Shabbat Shalom Weekly

Torah Portion:  Shlach

The Good of the Land
by Rabbi Abba Wagensberg

This week’s parsha deals with the story of the spies who scouted out the Land of Israel and returned with a negative report. Their unfavorable portrayal of the land caused the entire Jewish people to despair of the possibility of living there and to voice their desire to return to Egypt. God was “angry” at the spies for speaking negatively about the land, and decreed that the entire generation “will die in the desert” (Numbers 14:35).

Apparently, God never forgave the Jewish people for this sin. Even to this day, we bear the consequences for the spies’ evil report. The verse, “The people wept that night” (Numbers 14:1) refers to the night of Tisha B’Av. The Talmud (Taanit 29a) teaches that as punishment for the people’s weeping needlessly over the spies’ report, God caused many tragedies to happen on Tisha B’Av so that, throughout the generations, we would have “good reason to cry.”

The severity of this punishment is very unusual. The Jewish people have made many errors and misjudgments over the course of history, yet rarely have the consequences been so severe. Why was the mistake of the spies so unforgivable?

In the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the Jewish people of their complaints in the desert: “You spoke slander in your tents, saying, ‘It is because God hates us that He took us out of the land of Egypt” (Deut. 1:27). Rashi uses a comparison to explain how the Jewish people came to that conclusion. Imagine a king who had two sons and two fields. One field was self-irrigated (shakya), while the other relied on rain for irrigation (ba’al). The king gave the self-irrigated field to the son he loved, so the son would never have to worry about his crops, while he gave the field dependent on rainwater to the son he hated.

The Jewish people saw that God had taken them out of Egypt — a lush, fertile land, where the Nile River provided a constant source of irrigation — and was taking them to the Land of Israel, which depended on rainfall. They thus concluded that God must hate them. Based on Rashi’s parable, this seems like a logical inference. The Torah does not directly address the people’s assumption, and the question is left hanging. How is the journey from Egypt to the Land of Israel to be seen as anything other than a punishment?

If we view the Land of Israel only in terms of the physical and material benefits it provides, then there may certainly be more comfortable places to live. However, if we look beyond the superficial qualities of Israel, and use our inner vision to perceive its spiritual advantages, then it is far better to live in Israel and depend on rainfall than it is to live in Egypt with no worries about water. Why? The very fact of our dependence on rain forces us to develop ourselves spiritually. If there is no rain, we must pray, and turning heavenward compels us to recognize the true Source of sustenance.

This could be one reason that a field that relies on rainwater is called a ba’al. The word ba’al literally means “owner” or “master.” Living in the Land of Israel constantly reminds us that the world has a ba’al, and our reliance on Him keeps our relationship strong.

EAR IN ISRAEL

Based on this idea, we can understand why the Jewish people were never forgiven for the sin of the spies. According to Rabbi Yitzchak Elchanan Spector, the punishment we received teaches us how stringently God views a negative attitude toward the Land of Israel. If we cut ourselves off from the Land of Israel, we cut ourselves off from the extraordinary spiritual advantages that the land has to offer and all the opportunities for growth that it provides. Severing ourselves from this potential defeats the entire purpose of our existence.

Every year at this time, students who have spent the year studying in Israel go back to the Diaspora to spend the summer with their families. For many, their first Shabbat abroad is parshat Shlach. Perhaps it is no coincidence that the timing works out this way. When everyone gathers together around the Shabbat table and the family begins asking, “How was your year in Israel?”, these students literally have the opportunity to rectify the sin of the spies.

Most of the spies saw only the physical, external aspects of the Land, and many things seemed strange to them. Because they saw only these superficial elements, and failed to see the land’s inner spiritual beauty, they concluded that Israel was a bad and dangerous place to live. Visitors to Israel today are the “spies” of this generation. They have the choice of joining forces with the ten spies who viewed the land negatively, or siding with Yehoshua and Calev, who had deeper, inner vision and perceived the land’s spiritual richness. Before we open our mouths to share our experiences in the Land of Israel with our family and friends, let us pause for a moment and think about what we are about to say.

