We've got ruach, yes we do!

Are you a spiritual person?  Do you have ruach?

The Children of Israel did not.  When Moshe relays God’s promise of redemption to them, they don’t listen. (Shemot 6:9)

וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר משֶׁ֛ה כֵּ֖ן אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וְלֹ֤א שָֽׁמְעוּ֙ אֶל־משֶׁ֔ה מִקֹּ֣צֶר ר֔וּחַ וּמֵֽעֲבֹדָ֖ה קָשָֽׁה:

Moses spoke to the children of Israel, but they did not hearken to Moses because of their shortness of ruach and because of their hard labor.

What is kotzer ruach?

Rashi explains that they were working so hard that they were out of breath and couldn’t concentrate.  I can relate to this type of breathlessness.  This is how I sometimes feel after a long run as I prepare for the NYC Half Marathon in March as part of Team Sharsheret.

Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin (the Netziv) says that they were just too busy working to actually stop and listen.  When we are overworked, we don’t have the capacity to be receptive to even good news.

Rabbi Ovadiah Seforno, the great 15^th century Italian commentator, explains that ruach literally means spirit. Kotzer ruach should be understood that Bnei Yisrael lost faith in the promise of redemption.  Moshe had promised salvation and failed.  They were not willing to give him a second chance and had no interest in what he had to say. 

The Zohar takes this approach further.  Bnei Yisrael lacked a spiritual connection to God.  The ruach that the people lacked is the “ruach Elokim” (the spirit of God) that was “hovering above the waters” in the beginning of the creation of the world.  (Bereishit 1:2)  According to this approach, Bnei Yisrael had become so entrenched in Egypt that they became disconnected and unexcited about anything spiritual.  “Kotzer ruach” syndrome interfered with their obvious desire for freedom and happiness, and they could not grasp the possibility of a better reality.

What about us?  Do we, at times, fall prey to “Kotzer ruach” syndrome?  Do we get excited by spiritual things?

I try to notice what gets people excited.  Some people come alive when they talk about business or politics; some people are very animated when talking about family; some people wake up when they talk about sports.

Some people wake up when they talk about Torah or Judaism.  Some people come alive when davening or when singing Jewish music. 

What prompts your ruach, your spirit, to soar?

It is understandable that there are times when we don’t feel very inspired.  There are many distractions and disappointments which can interfere with a more elevated sense of spirit and soul.  Maybe we don’t always feel in the mood to be spiritual.  We cannot let these moments allow us to let kotzer ruach define us.

We need to be open to the power of the spiritual experience.  There are so many possibilities.

A short, inspirational Torah thought. 

A small act of kindness in the middle of a busy day.  Concern for others reminds us that life is much bigger than our own issues.

A rousing niggun or song.  A colleague of mind was asked what keeps him inspired.  He said listening to Jewish music.  He explained that, just like movies have soundtracks that amplify the emotions, music can have the same impact on Jewish learning or practice.  Through listening to music, we can experience the soul of Judaism. 

Let’s tackle kotzer ruach.  Let us consciously find ways to be more open to our souls and spirituality.  Let’s sing more! 

Showing more ruach will be a truly liberating and redemptive experience.  

Happy Inauguration Day!

Today is a great day for America.  The strength of our democratic system, the envy of the world, was on display as our 45^th President was inaugurated.  (We still said tachanun, the penitential prayer, at morning services.)

Regardless of who you voted for, each of us should thank God for America and her many blessings for our people, all Americans, and all humanity.  Let’s not forget what US support means for the State of Israel.

And Americans are, by and large, positive.

According to this week’s Gallup poll, as the nation prepares to transition to Donald Trump's administration, solid majorities of Americans are satisfied with the U.S. quality of life, the opportunity to get ahead by working hard and the nation's military strength.  80% of Americans are satisfied with quality of life.  Challenges certainly remain.  Just 31% are satisfied with the current moral and ethical climate; and 22% satisfied with race relations.  Overall, though, Americans are satisfied.

