pocTNT
1984
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MICHELSBERG
TORAH PORTION
City Smoked Fish
The Israelites' Passage
Is The Journey Of Life
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RABBI M. ROBERT SYME
Special to The Jewish News
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a cheese, deli & gourmet shop
23418 NORTHWESTERN HWY. Bet. Middlebelt & Orchard Lake Rd.
(at Maple Rd.)
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ceeopi
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,.
ome teenagers keep a per-
sonal diary. They faith-
fully record and preserve
all the significant events that
happen in their lives day by day.
Personally, during my adoles-
cence, I always had a sense of
disdain for "diary keepers." The
idea of writing to "dear diary"
and revealing my innermost
thoughts or deeds, was not overly
appealing. Yet, in this week's
sidrah, Moses is told to keep a di-
ary. The Torah says: "These are
the stages of the children of Is-
rael, by which they went forth
out of the land of Egypt .. . and
Moses wrote their goings forth,
stage by stage, by the command-
ment of the Lord." Then follows
forty-two times the verse: "They
journeyed from this place, and
they encamped in that place."
Moses records in his diary, every
trip the Israelites took, and every
place they visited.
Obviously, this is a commen-
tary on life. Every life is a jour-
ney. And if we take note of some
of the places that the Israelites
visited, we will discover how
their lives parallel ours.
Their first destination was
Rameses. The average reader re-
gards this as a name of a city. But
to the student civilization,
Rameses is the name of an Egyp-
tian King, who is reputed for his
unlimited wealth. Isn't this one of
our goals as we set forth on the
journey of life? Someday, we will
strike it rich! Someday, we will
not need to worry about paying
bills! Someday, our wealth will
become our passport to the prom-
ised land of happiness. And what
happens? For many people, it
turns out to be a delusion. The
oasis they were seeking, turns
out to be a mirage. And they
come to the second step on their
journey Marah, which means bit-
ter waters. They discover that
wealth may bring pleasure, but it
does not guarantee happiness.
What good is the magnificent
home, and the four car garage,
and the built-in pool, if there is
marital discord, and if there are
delinquent children who have too
much too soon? The home with-
out love, the home without caring
concern, is reduced to a hovel.
Blessed then are those people,
whose "great expectations" are
found in family loyalty and fam-
ily love. It helps them pass
through the "bitter waters" that
inevitably confront every
traveler.
The third step on the journey
was Rephidim. It was there that
the Amalekites attacked the Is-
raelites. Why did they do it? No
reason is given. And this, too,
often happens in our personal
lives. Sometimes there are those
who dislike . us without cause.
Sometimes there are those who
try to discredit us without reason.
How do we face such animosity
and hatred? The most important
antidote is never to permit their
.
Leslie Cody
Judye Glazer
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38
Friday, August 1, 1986
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Rabbi Syme is senior rabbi at
Temple Israel.
hatred to become self-hatred. As
long as we respect ourselves, as
long as we are certain that their
prejudice against us is baseless,
we possess the shield that be-
comes our constant protection.
Finally, we are told that the Is-
raelites stopped at Kadesh and
Mount HOr. These were two sig-
nificant locations in the life of
Moses. It was at Kadesh that his
sister Miriam died, and it was at
Mount Hor that his older brother
Shabbat Matot
Masay:
Numbers
30:20-36:13
Jeremiah 2:4-28,
3:4, 4:1-2
Aaron died. "And Moses was left
alone." This is a fate that befalls
everyone. If we live, we outlive;
we outlive those who are near
and dear to us. Blessed then are
those, who pick up the broken
fragments of their shattered lives
and hopes and dreams, and man-
age to continue with the tasks of
life.
Every life is a journey. Every
person writes his or her diary.
Someday, when our children
walk into the library of memory,
and open the diary of our lives,
may they be strengthened and
inspired by the example we be-
queathe unto them. May our
diary become for them, a road
map, as they journey through
life.
Farm Crisis
Worries Panel
Kansas City (JTA) — Some 600
persons, joined by representa-
tives of state and local govern-
ments, various Jewish organiza-
tions and the black community
gathered at Kehilath Israel last
week for a forum on the farm
crisis and rural anti-Semitism.
David Goldstein, executive di-
rector of the Jewish Conimunity
Relations Bureau of Greater
Kansas City, described the work
Jewish communities throughout
the. country are doing for the
farmers. The National Jewish
Community Relations Advisory
Council recently urged its 13 na-
tional and 113 community con-
stituent agencies to aid in easing
the plight of American farmers.
The concern of anti-Semitism
in the farm belt, where extremist
groups have sought to use Jews
and other minorities as
scapegoats for the deteriorating
farm situation, was addressed by
Leonard Zeskind, research direc-
tor of the Atlanta-based Center
for Democratic Renewal.
Zeskind warned that ex-
tremists throughout rural
America are not like those with
which the Jewish community is
familiar2:He said that instead of
donning brown shirts these
groups dress their rhetoric in
concern for family farmers.
Racist groups, he said, began
their activities in the Farm Belt
nearly five years ago.