>> Torah portion
Mixed
Emotions
zee' 7CW!
We are so proud of our Dad and Grandpa, Aron Zoldan, for being
selected as the speaker testae his story at the Walk for Israel.
Parshat Behukotai: Leviticus: 26:3-
27:34; Jeremiah: 16:19-17:14.
T
he days that link Pesach to
Shavuot are filled with vastly
different events and emotions.
On Yom HaShoah, we remember the
Holocaust. We mourn Israel's fallen on
Yom HaZikaron, Memorial
Day. But we express joy
on Yom HaAtzmaut, Israel
Independence Day.
Each day, we count one of
the 50 days between Pesach
and Shavuot. This is called
Sefirat haOmer, counting the
Omer (a measure of barley),
and is a joyful connection
between the freedom from
Egypt at Passover and the
revelation of God at Sinai we
celebrate on Shavuot.
On Lag b'Omer (May
18 this year), we will cel-
ebrate the life of the great sage Rabbi
Yochanan Ben Zakai, author of the
Zohar (a mystical enlightenment of the
Torah), but also remember the tragic
deaths of the 24,000 students of Rabbi
Akiva who died because they did not
show respect to each other. This time is
also the anniversary of the first crusade
that took place in 1096 C.E., (and I dare
not forget our synagogue dinner, June 1).
It seems very strange to have so
many different emotions packed into
such a short period of time. But how
are we expected to relate to such a
wide range of emotions?
When liberated from Buchenwald
at age 8, Rabbi Meir Lau, today the
chief rabbi of Tel Aviv, recalls in his
memoir Out of the Depths that he was
sent, together with his brother and
500 other children, to an orphanage 50
miles from Paris.
On one occasion, the house mother,
herself a survivor, informed the chil-
dren that an important French delega-
tion would be visiting. To her surprise,
the older children refused to coop-
erate; they questioned where these
people had been during the war while
they were suffering in Buchenwald.
On the day that the visitors came,
they addressed the 500 children who
refused to look at them. During the
speeches delivered in French and
translated into Yiddish and Polish, the
children kept their eyes on the ground.
The protest continued until the last
speaker stood at the podium to speak.
He was a survivor who had lost his
wife and children in the Holocaust.
Since the liberation, he had dedi-
cated himself to the cause
• of displaced children; it was
explained that "these were
the only children he had left:'
At that moment, all the chil-
dren raised their eyes to look
at him, and he in turn looked
into the faces of 500 hurting
children. He was so taken
with emotion that he was not
able to say anything except
"my dear children ..." At that
point he broke down and
sobbed uncontrollably.
Rabbi Lau recalls that
it was painful to hear an
adult man cry into the microphone
but, nevertheless, as he wept, a miracle
occurred. Each one of the boys sitting
there began to cry, too. These boys had
not cried when they were liberated, had
not cried when they received word of
the fate of their parents, had not cried
when they were told that they had no
home left — but now they cried.
Rabbi Lau was only a young child at
the time, but he remembers that he had
thought, before this event, that he had
no emotions; he thought that he would
never cry. Now that he knew that he
could cry, he felt sure that one day in the
future he would be able to laugh.
What is striking about Rabbi Lau's
story is that these hardened orphans
were revived only by someone who
himself understood and shared their
suffering. To empathize with someone,
you have to feel their pain on a very
personal level, not just with lip service
but with sincerity. Only by sharing
someone else's misfortunes can one
really appreciate their joys.
We are the Nation of Israel because
we share each other's experiences, suf-
fering, salvation and joy. This short
period of 50 days between Passover
and Shavuot is jam-packed with differ-
ent emotions — and, after all, that is
what peoplehood is all about! ❑
Ate 0 uh, Love,,
Addhece aa _Matra
, Pam, ahell Stwol A)titoece,
caut
Zogleau, Sttak j (4_4
Coevau, 131tatcea, &1u Could
Aeekneau, gRuteem guatetchektek aitzt
99
ket qua g wad/4Am,
FREE
DELIVERY
NOW OPEN!
Your NEW
Neighborhood Pharmacy
p
Franklin
Discount Pharmacy
FREE
MEDICATION
CONSULTATION
20%
20% OFF
DISCOUNT
ALL CASH
PRESCRIPTIONS' ,
Jell
ALL NEW
PATIENTS
Oak Park.
Franklin Discount Pharmacy
29113 Northwestern Hwy.
Southfield
248.355.1910
OTC Medications I Blood Pressure Monitors I Diabetic Supplies I Immunizations I Medical Equipment
1915040
1 1=1
11IP'N''.1111
■
FAST RELIABLE
AND DEPENDABLE
SERVICE
TIME TO CLEAMITIR BRICKWND DECKS
ONEST TUT POWER
WASTE@ " -ilk
Are your Brick Pavers
lifted and uneven?
Weean WIN=
We offer Discounts for Brick Driveways and Large Jobs
Honest guys that give you an honest price! We will beat any competitor's price!
SAVE
UP TO $ 100
Specializing OD11111 49, Stamped Concrete aid Aggregate
when you book by
6.30.14
Brick Pavers, Powerwash, Repairs, and Sealing.
High Pressure Washing, Aggregate and all types of decks.
110 P SWIM
Miler
avg-los
irj
1411Pa
BEFORE ZARIN DE12
F
Servicing Oakland, Lapeer & Genesee Counties
Michael Cohen is rabbi of Young Israel of
1918120
CALL US TODAY 248.909.1512
www.honestguyspowerwash.com
1917050
JN
May 15 • 2014
33