From the Rabbi
Rabbi Robert L. Wolkoff
Previous Messages
“Invigorated Israel”
“The days of our years is seventy years, and when in vigor, eighty years; most of them are but travail and vanity. They pass by speedily, and we are gone.” Psalm 90:10 is a song marked equally by fear and trust, of terrible death and tender friendliness. Commentators have noted that the reference to “seventy years” is usually associated with a national fall and rise — tragedy and hope.
The prophet Jeremiah speaks of the seventy years in the Babylonian exile and the hope that follows: “And this whole land shall be a desolation, and a waste; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, says the Lord, for their iniquity… ” (25:11-12)
The prophet Zechariah captures the same notion of rebuke and then hope: “Then the angel of the Lord spoke and said: ‘O Lord of hosts, how long will You not have compassion on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which You have had indignation these seventy years?’ And the Lord answered the angel that spoke with me with good words, even comforting words.” (1:12-13)
While the number seven always takes us back to the days of creation, it also symbolizes completion. The word seven in Hebrew—sheva—also means an oath, one we make to each other. An oath of the physical world created by seven days. But the covenant with God, always comes on the eighth day. A baby has not entered the covenant of his life until the eighth day — a spiritual inauguration following the physical existence. Likewise, as we read in parashat Shemini, the Tent of Meeting, the sanctuary created as a meeting place for the people and the glory of God was inaugurated on the eighth day when Aaron, the High Priest, lit the candles.
So now Israel is 70. Most of its years were indeed difficult, with many battles. We lament at the community’s historical experience, but as we continue to sing Psalm 90, we conclude with a powerful plea of hope: “Relent, Lord! How long will it be? Have compassion on your servants. Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, for as many years as we have seen trouble. May your deeds be shown to your servants, your splendor to their children. May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us — yes, establish the work of our hands. (vv. 13-17).
The hope — “Hatikva” — is Israel’s national anthem. And as Rabbi Akiva teaches us in the Talmud, the hope for Israel is for all of us to come together, like waters gather together to a mikveh — to God. The gathering makes Israel more diverse. This year, for Israel’s 70th, 12,000 Israelis came together to sing “Al Kol Eleh,” (Over All These), written by the late Naomi Shemer to say: There is so much to celebrate in Israel — the bitter and the sweet, the honey and the sting. Keep them all for us, God. With all of its problems, Israel is still a place where we feel safe to be who we are, peaceful and secure, with hopes for good relationships with our neighbors for whom this is also a home. One of my colleagues shared his impression of Israel as “a broken place that continues to be deeply important for Jews, Christians, and Muslims, and we need to find better ways to share it, and to honor the multiple narratives that demand our attention. “History doesn’t matter if we don’t learn its lessons. The deep roots in the land are its social justice. Why be strong if you can’t defend the weak? Why be rich if you can’t give to the poor?
As Israel enters its eighth decade, there is much to celebrate, and may it be in vigor, as there still so much more to do. Happy 70th birthday Israel!
—Rabbi Gadi Capela
“The Sheep and the Goat”
When we sit around the Passover table every year, we don’t normally ask ourselves whether this is the shank bone of a sheep or of a goat. According to the Torah, before the Israelites left Egypt, God commanded, “Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year; you shall take it from the sheep, or from the goats.” (Exodus12:5)
The lamb (seh in Hebrew) simply means yearling, one that didn’t yet mate. Even though sheep and goats often roam together, and although they look quite similar and bleat the same way, there are significant differences between the two species, which set them clearly apart. The easiest way to distinguish between them is their external appearance. Sheep have wool; goats have hair. Sheep tails hang down whereas goat tails point upwards. A goat is the more slender of the two; a sheep is tubby.
But more importantly, each has a different character. For example, a sheep loves to graze on grass and clover; a goat is a typical browser, feeding on leaves, shrubs, and twigs. A sheep prefers to stay within its flock; goats are curious by nature and are quite independent. Another telling difference, perhaps reflective of the differing nature of the two species, is that sheep are entirely domesticated, while wild goats are found in abundance. This suggests that while both animals are beneficial to mankind, it is with a different symbiotic relationship.
Sheep win credit for being obedient and following their shepherd; goats should be accepted for their independence. After all, it was a curious goat, which strayed near a cliff on the western shore of the Dead Sea, bringing its young Bedouin shepherd, who chased it, to find the cave with the Dead Sea Scrolls in the spring of 1947 — the most important archeological find of all millennia. Interestingly, the parchments themselves are made from goatskin.
What kind of animal are you? When you are a grazing animal, like a sheep, you spend a lot of time with your head down, eating grass, sticking together with other sheep. When you are a browsing animal, like a goat, you often improvise your own trail.
The Torah knew to tell us that leading a people out of Egypt, the shepherd should be aware of the two types of people — those who would naturally follow Moses, and those who would follow Moses, but in their own pathfinder way. We may roam together because God created us this way — some of us sheep-like and some goat-like. Moreover, sometime we are sheep-like and sometime goat-like.
The Israelites had to bring a sheep or a goat to acknowledge both. With all the differences between them, they complete each other. When we sit around the Seder table, we all complete each other.
Wishing you and your family a happy month of Nissan, and a kosher and happy Pesach.
—Rabbi Gadi Capela
I wish to thank all the members of Congregation Tifereth Israel for giving me the opportunity to continue to serve you for another three years. May we all continue to complete each other.
“Unfinished Rabbi”
In the past year, I’ve been meeting with the Judaism and Art group, comprised of working artists from our congregation, to discuss artistic expression related to Judaic concepts. On Sunday, March 25, we will mount an exhibit of each member’s contribution. The artists will speak briefly about their works and the themes they explored. Painfully missing will be our dear friend Bob Strimban A”H, who passed away last month. Bob was a giant artist, who didn’t stop creating for a minute. Any piece of paper around him held the potential for a rendered figure. All who knew him would attest that his enthusiasm and personal warmth were contagious.
Bob had been planning to participate in the event and was working on a new piece — a Bristol paper head of a rabbi. As a true fan and as a rabbi, I was looking forward to seeing the complete work. But God decided otherwise.
Remarkably, this demonstrated to me what we have been speaking about all along — that art is a process, always unfinished. In fact, the word for an artist in Hebrew is the same word as Amen. God is an artist, who created the world. The art we observe is always through the prism of His creation. Every time we say Amen, we affirm that. Our mandate as humans is to become co-creators with God — a never-ending creation. We are all an “Unfinished Rabbi,” who needs others to complete us. Irma Strimban, Bob’s wife, a talented artist herself, completed her husband and his art for more than half a century, and she continues to complete him now, after his departure.
A few weeks after Bob’s passing, Irma sounded excited about that very concept. She had completed Bob in life, and she felt she had found a way to continue that now. Bob’s unfinished work gave Irma the opportunity to become his co-creator—she added a yarmulke. So, is it finished now? Perhaps it will never be. Perhaps it ought not to be.
As we approach Purim, we should keep this idea in mind. On Purim, it is customary to give donations in the form of half a shekel (Machatzit Hashekel), substituting the Biblical commandment to only half. But a shekel is not a big amount, so why request an even smaller amount? One of the beautiful teachings is that one is never complete without the one who holds the other part.
May we all have a happy month of Adar and Chag Purim Sameach.
—Rabbi Gadi
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