Welcome Friends to Torah Thoughts from Adas Israel the Jewish Congregation of Northern Iowa, based in Mason City. Some Holiday News
first: Later this month we will observe the Jewish New Year or Rosh Hashanah. Services will take place on Sunday evening the 25th starting at 7:00PM. We will then hold morning services on Monday the 26th starting at 10:00AM. Following services join us in the Social Hall for some "holiday nosh" and conversation. We're back for Kol Nidre on October 4th with services starting at 7:00PM. Yom Kippur services will be on the 5th of October starting at 10:00AM. We'll adjourn for several hours and then back in Shul starting at 5PM to conclude the holiday. Break Fast (around 7:00PM) is being catered this year by our friend Cynthia who always does a wonderful job. We hope to see you.
This Week's Torah Portion
This week we read Parsha Ki Teitzei (Deut. 21:10 - 25:19). The words "ki teitzei" are Hebrew for "When you go out..." as we read: "When you will go out to war against your enemies..." And then the Torah speaks to a "woman of beautiful form" who becomes the captive of a soldier and how he should treat her so that he does not sin.
But the sages offer us another thing to consider. What might that be? Our sages tell us that the opening verse is hinting at going out to war against our most fearsome enemy - the evil inclination.
Rabbi Bachya ben Yosef zt"l of the 12th Century writes, "Your greatest enemy in the world is your evil inclination. He gives you (bad) advice every step of the way. While you sleep he is awake, plotting against you. He appears to you as a friend, and he becomes one of your most trusted advisors... His greatest weapons against you are confusion and false arguments, which make you forget your true interests and doubt your confirmed goals and beliefs..."
We have all come face to face with an inclination to do evil. Sometimes the inclination seems to be slight, "What could be the harm in having just one cheeseburger?" Or it cam be great as in, "I have been wronged and I will seek vengeance by killing that person!" Which of those two inclinations might be the worst? Surprise, it is the first. The prohibition of murder is clear but what could be the harm in a cheeseburger? The answer is that it may lead to yet another evil inclination and then another...before you know it you have abandoned all of Torah.
What is the remedy for not being swept away by our evil inclination? The only sure way to beat the evil inclination is by studying Torah. As the Talmud states: God created the evil inclination and created the Torah as its antidote.
The Rebellious Son
Along those same lines we find this interesting section (Deut. 21: 18 - 21). This is a difficult section of the parsha where we are told that a wayward and rebellious son might suffer the sentence of death. The Torah Sage Ramban comments that often small sins can become the the path to greater sins. A parent or elder must do all they can to set the feet of the wayward child back on the path but if all that fails the courts must intervene. The bottom line is that a parents love of G-d must supersede their love of their children. Unless a society has values that come above normal human emotions, that society will crumble and children will become the enemies of what their parents revere.
Give It Back
Let's say you find something. Nobody knows that you found it...other than you. Let us then say you know to whom the item belongs but you hide that fact. The bottom line is you are forbidden to ignore the opportunity to return the item. (Deut. 22 1 - 4) This is both moral and financial. It is wrong to take advantage of another person's loss especially if that loss brings with it a financial loss. If a fellow comes to you and says an item is worth $500 but because he/she needs the money he/she is willing to sell it for $250...you should buy the item at face value so as not to bring financial hardship to the seller. Pretty astounding...right?
Finally
There are so many, many commandments in this weeks portion and if you read and have a question please don't hesitate to reach out. It's by learning that we grow. May you have a wonderful Shabbat and looking forward to seeing you for the holidays.
Shabbat Shalom!
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