We all know that Shavuot is the anniversary of the giving of the Torah. But it is, in fact, much more. Shavuot is a day on which we must decide what to do with the Torah we have received. We must decide how we, as Jews committed to Torah, can best create a community dedicated to its observance? Observant Jews are divided on this question. One spectrum of our community believes that the best way to observe and preserve the Torah is to close Jewish society off from the rest of the world, so that no outside influences can penetrate. The other side of the community argues that the Torah can flourish in an open society as long as we are steadfast in our observance of its precepts. There is a very interesting insight on Parashat Bamidbar, which is always read the Shabbat before Shavuot, which shows that this dispute has long occupied the Jewish People.
In the Talmud Yerushalmi (Eruvin 5:1) there is a dispute regarding how the Jewish People traveled in the desert. According to one opinion, the Jews traveled "Keteiva" - in the form of a square chest. This is based on a verse from Parashat Bamidbar which says, "Ka'asher Yahanu Kein Yisa'u - as they encamped so they journeyed" (Bamidbar 2:17). Just as the Jewish People encamped around the Mishkan, the desert sanctuary, in a square form, so too did they travel in the same fashion. Another view, however, says that the Jewish People traveled "Kekorah" - in the form of a beam - each tribe lining up one after the other. This view is based on a verse in Parashat Beha'alotkha (Bamidbar 10:25) which says, "Measeif Lekhol Hamahanot Letzivotam," that the tribe of Dan was the rear guard of all the camps. This implies that the tribes were lined up with the tribe of Dan at the end. I once heard that the dispute regarding the correct traveling formation of the Jewish People can also be understood as a dispute regarding the best way for the Jewish People to uphold the teachings of the Torah. Is the best way to travel through life "Keteiva" like a square chest, like a caravan with the wagons circled so nothing can enter? Or should we go forward "Kekorah" like a beam, open to whatever comes, yet remaining strong and persistent in our Torah observance?
I believe that the answer can be found in Moshe Rabbenu's instructions to the spies before they went to scout out the Land of Israel. In Parashat Shelach Lekha, Moshe says look closely into the nature of the land itself and its inhabitants. Regarding the people, he says, "See if they are strong or weak, see if they are few or many and see how the cities are set up: are they open or fortified?" When I read these words of the Torah, I always assume that if the Canaanites lived in walled cities, they were powerful. A people who is able fortify itself is a people of strength. But Rashi has a different idea. He explains that Moshe was teaching the spies how to recognize strength and weakness. Moshe said, "If the people live in open cities, they are strong because they rely on their own abilities to protect themselves. But, if they live in fortified cities, they are weak for they need the walls to protect them." Rashi's comment always amazes me. By his logic, we only need to surround the Torah "Keteiva" if we believe that it is weak. If we believe that it is not strong enough to fend off the negative aspects of modern society. But we know that the Torah is strong. We can observe it "Kekorah" - out in the open. We can walk straight through the world, as Torah observant Jews -- willing and able to be affected by the positive facts of Hashem's creation.
Our world has so many beautiful things in it: amazing areas of study like mathematics and science, which help us better understand Hashem's creation; and medicine, which allows us to become partners with Hashem in sustaining the world; and traveling and meeting other of Hashem's creations, seeing how diverse the image of God can be; and art and literature which help us to express life's most incredible experiences in a profound way; and so many other fascinating areas. "Ma Rabu Maasekha Hashem, Kulam Behokhma Asita, Mal'ah Haaretz Kinyakekha." Every morning in Yotzer Or we say this verse from Tehillim (104:24): "How great are your works, God, You make them all with wisdom, the world is full of your possessions." If we confine ourselves and our Torah within a box, we will miss much of what Hashem has provided for us. We must remember, though, that all of the world's wonders stem from the Divine. Hashem's presence is manifest in all these areas -- anyone who approaches the world with a Torah consciousness can see it.
There is a very difficult mishnah in Pirkei Avot (3:9). It says that one who walks on the road while learning Torah but stops and exclaims, "How beautiful is this tree! How beautiful is this plowed field!" is deserving of death. That seems a little harsh for interrupting Torah learning! My teacher, Rabbi Ronald Price teaches that it is not the interruption that is the issue, it is the fact that the person did not recognize the tree or the field as God's handiwork. He did not exclaim, "How great are your works, Hashem, You make them all with wisdom." He divorces Torah from the world. Our job as open-minded observant Jews is to live in the world "Kekorah" and recognize the beauty of Hashem in all its glory.
Rabbi
Mordechai Friedfertig
Congregation B'nai Shalom
Williamsville,
New York
Email: mordechai at utj.org
Copyright 2001-2003 by Mordechai Friedfertig