvah hero supreme Alice Jonah and her husband Efry, with many other friends in attendance.  Alice is an amazing cook, specialized in Indian cuisine.  there were chicken meatballs, Daal over rice, schnitzel, a blend of white and sweet potatoes, Gazpacho made by her friend Judy Montegu and an amazing chocolate mint frozen pie for dessert.  Needless to say it was well after 3:30 when we rolled down the hill (in considerable heat) from talpiot back to the German Colony.  We variously slept, read and schmoozed the rest of Shabbat.

 After havdalah, Abby was meeting her boss-to-be Rabbi Steven Glazer at the Inbal, so Micha and I went out for Pizza at Big Apple, and then I drove him back into town to meet the rest of his group at the Mamila Mall.  I came back and watched some TV and read for awhile.

Sunday morning we had a pretty relaxed schedule.  Danny, Arnie and  I had a breakfast meeting to go over our schedule for the week, and Abby joined us, at the new Marzipan bakery on Rachel Imeinu; Abby and I shared a breakfast - Omelet, bread, salad, labane, another cheese - it was enough for two along with the complementary chocolate rugelach (yes, they are as good as you remember).  then Abby and I got a ride part way into town to run a couple of errands - my sunglasses broke on shabbat and I was able to get them repaired quickly, and then a chanukiah of ours that broke was quickly replaced by the wonderful David Yomtov at the Ethnics Gallery Shop on Jaffa Road.  He is such a nice guy!

Abby and I enjoyed not having much of a schedule - we leisurely walked up Ben Yehuda (where we ran into Hazzan Ramon Tasat), I stopped for a carrot juice at Tutti Fruiti, my favorite juice bar, and then we took a bus back to the apartment.  I contacted my friend Shaiel Yitzchak who is a great mitzvah guy, first serving still (I think its been about 8 years) as a big brother for Ephraim, a young man who came from Ethiopia at age 6 with polio who with Shaiel's guidance and support finished high school and is not almos done with his Army service.  Shaiel runs a day came for kids to learn robotics called Techno-Play, and we came to see what happens there and to deliver a directed donation that covers the tuition of one of the campers.

After our visit we stopped for a quick burger at Burgers Bar (no chips, in case my doctor hears about this) and I was unable to finish eating the smallest (150 gm) burger.  For you Hebrew speakers "Aich naflu giborim" (How the mighty have fallen).  Then I drove Abby to the central bus station to catch her 3 pm bus to haifa (I made one slightly illegal turn but otherwise got in and out of there safely) and then I stopped in Talpiot to shop for a few grocery items (including the grapes I'm noshing now.  Sunday night I was kind of worn out from the heat of the day, and I had a glass of the Shiraz left from shabbat and my favorite snack - watermelon and Bulgarit cheese (very similar to feta).  The sweet and salty remind me of other yummy things like chocolate covered pretzels.  Knowing that Monday was the first USY group which means a 6 am wake up, I went to bed early.

I think I'll write up Monday as a separate post, as this is getting too long.

 

Summer Number 7, 2012 Let the good times roll

July 10 – I’ve had some bad recent travel experience with delayed flights, weather, lost and damaged luggage (at least 4 or my last 5 trips).  I’m not superstitious and I am not one to mutter “kenahorras” (bli ayin harah for the Hebrew speakers in the blogosphere) as my grandmothers might have.  But I have to say, my initiation for this trip has been smoother than any in the last 5 or so years; 15 minutes from airport arrival to being through security, only to find an empty people mover at Dullles and free wi fi that connected on the first try.  Maybe this shaliach mitzvah (mitzvah messenger for our many Mitzvah Heroes Fund donors) business is finally starting to click with the  force that controls travel.

I start this trip in a slightly different mood than other recent ones; the non-profit world is tough right now, some of our Mitzvah heroes are scaling back, refitting or transitioning to new leadership, need is increasing for recipients of non-profit services, governments are cutting back, and as volunteers, we haven’t been able to really spend time developing donors at Mitzvah Heroes  Fund.  While our aims are serious, we are not right now able to make the serious time commitment it takes.

I’m excited to spend time with friends, taste new and familiar food and wine, explore some new destinations (is there a Negev tiyul in my future to check out the wine scene there?).  I have a meeting planned at the teen village Yemin Orde with director Chaim Peri that I’m excited about, a chance to talk to the Rabbanit Kapach about whatever she wants to teach me, and many other great people.  I feel  having a car will open up new opportunities to explore, and I hope to take full advantage of it.

