HAVE FON MS SUMER
iritualit
Torah Portion
right in your neighborhood
at the
JIM COIOUNIIY CENIER
Swimming • State-of-the-art Health Club
• Health Club locker rooms with whirlpool, steam and sauna
Make di
r summer fun.
Ly
*k000w444,
s '_1*.4nmt,ss,0
16§W oaxxxcs
Jewish Community CVter of Metropolitan Detroit
Jimmy Prentis Morris Building
A.Alfred Taubman Jewish Community Campus
15110 W. 10 Mile Rd., Oak Park, MI 48237
175 INITIATION FEE WAIVED
Some restrictions apply. • Pool is accessible.
The Club at the
JCC
cJ
The Center of Our
Community forn years
"Great work
Gittleman"
I iving with. he dirt and disruption produced
L by a renovation or addition to your house
can be trying at best. At least that's what Doug
and Wendy Hamburger thought prior to hiring
Gittleman Construction to add two upstairs bedrooms
and baths as well as recreate the family room in their
Franklin home.
"We lived through this from April to September
and it couldn't have been easier," Wendy said. "They
kept right on schedule and within budget, and the
quality was outstanding. To top it off, they were
incredibly neat."
So, if you're planning to remodel or add-on, but fear
the chaos, call Gittleman. With an emphasis on function, aesthetics and budget, the Gittleman team is
committed to producing total satisfaction and enduring value with the least amount of aggravation.
Just ask the Hamburgers.
Call today, and discover how easily Gittleman can convert your dream home into reality.
GITTLEMAN
COMSTRUCTION inc
2085 E. WEST MAPLE, SUITE A101
WALLED LAKE, MI 48390
JN
5/31
2002
62
248.624.5400
CUSTOM
RENOVATIONS
Seeing The Goodness
Of The Promised Land
explains the Torah calls him Chovev
because chivev et haTorah — he
made the Torah dear to him.
Chovev's deep religiosity and devo-
tion to the true God bring him out
to join the Jewish people in the
desert. And yet, still he refuses to
join the Jewish people in their new
ow do they really live
homeland. Why?
there? Aren't they
Indeed, it's a question we must
crazy?"That's really what
ask not only of Chovev, but of our-
most people want to
selves. Our modern excuses don't
know when I tell them about my
differ greatly from his. In a sense,
trip into Netzarim, a small settle-
he finds- it too difficult to
ment of 53 families, sur-
leave the life he has built
rounded by hostile
for himself and begin
Palestinian territory on all
anew in a strange place.
sides. How can people
How many times have we
bring their families into a
told ourselves, "I know I
war zone, even if it is in
should go, but I can't leave
Israel? It's a question I
my family," or "How
found difficult to answer
could I make a living
until I met the people of
there?" We don't find new
Netzarim and came to
excuses. We just rehash old
RABBI
appreciate them not only
justifications.
REUVEN
for what they are, but for
But then, there are peo-
SPOLTER
what I am not. The events
ple
who, instead of taking
Special to the
of this week's portion,
Chovev's
attitude, adopt
Jewish News
which occur before the sin
Moshe's perspective: It is
of the spies, help me to
the place that God has
explain this.
promised to give to His people. To
Moshe has no plans to wander in
Moshe, if God said it will be good,
the desert for 40 years. He invites
then it will be good.
his father-in-law, visiting from the
Is Moshe naïve? Doesn't he know
land of Midian, to join him in the
that the people will endure difficult
conquest of the new land. "And
and dangerous battles to conquer
Moshe said to Chovev, the son of
the Land of Israel?- Of course he's
Reuel the Midianite: We are travel-
realistic, but at the same time, his
ing to the place about which God
faith guides his actions and gives
said, CI will give it to you.' Come
him an excitement about the -
with us and it will be good for you,
prospect of living in God's holy
for God spoke of bringing good on
land.
Israel."
So — who's really crazy? Who
It sounds like the offer of a life-
lacks the proper perspective? Is it
time. Yet for some reason, Moshe's
we American Jews, who follow the
father-in-law remains uninterested.
example of a man relegated to a
He says, "I will not go, but rather
footnote in Jewish history, or the
to my land and to my birthplace I
people of Netzarim, who read the
will go." Sitting in the middle of
Torah and share Moshe's excitement
the Jewish camp in the desert,
about living in God's promised
Chovev can see the miracles of God
land?
on a daily basis. He knows about
the incredible manner in which
God saved the Jewish people. He's
Moshe's father-in-law! Why doesn't
he go? What's wrong with him?
Actually, nothing's really wrong
At the end of the portion, Miriam
speaks lashon hara — slander —
with him. While his real name,
about her brother Moshe. Do we,
Yitro, appears in Shemot, here we
like
Miriam, tend to slander those
learn his other name, Chovev. Rashi
we love more than those we don't?
why?
Reuven Spolter is rabbi of Young Israel of
Oak Park.
Shabbat Behaalotecha:
Numbers 8:1-12:16•
Zachariah
"l
Conversatio
" ns