Uniting a Divided Country--Ruminations on Ending Sinat Chinam on Election Day

This past Shabbat, Parshat Noah, I talked with Smith students about the causes of the flood.

In the Jewish understanding, cataclysmic destructions are proceeded by unraveling of society.

Whether it is the violence of the generation of the Flood or the hatred between Jews that led to the Destruction of the Temple.  In the Babylonian Talmud (Gittin 55b - 56a), we learn:

There was a man – never identified in the story – who threw a party and intended to invite his good friend Kamtza.  His servant, however, erred and mistakenly invited his enemy, Bar Kamtza.  When the host realized the mistake he immediately and very publicly demanded that Bar Kamtza leave the party.  Obviously embarrassed, Bar Kamtza made a series of offers – even, ultimately, offering to pay for the entire party – hoping to persuade the host to allow him to remain.  Unmoved, the host callously throws him out of the party.  The Gemara recounts that Bar Kamtza was so offended, not only by the host, but also by the silence of the guests – some of whom were great rabbis – that he slandered the Jewish people to the Caesar.  One thing leads to another and the result of this sad story is, ultimately, the destruction of the Beit Ha-Mikdash (Gittin 55b-56a).  

The Temple is destroyed because society had unraveled to the extent that problems with party invitations lead to complainsts against entire groups of people to the government.

While I don't believe we have reached this level in the US, I am alarmed by the negative tone of the campaign.I am cognizant that despite predictions of an Obama landslide (when Karl Rove predicts a Democratic landslide, you can take it to the bank), the country remains more divided than at any time I can remember.  If it was not for the Electoral College, it would be little more than a statistical advantage for Obama.

We have to remember that hatred of someone for their ideas or membership in a minority group unravels the fabric of our society and threatens to lead us to chaos.  Whether it is calling the Democratic candidate a terrorist or labeling those who vote for McCain as racists, this does nothing to solve the serious domestic and international problems facing our country.

I hope that we can come together after this divisive election, remembering to respect the divine image contained within the losers, and help our country reachieve its reputation for good in the world.

If you haven't voted yet, what are you waiting for?  As Hillel would say, if not now--when?

Rabbi Bruce 

PS  Tonight, after Barack Obama was declared President-Elect, Senator John McCain gave a great concession speach.  He spoke of the historic nature of P-E Obama's candidacy and now Presidency.  Unfortunately, his followers yelled "boo" every time he mentioned his opponent's name.  To his credit, he tried to stop this.  

Amherst Commencement

I just arrived at Amherst for Commencement weekend.

Last year, pictures of the Baccalaureate Service (10am in Johnson Chapel) were posted almost immediately after the event. Check here for pictures, audio, and more from Commecement festivities.

Below is my Call to Action Text I will deliver at tomorrow's service:

Shabbat Shalom. We have gathered at a liminal moment in your lives. Surrounding each of you are those who helped you reach this threshold: your family, friends and members of the Amherst Community. Your Amherst education and achievements are worthy of celebration but the college motto of Terras Irradient ("Let them give light to the world") teaches us that your dreams and actions will illuminate our future.

The Talmud challenges us: which is better — learning or action? The spirit of Amherst College echoes the answer to the Talmud’s question: learning is better because your learning at Amherst—both inside and outside the classroom—leads to and informs your actions. Your learning leads to your illuminating the world.

The midrash says:

When they arrive to the World-to-Come at the end of their life, each person will be asked: How did you occupy your time?

If the person says, "I fed the hungry," then the angels say to him: This is God’s gate; those who feed the hungry may enter. If the person says, "I clothed the naked," then the angels say to her, "This is God’s gate, those whose who clothe the naked may enter. And similarly those who raise orphans, and those who give charity, and those who engage in deeds of lovingkindness."

According to this Midrash, we are not judged by how we earn a living but what we do to better the world. Some of us have the priveledge of aligning the way we earn a living with creating a better world. Since most of you are early in the journey of creating your future, I challenge you to do accomplish a similar alignment. There is a way to apply any training to helping others. But all of us have to remember that a job—no matter how passionately we approach it—is only part of our time and identity. Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, raising orphans, giving charity, and performing deeds of loving-kindness are the responses that should be offered when our stories are told. That is how you will dispel the world’s darkness.

May the God we call by many names help each of our graduates turn their learning into creative, peace-bringing, celebratory actions in the world. May we, in the words of the Psalmist, “give thanks to God who created the luminaries” for helping us all to reach this joyous day.

May the Source of Mercy and Compassion bless each member of the Amherst College community gathered to honor and celebrate with them. May we all merit to see each of our graduates bring more light into the world over the coming years.

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Shabbat shalom and Mazal Tov to the graduates and their families,

Rabbi Bruce

Common Calendar Forms Community

This summer I have busy preparing Kosher Dining at Smith, rearranging my office at Smith since I got new furniture, spending time at Camp Ramah New England, and getting ready for the upcoming academic year.

Although the summer has been busier than most and my reading pile remains higher than I would like at the end of July, I have had some time for learning.
On my own, I have been learning the first tractates few tractates of Mishnah. The first Seder (Order) of the Mishnah, Zera'im, deals with agricultural and tithing in the Land of Israel during the time of the Holy Temple. The very first Tractate, Brachot, deals with prayer and blessings and sets the stage for the rabbinic reinterpretation of Biblical Judaism.

This week, the Talmud hevruta (partnered--or in this case group--text study) I participate in resumed our study of the first chapter of Gemara Sanhedrin (Jews of Paradise contains a picture of us learning). This chapter deals with the types of courts that existed in the Jewish legal system of the Rabbinic era and why different types of courts need particular numbers of judges. The section we have been learning recently examines the Beit Din (rabbinic court) needed to intercalate the calendar (declare a leap year by adding a second month of Adar in the spring). Note: I am oversimplifying these complicated topics. Factors such as allowing time for rebuilding bridges and roads, making sure people in transit can complete their journey before Pesach, and that the proper grains can be prepared determine whether the Beit Din declares a leap year. The power given to groups that set a calendar is huge (witness the power school districts have on shopping and travel).

In Zera'im, the intricate laws of tithing and sanctity reinforce the elite status of the Rabbis. If you don't tithe properly and observe laws of sanctity, you are not able to eat with them or have them eat with you. But when it comes to exercising one of the greatest powers (ie., setting the calendar), the Rabbis take on a populist approach. They go out of their way to ensure the greatest number of people can observe Passover in Jerusalem.

I take that as a tremendous lesson: the way people mark time creates community. More than what we do with our own lives, how we interact with individuals, it is how we structure our lives through time that informs our identity.

I will continue to ponder this as we get closer to the High Holidays.
And now, I say goodbye as I join Jews the world-over in celebrating Shabbat tonight!

B'shalom,
Rabbi Bruce