May we all be blessed to visit and live in Israel, so that we can focus wisely and deeply on what is truly important in life, and pursue it with a fire that will elevate us to the highest levels.

 

When Perception Becomes Reality
by Rabbi Dr. Benji Levy

How does one assess oneself? Do we look at ourselves in the mirror or try project an appraisal through the eyes of another? The answer to this question may be found in parashat Shelach’s episode of the scouts.

The scouts were ‘all distinguished men; heads of the children of Israel were they’ (Num. 13:3) – the most honourable of leaders – and thus the obvious question is where did they go wrong in speaking badly about the land? Perhaps their error was that they speculated as to how others observed them rather than carrying on with their reconnaissance mission. This is apparent in a strange verse when the scouts describe the great size of the Canaanites and say, ‘we were like grasshoppers in our eyes, and so we were in their eyes!’ (13:33) Their insecurity lay in and was revealed through their imagined self-assessment via the eyes of the Canaanites. Since they saw themselves as but puny insects, much smaller and weaker than the inhabitants of Canaan, they presumed that the locals perceived them as such, and they allowed this perception to transform their reality. Perhaps this was the source of their negative review of the land as their specific timidity clouded their general judgement.

When beginning any venture, the psyche in which one approaches the task, can frame its execution. When one is competing in a sport for example, a team will have lost the game from the outset if it does not believe it can beat the opposition, because its self-esteem defines its attitude and direction. The same was true of the scouts whereby they had convinced themselves that they were incapable from the beginning. Many explain this fear as a lack of faith in God, but as a corollary or at its source, it may have showed a lack of self-esteem, that is a lack of faith in themselves. From this vantage point the scouts doubt themselves with regard to the people, ‘we cannot ascend to that people for it is too strong for us!’ (13:31) and mistake God’s promised ‘land of milk and honey’ (13:27) for ‘a land that devours its inhabitants’ (13:32). Thus, the Torah’s peculiar wording is simply a cause and effect, that is, it was because they saw themselves as worthless, (‘we were like grasshoppers in our eyes’) that they became worthless in their eyes (‘and so we were in theirs’).

Later in the Book of Numbers Moshe declares, ‘you shall appear clean before Hashem and the Israelites’ (32:22). The Talmud learns from this that one should not only have a clear conscience but also act in a way that does not elicit suspicion from the general observer (Yoma 38a). However, if one only worries about the way in which one presumes others perceive one, whether from a positive or negative level of self-esteem, one is being dishonest. As a generation whose parents and grandparents only knew slavery and were constantly assessed by their slave masters, psychologically it makes sense that they were unfit to enter into the Land of Israel as is evident by their psyche. This generation therefore had to die out entirely before their descendants could become the masters of their own destiny. When one tries to guess what others think of him and acts based on that, they become slaves to an unfortunate fate, but when they allows themselves to master their own course, they are able to forge their own destiny.

 

Encouragement and Discouragement
by Nesanel Yoel Safran

From This Week’s Torah Portion

We each have the power to give people the confidence to succeed — or take it away from them. In this week’s portion (Numbers 13:31), the scouts who were sent out by the Jewish people to check out the land of Israel come back with a discouraging report that causes the people to lose their confidence and miss out on a great opportunity. We can learn from here to try always to encourage others and not discourage them.

In our story, two friends feel the effects of encouragement and discouragement.

The two friends looked at each other with excited gleams in their eyes after examining the school bulletin board.

TRYOUTS FOR THIS YEAR’S PLAY!!! the note announced. Underneath was a list of all the parts up for audition.

“Cool, I love the school play!” said Rachel. “I can’t wait to try out for it.”

“Me too,” said her friend Pam. “It’s the best part of the whole school year!”

The girls headed out of the school building arm in arm, discussing each part and how it would feel to play it. At that moment, anything seemed possible…

Let’s peek in on what happened, though, when these two girls returned home…

“Mom, guess what?!” cried Rachel as she burst into the house. “School play … hey!” she said, spotting her older sister. “Where’s Mom?”

“Hi Rachel. Welcome home. Mom’s resting. The baby was up all night with an earache. School play, huh? That’s wonderful. I loved our school plays.”

“Oh Alisa, I’m so excited. Do you think I’ll get chosen for a good part?”