With so much promise and possibility, why does the news seem so negative?  If we, according to polls, are so optimistic, then why doesn’t it feel that way?  Why is it that so many people feel anxious or left behind?  I sat with a group of rabbinic colleagues last week, and many seemed dazed and confused regarding how to address the issues in our country now that our 45^th President has taken office.

Part of the reason for many people feeling out of sorts is disappointment in having voted for the candidate who lost the election.  Losing hurts.  Some would say that people need to get over it and move on.  There is truth to encouraging such an attitude, but it isn’t easy and not always enough.

I would suggest a different approach.  One reason we may feel discouraged or disconnected or why we worry about the future is that we live in echo chambers.  At times, we get wrapped up exclusively in our own opinions and positions. We need to have the courage and the patience to leave the safety of our echo chambers.

Rabbi Marc Angel recently wrote about “echo reasoning.”  This refers to what can happen when people only listen or speak to those with similar views.  These views are echoed from one person to the other.  It becomes increasingly difficult to think beyond the specific idea, which becomes the only conceivable truth.  Members of the closed circle become more extreme, less able to reason independently.

There is nothing wrong with being confident in one’s own position.  To be morally strong and intellectually sound, however, we need to be open to hearing criticism of our own views and listening to opinions different than our own.

We need to think; to challenge and be challenged; to express our views and listen to the views of others.  This is, in fact, the Jewish way.

The Talmud (Eruvin 13b) famously teaches that the bat kol (heavenly voice) sided with Beit Hillel in their disputes with Beit Shammai. Even though “eilu v’eilu divrei Elokim chaim - these and these are the words of the living God,” the law follows Beit Hillel.  Why is this is so?  If both sides are the words of the living God, why follow one and not the other?  The Talmud answers that Beit Hillel would study and teach both their opinion and that of Beit Shammai, and moreover, they would teach the view of Beit Shammai before their own.

We can be committed to our view, but we are more effective when our view includes consideration and even discussion of the opposing view.  It worked for Beit Hillel, and it can work for us.

There are many reactions to today’s festivities.  Some people are celebrating, while others are boycotting.  Some people are revising the prayer recited in synagogues on behalf of America, while others are marching.

I suggest we embrace Beit Hillel.

Choose one issue about which you feel passionately and try to put yourself in the mindset of someone who would disagree.  If you find yourself reacting negatively to a story or an opponent’s behavior, stop and think why they may be acting that way.

After a bitter campaign against John Adams, Thomas Jefferson won the presidential election and gave the first-ever inaugural speech in Washington.  Despite the contentious victory of his Democratic Republican Party, Jefferson called for unity in the wake of the election.  Demanding that both parties express loyalty to the Constitution, Jefferson noted that “every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle.”  

More than two centuries later, we live in similarly divisive times.  We cannot change the minds of those with whom we disagree, but we can decide how we are going to move forward.  We can choose to leave our echo chambers and find a way to engage other people and other views.

Regardless of your political leanings, I am confident that this will most definitely keep America great.

Opening Our Eyes

How is this Torah portion different from all the others?

Usually, there is a gap of open white space in the Torah scroll between the end of one portion and the beginning of the next.  In the case of Parshat Vayechi, however, there is no space whatsoever between the conclusion of last week’s reading and this week’s beginning.  This phenomenon is called “s’tumah,” closed or sealed in Hebrew.

Why?

Rashi quotes two possibilities from the Midrash.

1)  This portion is “closed” because it records the beginning of the exile.  Yaacov’s death represents the “closing of the eyes of the Jewish people.”  To symbolize this sad occurrence, the usual space is missing.  

2)  There is a tradition that Yaakov intended to inform his children of the timing of the final redemption.  He hoped that, in this way, the Jewish people would not lose hope throughout the Egyptian slavery and, especially, subsequent exiles (including our own).  God, though, had other plans and “closed Jacob’s eyes” so that he would not be able to reveal this information.