Thanks to my supportive family and colleagues for indulging me in this venture.  I ‘m excited to be sharing time with Abby, seeing my nephew Micha, working with Danny Siegel and Arnie Draiman, catching up with Rabbi Paul Freedman and the many other great people I will interact with over the next three weeks.  The next update may be steak and wine, so stay tuned.

Debate and Revolt - D’var Torah – Korach (Numbers 16-18)

“VaYikach Korach” – A curious opening to this week’s parasha.  “Korach took” . . .

We have a subject (the person named Korach) and a verb but no object.  The larger context, a narrative describing the rebellion of a fellow Levite against the leadership of Moses, helps the reader understand just what Korach “took.” Korach seized an opportunity, took advantage of a vulnerability (the humility of Moses which we learned about last week as Eldad and Meidad were prophesying), took advantage of the propensity of a congregation of complainers to find something other than food and water to kvetch about.  Korach takes his own sense of having been overlooked (by God, but not by Moses or Aaron, who were, at best, reluctant leaders) and brings it to the forefront.

Having spent much of my academic career in or with Middle School students (I only did grades 6-8 once as a student but I have taught, counseled, overseen middle school teachers and students for most of the last 18 years), I really relate to this parasha and the lessons to be learned.  Rebellion and adolescence are meant to be partners.  Legitimate debate, or what our tradition labels a machloket l’shem shamayim (literally a dispute for the sake of heaven) has its rightful place in public discourse and even in Torah.  When thirsty people don’t have water, when Moses can’t get cooperation from the people to follow the easiest command, the complaint is permitted, even encouraged.  When two schools of thought, such as Hillel and Shammai, argue yet deal respectfully with each other, the arguments are recorded to give credibility to the process and the minority opinion. One of the traditional lessons from Korach, though, is the consequence of an inappropriate complaint, a complaint which comes from a place of vanity, self-service or narcissism.

While Korach takes the artful approach of using God’s words “ki kol ha-aidah kulam k’doshim” (“but all of the people in the congregation are holy” [Bamidbar (Numbers) 16:3]) he doesn’t enumerate any particular lapses or omissions in the leadership being provided by Moses (governmental leadership) and Aaron (ritual leadership).  He simply challenges their selection (which was God’s doing), their elevated position, and his own legitimate candidacy given his belonging to the tribe of Levi and personal holiness (“after all, we’re all created in God’s image” I can hear Korach say, somehow in the voice of Edwin G. Robinson, even though I know Cecil B. DE Mille cast that actor as Datan, a follower of Korach).

Adolescence, developmentally, is a time to figure out who you are and how you fit into the family, school, youth group, society, planet and universe.  It’s a time to challenge, experiment, test limits, exert some independence, take some control of your schedule, take responsibility for your own learning and work.  Bnai Yisrael (the Children of Israel) are in their own post-birth phase as a nation; they’ve gotten some laws, they’re getting organized, they’re trying to find their place in the world.  Korach’s rebellion is an appropriate adolescent enterprise.  But it ends badly.  It ends badly because the dispute was about people and not about how they were doing their jobs.  It was about privilege of position but not about responsibility.  Korach’s actions aren’t his downfall; his motivations are.

My first summer as a summer camp staff member (B’nai B’rith Beber Camp, Mukwonago, Wisconsin) I ended up being on the staff committee responsible for the Shabbat morning Torah service.  I still remember the Korach puppet show that became the format (may still be) for our weekly “lessons” on the Book of Bamidbar (Numbers). It helped us help our campers understand our tradition’s tolerance of debate, the dangers of demagoguery and the challenges of forming a society in the wilderness.  My friend, counselor and teacher, Stan Beiner, hadn’t yet written Sedra Scenes and we were on our own to make our People’s story relevant to the new, late 1970’s generation of our people.

Korach pays the ultimate price for his vanity and disingenuousness.  With the right role models, instruction, and self-awareness, we should be able to avoid his disastrous results from now on. 

Questions for Discussion:

You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.  Is there an etiquette to complaining effectively?

Sometimes leadership does need to change.  How would you go about suggesting it’s time for a change?

Sometimes we complain to express frustration, but our target of complaint may not be the actual cause of our frustration! What steps can we take to try to be objective about what’s bothering us, and to find the appropriate place to express our desires or displeasure?

As a family, compose a letter to the editor expressing an opinion or disagreeing with something in the paper or on line.  Have each person read it for tone.  Question your motivation- is your ego involved, is there a “greater good” involved, does it make the point through facts or emotion?

Steve Kerbel, Director of Education of Congregation B’nai Tzedek, is Chair of the Education Directors’ Council of Greater Washington and a national officer of the Jewish Educators Assembly.