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THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Friday, July 5, 1985

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TORAH PORTION

Modern Day Miracles
Are Real 'Eye-Openers'

BY RABBI M. ROBERT SYME

Special to The Jewish News

A 15th Century painting by Dirk Bouts illustrates the rain of
Manna, one of many miracles depicted in the Bible.

COATS UNLIMITED

The Torah is replete with
miracles! Moses waves his wand,
and the waters of the Nile turn
red; there is manna from
heaven; there is water from
rocks.
How do we react to such
miracles? Some people believe
that all the miracles recounted
in Scripture are literally true.
Some look upon them as al-
legories, while some completely
reject them. Regardless of how
you personally feel about these
miracles, there is one miracle
which is described in this week's
Sidra, which happened not only
in the desert thousands of years
ago, but also happens every day
in modern life.
The Sidra describes it in the
following manner: Balak, king
of Moab, had engaged Balaam, a
soothsayer, to cast a curse on
the children of Israel. Balaam
journeys through the desert
towards the camp of the Israel-
ites, when suddenly his mule
stops, and refuses to proceed.
Three times the mule stops, and
finally the Torah says: "The
Lord 'opened the eyes' of
Balaam, and there, blocking the
way, was an angel of the Lord."
Balaam who came to curse, re-
mained to bless and said: "Mah
touu . . . how goodly are thy
tents oh Jacob, thy dwelling
places oh Israel."
This is the miracle that hap-
pened to Balaam and this kind
of miracle sometimes occurs in
our own lives. Two examples
will suffice.
A distant relative of mine, a
widow in her late 50s, wrote to
me recently, seeking my advice.
Ever since her three children
had left home to pursue their
careers, she was experiencing
"the empty nest syndrome." Life
was dull, boring, and repetiti-
ous. What should she do? I
suggested that, inasmuch as she
always enjoyed reading, that she
take some courses in English

literature at a nearby univer-
sity. She heeded my advice.
She suddenly discovered that,
she was no longer content with
roaming through dress shops.
She was no longer satisfied with
petty gossip, or making her
daily pilgrimage to the card ta-
ble. Now she was interested in
Shakespeare, in Shelley, in
Rousseau. Her "eyes were
opened" to the glorious adven-
ture of learning.
Two years ago, a young man
in his early 40s, came to see me.
I had officiated at his marriage
some twenty-five years ago, and
therefore he felt that I should be

Balak: Numbers
22:2-25:9. Micah
5:6-6:8.

the first to know that he was
planning to divorce his wife.
When I questioned him why he
was contemplating divorce, he
had no specific reasons. No,
there was no one else. He still
had affection for his wife. Yet,
they had grown apart. She no
longer "turned him on." Their
interests had changed. Their life
together had become routine
and boring.
Three days later, he called to
tell me that his wife had gone to
her doctor for a routine physical
check up. The diagnosis was
cancer, and immediate surgery
was recommended. Further tests
revealed that the tumor was be-
nign.
In the interim however, this
man realized how much he truly
loves his wife. Apparently, God
"opened his eyes."
Yes, life is frequently like a
desert. Days and weeks and
months' go by, and the landscape

seems so drab and dull. But
sometimes a miracle occurs.

