YOUNG ISRAEL OF BLOOMFIELD

Your Invitation to Join

Why Children of Israel
Feared The Giants

RABBI IRWIN GRONER

Special to The Jewish News

p

sychologists have ad-
vised us that how we
view ourselves, our
self-image, is the most impor-
tant fact of our emotional be-
ing. Thus, people who see
themselves as capable of
achievement generally act, in
such a way as to fulfill that
self-expectation. Those who
consider themselves un-
worthy of love or inadequate
to meet life's challenges, even
if they are truly talented,
brilliant and creative, will go
through life with a sense of
failure and rejection.
A vivid passage in this
week's Torah portion dramat-
ically states the consequence

Shabbat Shelach:
Numbers
13:1-15:41,
Joshua 2:1-24

of the abased self-image of
the Hebrew people. The chil-
dren of Israel had sent a re-
connaissance team of 12 men
to spy on the land of Canaan.
When they set forth on their
mission, and they saw the
great stature of the native
Canaanites,, the Israelites
were dismayed. Filled with
dread, they said: "We were,
in our own sight, the size of
grasshoppers, and so were we
in their sight. We shall never
be - able to overcome these
giants and inherit this land."
In the Midrash, the Al-
mighty responds: "How do
you know what you looked
like to those 'giants'? Maybe
you seemed to them as angels
bearing Divine blessings, ele-
vated by Divine power?" The
commentary is a rebuke upon
the spies and their report, for
they projected their fears on
their perceptions, the facts
were distorted by their an-
xieties.
Indeed, 40 years later the
people of Israel went back to
that same border, and con-
quered the land under
Joshua. The Hebrew people
had not grown any taller in
40 years, nor had the giants
become smaller, but during
the course of the decades, the
people had achieved a greater
measure of faith in God and
faith in themselves.
This text offers a profound
insight into the mystery of
Jewish survival. The secret of
the endurance of the Jewish
people is not found in geog-

Irwin Groner is rabbi at
Cong. Shaarey Zedek.

raphy, economics or sociology.
The key is how the Jew per-
ceived himself in relationship
to God and to the world.
Other people were larger,
other nations mightier. But
the Jew had an image of
himself that bestowed upon
him moral stature, He be-
lieved in his own unique and
unchanging mission, a mis-
sion that would not be
thwarted by any fate however
adverse, or any hardship
however grievous.
For centuries, the world's
image of the Jew was at
great variance with what the
Jew thought of himself. Re-
pugnant Jewish figures
abound in Western culture:
Shylock and his pound of
flesh; Fagin, the corruptor of
youth; or Judas of the passion
play, whose villainy was re-
called every spring. But there
was one place where these
malevolent images did not
lodge, and that was in the
spirit of the Jew himself.
From his earliest youth, he
was taught that he was a de-
scendant of a people respon-
sible for teaching youth,
compassion and moral purity
to the world.
I believe that the greatest
problem we face as Jews in
the modern world is not dis-
crimination, persecution, or

in this rare opportunity and participate in building a
new Young Israel and become a charter member in this
orthodox synagogue center.

PUBLIC MEETING

Open to members and non-members of Young Israel
at

Jewish Community Center

Senior Lounge
West Bloomfield, Maple and Drake

WEDNESDAY EVENING, JULY 1ST, 8:00 P.M.

If you cannot attend this meeting but are interested in
participating, write to us care of:
The Jewish News, 20300 Civic Center Dr., Suite 240
Box 2523
Southfield, Michigan 48076

Temple Beth El is:
Fun and
games.

Laughter, music and squeals of
delight are everyday sounds at
Temple Beth El.
Whether it's youth music groups,
holiday events for the whole family
or the games our nursery children
play, smiles and happiness are part
of the ritual here.
Of course people join Temple
Beth El for some very serious
reasons, also. In either case, we're
• vi a place that emphasizes
' the lifting of the human
spirit.
We're a good place to
belong to.

TORAH PORTION

even the occasional eruptions
of anti-Semitism that shake
us out of our complacency.
The greatest concern con-
fronting us is the quality of
the image that every Jew
carries of himself, for that is
the, test of the authenticity
and strength of our Jewish
existence.

Many of us have lost this
sense that we are bearers of a
vital spiritual message that
speaks to the world. Every
Jew needs to ask, "Who am
I?" Before any other question
in life can be answered, this
one must be considered. What
is the nature of my Jewish
identity? Why should I wish
it on my children or
grandchildren? What is the
meaning of my Jewish dis-
tinctiveness?
The answer that issues
from the entire Jewish tradi-
tion is that we are a small
people, but we have a great
history and we have
preserved mankind's most
exalted vision. There are
giants in the world today as
there were in the days of
Moses, but we are not pyg-
mies. We are as great and as
glorious as our faith, our
spirit and our commitment.

Temple Beth El

We want to belong to your family

Telegraph & 14 Mile Birmingham
I I
For information. including how affordable
membership can be. call Herb Maistelman 851-1100

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