KI TAVO 5785
Be a Baruch Hashem Person
This has truly been an exhausting week—an emotional rollercoaster. Last Sunday President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that Israel has agreed to the terms he set to end the conflict with Hamas: Everyone wants the Hostages HOME. Everyone wants this War to end! The Israelis have accepted my Terms. It is time for Hamas to accept as well. I have warned Hamas about the consequences of not accepting. This is my last warning; there will not be another one!
What was Hamas’ response? Monday there was a terrorist attack in Jerusalem—6 murdered, 21 wounded!
It now being clear that Hamas wasnever going to return the hostages and make peace, on Tuesday, Israel attacked the heads of Hamas living in luxury in Qatar—administering the same justice to those who were the architects of the terrorist attacks on Oct. 7—as Bin Laden received in Pakistan being architect of 9/11.
On Wednesday Charlie Kirk—a true friend of Israel—was killed. This may not have had anything to do with Israel and Hamas, but it was a devastating blow to our freedom of speech here in America. Netanyahu just a couple of weeks ago spoke with Charlie and invited him to Israel. And Thursday was 9/11!
This week has been an emotional rollercoaster. Almost every day, just when it seemed things couldn’t get any worse, they did! How do we deal with all the negativity and hatred in our world? Political compromise is a thing of the past—as we saw with Hamas and the political violence here at home.
People are angry. The vitriol in the media—especially social media—is beyond the pale. Even in our families, too many us don’t talk to each other. When did we lose sight of the fact that it’s possible to disagree without being disagreeable? That was Charlie Kirk’s motto.
We may not be able to control catastrophic events like Hamas attacks or assassins, but I do think we can, at least—as we approach Rosh Hashanah—begin with our selves. Let me give you an example. Sometimes when I ask someone, “How are you?” they’ll tell me, “Well, I got up this morning and when I sat up, my forehead didn’t touch wood, so I guess I’m okay.” So, you’re better than dead! That’s it? Great!
Others, when asked “How are you?” respond, “Better.” As if to say: I’m surprised you didn’t know how sick I’ve been.
But in these anxious days, the response to that I hear most frequently is: “Hanging in!” Do we understand what images the words “hanging in” evoke? Is this the best we can do, describing ourselves as having a noose around our neck, or being a piece of meat hanging on a hook in the market?
My friends, our world might not always be positive, but be positive about yourself. Respond when asked how you are as I’ve often taught you, say, Baruch Hashem—thank Gd. That says it all! It’ll make you feel better and will certainly help make the person who asked feel better than just “hanging in.”
Monty Python loved to sing: “Always look on the bright side of life.” The song is funny, but it reflects an ancient Jewish idea. One must always see the cup as half full. One must always follow the Torah principle of hakarat tov (acknowledging the good), even when your world seems to be falling apart.
Today’s Torah portion begins with the mitzvah of the 1st fruits. One would bring his 1st fruits to the Temple of old, no matter how good or bad his crop or his life was—as an expression of gratitude to Gd. Life may be hard at times, but we must acknowledge and thank Gd for the blessings we do have. That’s why for a people who have suffered so throughout our history, Judaism remains surprisingly upbeat and optimistic. That’s why the national anthem of the State of Israel is Hatikva (The hope).
The Sanz-Klausenberg Rebbe—who was building a hospital in Israel—once sent an emissary to meet with the Lubavitcher Rebbe to seek his council regarding several complex hospital issues in Jewish law. The Rebbe answered the questions and then asked: “Why do you call it a Beyt Cholim—Hebrew for ‘hospital’ but literally, ‘house of the sick.’ Better you should call it a Beyt Refuah ‘a house of healing.’ Be positive.”
The Rebbe would never say that he was undertaking a task, because it might be associated with the word “undertaker.” Likewise, he never referred to a “deadline,” rather to a “due date” pointing out that the word “deadline” makes reference to death, while the words “due date” is associated with birth. How we speak and what we say influences how we think and how we act. That’s the power of positive thinking!
This optimistic attitude is reflected in Jewish law. For example, if a funeral procession and a wedding procession meet at a crossroads, the wedding procession always takes precedent and goes 1st. Later the Rabbis would teach that we do not cancel a wedding for a funeral. Even if a close relative dies, we don’t cancel the wedding! In a similar way, the joyous festivals of the Jewish year end shiva, if they come out in the week of mourning. The cup is always half full, not half empty.
There’s a powerful hint of this idea in the Torah portion. The portion contains the Tochecha—a list of 98 horrible curses that will befall the Jewish people if they don’t obey Gd’s covenant. If you read it carefully, you’ll see that they all did, in fact, happen to us.
Did you notice, when this part of the Torah was read in shul, it was read in a low subdued voice—quietly and quickly—to get passed it? Also, we are not allowed to add aliyot in this reading because it’s all negative and one is not allowed to end any Torah aliya reading on a negative note. Why? One must always walk away from the Torah looking at the bright side of life—even after reading the long list of 98 curses. Yes, we need to observe the sadness of Holocaust Remembrance Day and Tisha B’Av. But even more important, we need to celebrate the happiness of Purim and Simchat Torah.
In Pirke Avot (2:13) Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai asks his students: “What is the proper path a person should cling to?” The 1st answer his students suggest is to have an ayin tova (a good eye). What does that mean? I have often met 2 kinds of people as I go through life. Some always see the negative in everything. They’re always complaining. On the other hand, I meet people who always see the good in people and situations. They’re always upbeat and positive. They’re the people we want to be around.
Being positive with family may be more challenging. When we celebrate holidays with family as we’ll do in the next 10 days…how often are there one or 2 members of the family that have been hurt by another? Remember, on Rosh Hashanah, Gd won’t forgive us from on high unless and until we forgive each other below. So, look for ways to excuse those that have offended you. Think about what they’re going through in their lives. Whenever possible, stress the positive and not the negative—especially with family because…we need each other. In fact—and I know this is counter intuitive—but go out of your way to do something nice for the people in your family—even the ones that hurt you. In other words, stress the love. Be positive.
Today we read multiple curses. And yet, we don’t become bogged down in those curses. We get through them and end on an upbeat note. As the venereal sage Monty Python teaches, “Always look on the bright side of life.”
May Gd bless the soul of Charlie Kirk and comfort the families. May he send peace to Israel and release of the hostages now! Amen!