Rashi’s second answer has particular relevance to all of us as we are living during the long exile to which he alludes.  It is also relevant during times of “darkness,” when we feel things aren’t going our way or in the right direction.  Being in such a situation can be compared to having our eyes closed.  There is something interfering with our vision.

Maybe we need to open our eyes.  Maybe redemption and better times come when we try to see it.

We don’t have a magic formula for how to bring about the redemption, but by recognizing the positive events in our times, we may be able to get closer to it.  

Rabbi Soloveitchik referred to the establishment of the State of Israel as “God knocking on our door.”  Do we hear this call and respond in the affirmative? That, says, the Rav, is our challenge.

Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the late Lubavitcher Rebbe, pointed to the fall of the Soviet Union as a sign that redemption is near.  It allowed Jews to resume Jewish lives for the first time in almost a century.  It also changed Jewish life in America through the influx of immigrants. 

There are all sorts of positives in the world today.  Think about the growth and prominence of Jewish life in America today.  Look at the advances in science, technology, health care, and more.  The Cubs have even won a World Series! J  There are plenty of signs that we are headed in the right direction.  We just need to open our eyes and expand our vision.

The Jewish tradition strongly endorses the “ikveta d’meshicha,” a messianic era.  It may take time, but, to get things started, we need to try and remove the covering over our eyes and see, despite the many challenges, how great things are today.

Slow Down We Move Too Fast

Does January 1 have any Jewish significance?  This year, it sure did.  It was the 8^th day of Chanukah. 

The last day of Chanukah is called “Zot Chanukah” after the day’s Torah passage which begins "Zot chanukat hamizbe'ach - This is the dedication of the altar.”  In the Chasidic tradition, this day contains the final reverberation of the Days of Awe.  In THIS way (pun intended!), January 1^st was a most significant day.

As 2017 begins, I’d like to start sharing my “wish list” of things that can make our lives and our world a better place.

Let’s start with slowing down.

For the first time since 1993, life expectancy rates have gone down.  Professor Mark Rank thinks that the cause is stress, particularly economic stress.  Rank noted that the fall in life expectancy rates was largely due to an increase in deaths caused by heart disease, stroke, unintentional injury and suicide and “as stress and anxiety goes up, so too does the probability of one of these causes of death.”

Stress ruins our quality of life.

When Yaakov meets Pharaoh, we find a very unusual exchange (Bereishit 47:8-9):

ויאמר פרעה אל יעקב כמה ימי שני חייך: ויאמר יעקב אל פרעה ימי שני מגורי שלשים ומאת שנה מעט ורעים היו ימי שני חיי ולא השיגו את ימי שני חיי אבתי בימי מגוריהם.

And Pharaoh said to Jacob, "How many are the days of the years of your life?"  And Jacob said to Pharaoh, "The days of the years of my life are one hundred thirty years. The days of the years of my life have been few and miserable, and they have not reached the days of the years of the lives of my forefathers in the days of their lives."

Pharaoh asked a simple question: how old are you? Why didn’t Yaakov answer him directly? Yaakov didn’t just respond with his age.  He was providing commentary.  It was as if he said, “I have been around for 130 years, but if you want to know how many years of quality life I had, that’s a different story.”  [In fact, Ramban notes that Pharaoh was inspired to ask the question because Yaakov looked much older than anyone Pharaoh had ever seen and Yaakov answered that he looks so old because his life was very stressful.]

We live in a crazy, busy, non-stop world.  That comes with great opportunities, but it also comes with the risk that all this activity can negatively impact the quality of our lives as well as those around us.

Are we spread too thin?  Have we taken on more than we can handle?  Do we have the proper boundaries set up between work time, family time, and time for our religious activities?  We pride ourselves on being the most productive generation ever.  We may be living long lives, but that doesn’t mean we live better lives.  That is up to us.

Abraham Lincoln once said, “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count.  It’s the life in your years.”  May God bless us with both.  May we make the most of both.