DEVARIM 5783

“What Does a Jew Do When He Crosses the International Date Line?”

This Wednesday night we will commemorate Tisha B’Av, the 9^th day of the Jewish month of Av—the saddest day in the Jewish calendar. Every major tragedy that ever happened to the Jewish people either happened, or, had its roots with something that happened on that day. I left a partial list on the table in the lobby. Look at it, the list is staggering!

We are now in the midst of the 9-Days of mourning before Tisha B’Av which began on Rosh Chodesh last Wednesday. During these 9 days, Jewish mourning practices include no weddings or parties, no wine or meat—except for Shabbat—and no haircuts or shaving.

As you know, Cheryl and I went to Japan a couple of weeks ago. When a Jew travels so far west—crossing the International Date Line, where one moment it’s Tuesday and the next it’s suddenly Wednesday—raises a few unique issues.

We left on Tuesday, July 4^th in the afternoon. As we travelled west, it never got dark until after we landed in Japan—which was Wednesday afternoon the next day—14 hours and 15 minutes later. This posed a challenging question about a Jew’s prayer obligations. Since it never got dark, how was I to pray the evening Maariv service when evening never came? And since it never got dark and then light, how was I to pray the morning Shacharit service for Wednesday, the day we landed?

At 1^st I thought this might be similar to how Jewish law approaches the question of how to time our prayers if we lived in Alaska or Finland or Norway where there are days when it never gets dark or never gets light. The same question has been posed for Jewish astronauts orbiting the earth.

You’ve heard the old joke. Why are there so few Jewish astronauts on the Space Station? Because the orbit of the Space Station sees the sun set approximately every 90 minutes. That means, every 90 minutes a Jewish astronaut has to put on his tallis and tefillin, daven Shacharit and take off his tallis and tefillin, daven Mincha and Maariv. Then, after the 90 minutes is up, put on his tallis and tefillin, daven Shacharit, take off his tallis and tefillin, daven Mincha and Maariv, and so on. And to top it all off, after 6 cycles of this every 9 hours, it’s Shabbos! Who would have time to be an astronaut?

These questions would never have occurred to the rabbis of the Talmud and the Codes of Jewish law like the Shulchan Aruch and Mishneh Torah. They probably didn’t know there were places where the sun doesn’t set for months at a time, and they never could travel fast enough by boat or wagon to create such an issue. So, this conundrum was never addressed by rabbinic authorities until relatively recently.

Rabbi Yisroel Lipschutz, who lived in Danzig Poland in the early 19^th century where they heard about places like Norway and Finland, ruled that a traveler should adopt the clock of the place from which he departed. So, if one took off from Atlanta, one should go with Atlanta time.

In Norway, however, the custom in the summer months when the sun never sets—based on a teaching from the Baal Shem Tov that says we are all always walking towards Jerusalem—is to bring in Shabbat at the same time Shabbat begins in Jerusalem. So I asked myself, should I follow the times of Atlanta or Jerusalem?

However, when I considered our return trip, I was thoroughly confused. This past Wednesday we left Tokyo at 6:35pm and returned to Atlanta 12 hours and 40 minutes later at 6:15pm—20 minutes earlier, but also on Wednesday??? Should I just ignore the fact that during the flight it would get dark and then light again? Should I not daven Maariv and Shacharit on the plane? Davening on the plane isn’t really a problem because one is allowed to daven in their seat and not stand for the Amidah if there is no place to stand—like on a plane. Mincha was not a problem because it would still be light out when we landed in Atlanta to daven Mincha.

I didn’t know what to do. I then thought about calling a colleague who would be more familiar with these issues. I thought and thought and then I realized my colleague and friend, Rabbi Yossi New, is from Australia and surely faces these same challenges when he goes home to visit. But where was Rabbi New when I called? That’s right, he then in Australia. So, I called his son Rabbi Isser New who also travels periodically to see family in Australia. What he told me made perfect sense, and as I later learned, follows the ruling of most Poskim decisors of Jewish law (Betzalel Stern in Tshuvos Betzel Hachochma 5:103, Y.S. Eliashiv in Sefer Taarich Yisroel 4:2, and Rav Moshe Heinemann).

So it turned out that since the sun did not go down when I left Atlanta till after I landed in Japan, I didn’t have to daven the Maariv evening service followed by the Shacharit morning service that day, even though it was Wednesday when I landed. I completely missed davening Maariv and Shacharit for Wednesday. It felt so weird! “You see,” Rabbi New said, “you’ll make it up on the way back when it does get dark and light again during the flight and you will have to daven Maariv followed by Shacharit again—even though you had already davened Maariv and Shacharit for that day before you took off.”

On the way back, we left Japan on the early evening of Rosh Chodesh Av—the 1^st day of the month of Av—and it would remain Rosh Chodesh Av for our landing. That meant that in addition to the extra prayers for Rosh Chodesh of Hallel and Musaf I said earlier the morning before leaving, I had to daven on the plane Maariv and Shacharit with the Rosh Chodesh additions of Hallel and Musaf in Shacharit as well.