“Why not? There’s almost nothing a person can’t accomplish if he wants it enough and he’s willing to try. Go for it! We’ll all be rooting for you, that’s for sure.”

“Thanks Alisa. You’re the best big sister in the whole world!”

And in Pam’s house…

“Hello! Anybody home? Hello?”

Pam’s older sister was sitting on the couch, absorbed in a new book.

“Where’s Mom?”

“Out shopping.”

“Oh. Renee, guess what?” said Pam. “They put up notices for tryouts for the school play today. You think I’ll get picked for a good part?”

“Nah. I never tried out for those plays. Waste of time, and they always give the good parts to the teacher’s pets, anyway. Don’t even bother.” She turned her head back into her book and said no more.

The next day, the two girls met on the corner as usual and began their daily walk to school. Rachel was bubbling over with excitement.

“Did you tell your mother about the play? Was she excited for you? My whole family was so happy, they really made me feel like I could do it!”

“Hmmph, forget it,” was about all Pam could say.

“What’s the matter? Don’t you want to try out?”

“Nah. Why bother? They give all the parts to the teacher’s pets anyway.”

Pam echoed her sister’s words, although her heart wasn’t really in them.

“Pam Schreiber!! How dare you talk like that! Not only is that not true, but even if it was, we can still try out and do our best. How could you give up so easily?”

“I don’t know. It’s too much trouble.”

“Well, I think you’ll do great. You’re a wonderful actress. Won’t you at least try?”

It was hard for Pam to take her sister’s earlier discouraging words out of her head, but she looked into her friend’s encouraging face — which was contagious — and smiled.

“Okay. I guess I’ll try.”

“Great! Let’s start practicing!”

Two weeks later…

Rachel and Pam were nearly breathless as they walked over to the bulletin board to check the results of the auditions. After a tense moment, their eyes lit up and big smiles appeared on their faces. Both of them had gotten major roles in the play!

“I knew you could do it!” Rachel crowed.

“Not without you,” said Pam, seriously. “Who knows what would have happened if you hadn’t encouraged me? Thanks for your kind words. We’d better start memorizing our lines!!”

Discussion Questions

Ages 3-5

Q. How did Rachel feel after she told her sister about the play tryouts?
A. She felt happy and confident she would succeed because her sister encouraged her.

Q. How did Pam feel after she told her sister?
A. She felt down and ready to give up because her sister discouraged her.

Ages 6-9

Q. What life lesson do you think someone could learn from this story?
A. Seeing how much the two girls’ attitudes and level of self-confidence were affected by whether they were encouraged or discouraged should show us what a gift we give someone when we encourage him and how harmful it is to discourage people.

Q. Do you think there is ever a time we should try to discourage someone from doing something he wants to do?
A. While generally we should try to encourage people to help them reach their goals, if we see that someone wants to do something genuinely harmful to himself or others we should certainly try to discourage it.

Spiritual Exercises: (a) Find a way to encourage someone today. (b) Smile at someone who could use one.

Ages 10 and Up

Q. Our sages tell us that to encourage someone is a greater kindness than even to give him an actual material gift. Do you agree? Why or why not?
A. While a gift is a certainly a kind gesture, especially to someone in need, when we encourage someone, we give him something more. We give him the gift of confidence and courage (i.e. en-courage) to lift himself up and harness his inner powers to succeed, which produces a deeper happiness than any material gift can bring.

Q. Our sages also tell us that a smile is one of the best forms of encouragement we can give someone. Why do you think that is so?
A. A smile is more than just a facial expression. It is a super-powerful non-verbal message that can instantly penetrate a person’s soul and improve his whole outlook. Smiling is so powerful that just by doing it — even if we don’t feel like it — it can make us feel better as well. Conversely, a frown or sour look can cause tremendous damage. In short: keep smiling!

Spiritual Exercises: (a) Find a way to encourage someone today. (b) Smile at someone who could use one.

Quote of the Week

“Just as you are obligated to speak when your words will be heeded, you must remain silent when  you know your words will be ignored” — Rabbi Ile’a in the name of Rabbi Elazar, Tractate Yevamot 65b