Con5reSation 13 *liai Davit,
Spirituality
Torah Portion
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Pre-Holiday Selichot Concert and Sing-along with
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August 31, 2002 at 9:30 p*. at the fladassah House
Refreshments served after the Concert
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To Clean House, Spiritually,
Consider Junking The TV
-
J
ROSH HASHANA ... September 7 and 8
YOM KIPPUR .
September 15 and 16
Tickets are only $100 ($50 for ages 18-25)
Free for children 17 and under with an adult.
Books Provided.
iv
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Saturday and Sunday, Sept 21 and
9:00 ant.
Shentitil Atzeret and Sintehat Torah
Saturday and Sunday, Sept as and 19 9:00 am.
Wizkor will be recited on September zsi
-
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to make the right choice we had to
remove the impediment to our suc-
cess. Sometimes we have to "clean
house," and give ourselves the
chance to succeed.
This week's portion introduces a
Halachah (Jewish law) called viduy
mdaser —.the confession of the
e finally. did it. After a
tithe. The Torah demands that every
trip east this summer,
third year, after a Jew has given all
Rena (my wife) looked
the tithes required of him, he must
at me and said, "You
recite the following: "I have
know, I really think that we should
removed the holy things from my
throw out the antenna." I agreed,
and we did. And life went on.
house, and I have also given it to the
Many Orthodox Jews
Levite, to the convert, to
won't bring a television into
the orphan and the widow,
their homes. I'm not one of
according to how you have
them. As a modern
commanded me. I have
Orthodox Jew, I believe
not transgressed any com-
that Judaism demands that
mandments and I have not
we make difficult choices in
forgotten ..."
life, and that no medium is
Why does the Torah
inherently kosher or treif:
require us not only to give
It's all about how we choose
the tithes, but then to
to use that medium.
recite a confession declar-
The telephone has the
ing that we have done
RABBI
exactly that?
power to save lives — liter-
REUVEN
ally, by bringing emergency
God understands human
SPOLTER
ervices to the sick, help to
nature. Of course, we want
Special to the
t he needy and families liv-
to give the tithes, but it
Jewish News
ng far apart closer together.
can become so easy to for-
But, we can also use the
get — to put the money
aside and forget about it (like those
telephone for destructive, harmful
bar mitzvah gifts we all keep mean-
purposes as well. Before Alexander
ing to give) — that every three years
Graham Bell, if I wanted to slander
we must stop, take stock and remove
my friend, I could only slander him
those things in our home that don't
locally. Now, thanks to telephones, I
belong.
can instantly slander him across the
globe.
So, we must not only give the
tithes, but also recite the confession,
The same rule applies to televi-
sion. TV programming, by and
to ensure that we have assessed the
situation and can confidently declare
large, is really, really bad. There's no
that the things in our home truly
other way to say it. The sexual
belong there.
depravity, wanton violence and
I'd love to elaborate — but there's
immorality that we pipe into our
a baseball game on that I really want
homes spiritually affect us and our
children.
to see ... maybe I'll come watcTh it at
your house. ❑
Then again, according to my own
logic, the fact that I find the vast,
overwhelming majority of program-
ming spiritually destructive shouldn't
make the entire medium of televi-
sion treif. What about the news, the
Discovery channel, and the occa-
Okay, I'm not ready to give up
sional Andrea Bocelli concert on
my TV just yet; but, what can I
PBS? Why did we throw out the
antenna?
bring in or remove from my
home to give myself a better
We threw it away because we
chance at spiritual success? The
realized that instead of us making
portion relates the mitzvah of
choices about television, the TV was
bikkurim — the bringing of
making choices for us. It was too
first fruits to the Temple in
easy to plop down in front of the
Jerusalem. What mitzvah do we
TV and waste the next two hours
do that dedicates our best to
away. So, we decided that in order
God in that way?
Shabbat Ki Tavo:
Deuteronomy 26:1-
29:8; Isaiah 60:1-22.
KnollStudio
Reuven Spatter is rabbi of Young Israel
of Oak Park.