You should know that the Rosh Chodesh celebrations of the new month can sometimes be a 2-day affair—because a lunar month is actually 29.5 days, so a Jewish month is either 29 or 30 days. But Rosh Chodesh for the month of Av is never 2 days—that is, except for me and Cheryl when we travelled home from Japan. This means Cheryl and I may have been the only Jews in the world celebrating 2 days of Rosh Chodesh Av this past week! How special is that!

Crossing the International Date Line has other interesting ramifications. Consider this Chanukah scenario: If one lights 3 Chanukah candles on Sunday night, before leaving Los Angeles, one will light 5 candles on Tuesday night in Sydney, Australia—missing completely the 4^th night!  

Why do I share all this with you today, besides being a fascinating look at Jewish law and this modern conundrum? It’s to show you and me how essential it is to keep our relationship with Gd and His Torah intact, even, and I would add especially when we travel. The Torah should guide every aspect of our lives no matter where we are and what we are doing.

Today’s Torah portion begins with Moses reviewing with the Jewish people about to enter the Promised Land some of the places they traveled after they left Egypt. Rashi explains these were the places they had sinned—with the sin of the Golden Calf, or the sin of the Spies, or their unfounded complaints, etc. Moses used veiled references and names that only alluded to these sins in order not to embarrass his listeners, but the message was clear: Be especially careful not to sin when you travel.  

A few weeks ago I shared with you a commentary on the verse in Bamidbar/Numbers (9:18) about the travelling of the Jewish people in the desert  from Egypt to the Promised Land that more clearly reveals the whole point: Al pi Hashem yisu B’ney Yisrael, v’al pi Hashem yachanu (According to the word of Hashem the Children of Israel journeyed, and according to the word of Hashem they would encamp). The Shelah HaKadosh taught that this verse was not only speaking to the Jews who left Egypt, this verse is also speaking to us! We’re also at home and on the road; we take a break from our normal routines and go on vacation. And the key, says the Shelah, is to always act al pi Hashem (according to the word of Hashem).

My friends, if you’re still planning to travel this summer, enjoy your time away. The key is not to leave your Judaism or relationship with Gd in the shul, but to take it with you on the road—even if you cross the International Date Line. There’s nothing wrong with taking a vacation—just as long whatever you do, it is al pi Hashem (according to the word of Gd). Amen!

 BALAK 5783

What Does the Goyim Defense League Teach Us About Gd?

One week after the Pittsburgh synagogue terrorist—Robert Gregory Bowers—was convicted on June 16 of killing 11 Jews … only days after Nazi flags were flown outside Disney World … the Goyim Defense League—a neo-Nazis group—rallied at a Macon GA synagogue last Friday and at Chabad of Cobb this past Shabbos afternoon. They waved Nazi swastika flags, stomped on the Israeli flag, and yelled anti-Jewish messages—like the Jews control elected officials, the banks, the Federal Reserve, and the media. We’ve heard it all before.

Question: Why do Jew-haters need a defense league? Are the Jews out to get them? Do they fear for their life? Really?? Should we be fearful? The Goyim Defense League is a Jew-hating group that harasses Jews and spreads antisemitic conspiracy theories. Mostly, it’s a small few—about 10 or 11—that travel from state to state to spread their venom. 

Where was Gd? How could He let this happen in front of His houses of worship? I’ll tell you where Gd was. Let me share with you the words of Rabbi Efraim Silverman of Chabad of Cobb:

         The response of the wider community has been beyond belief. To date we have received over 1000 messages, emails, cards, letters and donations from every segment of the community. The irony is that this group of 11 Nazi wannabes has actually allowed us to see how much love and respect our non-Jewish neighbors have for our community. 

Where was Gd? Gd was found in the hundreds of non-Jewish neighbors that turned out telling the Goyim Defense League that they were not welcomed in their neighborhood! And that’s been the case all over the country—wherever they have marched. Yes, we should be concerned, but we needn’t fear them.

Today’s 2^nd parsha is called Balak, after the king of Moav, who sought to destroy the Jewish people. Balak saw that the Jews destroyed more powerful nations than his—like the Amorites. Rather than the usual military attack, he needed a more unconventional approach. Everyone knew that the Jews were Gd’s people and so, Balak thought, a more spiritual path to destruction might be more effective. Perhaps his big mistake was in thinking he needed to destroy the Jews to protect his people.

         But Jews weren’t threatening him at all. The Jews only destroyed those others because they were attacked by them, and they needed to defend themselves. So, Balak sent for the greatest prophet in the non-Jewish world, Bilaam, to curse the Jewish people to weaken them, and then he would attack.    

But Bilaam refuses to come. Balak offers him silver and gold and other riches and honors, and finally, Bilaam succumbs to the temptation and heads out for the long journey to Moav. On the way, Bilaam’s donkey behaves erratically—veering off the road on one occasion, banging Bilaam’s leg into a wall on another and then just laying down on a 3^rd. Each time Bilaam angrily beats it with his staff. Gd then opened the mouth of the donkey who said: “What have I done to you that you have struck me these 3 times?”    

The Torah (Num. 22:31) then tells us, “Gd opened the eyes of Bilaam, and he saw an angel of Gd standing on the road with his sword drawn in his hand.” The donkey had seen Gd’s angel standing in the way each time and reacted accordingly. 

Bilaam’s response to seeing Gd’s angel was simple, Chatati, “I have sinned.” It marked the turning point in the story and from then on Bilaam—to the chagrin of Balak—rose to poetic heights praising the Children of Israel—a praise so wonderful that it begins the prayer service in our Siddur: Mah tovu oholecha Yaakov, mishk’notecha Yisrael, “How goodly are your tents O Jacob, your tabernacles, O Israel.” Most significant of all to me, however, is that Bilaam the prophet is brought to his divine visions by the message of a donkey! 

It’s fascinating that the Talmud (Avot 5:8) lists the miracle of the speaking donkey’s mouth as one of the 10 things created at dusk immediately preceding the Sabbath of the 7 days of creation. In the very blueprint of creation, Gd made room for this “donkey’s mouth” whose voice would be heard not only by Bilaam but reverberate throughout the generations saying, “No Gentile leader will be allowed to ultimately curse and destroy the Jewish People—not Balak, not the Babylonians, not the Romans, not the Crusaders, not the Catholic Church, not Hitler, not the Palestinians, and not the Goyim Defense League!”

But why did Gd choose such an unseemly messenger—a donkey—to convey this message to Bilaam? This shows us how Gd’s messages can reach us from the most unexpected sources … and that each person must develop the ability to hear, to discern—even in harsh guttural hee-haws—the message that’s being sent to him.

Rashi seems to echo this principle in his explanation of the verse immediately following the 10 Commandments (Deut. 5:19) where the Torah tells us: “These words Gd spoke unto all your assembly out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice, v’lo yasaf, which did not stop.” Rashi explains: “Since Gd did not stop, He did not have to resume, for His voice is strong and goes on forever.” How does Gd’s voice go on forever? It means that the sound waves released at Sinai are continually and eternally present in the world; we must attune our ears to be sensitive receptors of Gd’s message.

Let me read you a story told about the Chassidic master, Reb Zusha, who during one of his journeys, came upon a peasant whose wagon had turned over:

         Asked to help, Reb Zusha—no longer young and feeling himself too weak to struggle with an overburdened wagon—demurred, saying: “I’m sorry, I can’t help you.”

         “You can,” said the peasant to Reb Zusha, “You just don’t want to.”

         The peasant’s words sank into the very core of Reb Zusha’s being, resonating with a message from Above, as if the Shechina herself was admonishing Reb Zusha for saying, “I can’t.” “You can,” he heard the Shechina saying, “You just don’t want to.”

         Reb Zusha was able to accept the truth of the peasant’s words. How often do we say, “We can’t,” when we really mean, “We won’t,” “We do not wish to”?

And here, in this world, our Temple is destroyed, the Divine Presence has fallen, and we don’t do what we can to lift the Shechina up. And although it’s because we say we cannot, the real reason is because we don’t want to, to make the effort!

Herein lies the essence of the famous teaching in Pirke Avot (4:1): “Ben Zoma says, who is wise? He who learns from everyone.” If Reb Zusha could learn a major principle regarding our relationship to Gd from the simple words of a Gentile peasant … if Bilaam could learn his mission from a donkey, we must always be on guard to sensitize our ears and our hearts to receive Gd’s message from—whomever or whatever!

Rabbi Meir, in the Talmud continued to study with his teacher, Elisha be Avuya, who lost his faith. How could he continue to learn from someone who no longer believed? The Talmud (Chagiga 15b) answers that a truly great person has the ability and sensitivity to hear Gd’s words even from the lowliest of places. Hence Rabbi Meir heard it from Elisha ben Avuya, Zusha heard it from a Gentile peasant, Bilaam heard it from a donkey, and we can hear it in the neighbors’ response to the protests of the Goyim Defense League!

My friends, when was the last time you heard Gd speaking to you? If your answer was, “Never,” or it’s been a long time, perhaps it’s because you didn’t get it when it was sent. In his Guide to the Perplexed, Maimonides points out that on Mt. Sinai every Jew heard Gd’s voice, but each person heard only what he was capable of hearing. The Gd-waves from Sinai—as Rashi taught us—never stops. They can be accessed everywhere in the world at any time—even from the most unseemly messenger. The question is: are we prepared to receive them? They say to each and every one of us: “Hello, it’s Gd calling. Can you hear me?” May we be up to answer the call. Amen!