JULY BIRTHDAYS, ANNIVERSARIES, AND SIGNIFICANT EVENTS

Mazal Tov – Mazal Bueno to all those celebrating a birthday, anniversary, or significant event during the Month of July. If we were together at Temple Kol Hamidbar, we would extend a Tallit over you, recite a special prayer for you, and recite the following blessing (cf Num. 6:24-26):

• May the Eternal One bless you and protect you!
• May the Eternal One deal kindly and graciously with you!
• May the Eternal One bestow favor upon you and grant you peace!

KËIN YEHI RATZON (Let it be so!)

 

INDEPENDENCE DAY

Each and every Independence Day, among other things, we celebrate freedom from tyranny. We celebrate the overthrow of an authoritative and despotic government that made life miserable. We also celebrate the defeat of a tyrannical self-centered individual, a king. Our liberty came at a high price.

Preserving our liberty requires care and close attention. It means making sure that government is a means to that end and not an end in of itself. Government is not evil per se. Without our brains and hearts our bodies cannot function.

We need both in order to live, and we need both to be healthy in order to live well. The same with federal, state, and local government and leadership. This leads to the issue of personal freedom and public good.

I am as jealous of and protective of my own personal freedom as most people. One’s personal freedom, however, extends as far as the next person’s freedom. With personal freedom comes personal responsibility both for oneself and to the community at large, which is a key Jewish value.

When the rights of others are ignored or violated, in the end so are one’s own. It is more than just a question of “my personal rights” and “who cares about anyone else’s?” Maybe the following analogy will help.

It is like speeding: We may think it is our right to go as fast as we want as long as there is no other traffic on the road – until we come across someone going slower than we want. If the other person is going well below the speed limit this can lead to road rage, or worse, killing someone. The consequences range from high blood pressure at best to maybe arrest and prison, perhaps even death, at worst.

Similar is the case with the current pandemic.

Baruch Hashem, I enjoy good health. At first, I was skeptical about the coronavirus or COVID-19. It seemed people were panicking and overreacting instead of simply taking prudent and reasonable precautions. Isolated here in Bisbee and naturally circumspect in my relationships, COVID-19 and its dangers seemed faraway, despite the reports from family members and relatives who are medical professionals and first responders.

As time passed things seemed to be under control with the measures taken, especially here in Bisbee – until most restrictions were lifted. Although chafing under them, it felt too early to ease up. Then, bang, things exploded.

Now that COVID-19 has reached Bisbee and I know individuals who have it and/or have lost loved ones because of it, my perspective has changed dramatically. I certainly feel less safe than before although I remain optimistic. I may feel well but how can I be sure that I am virus free and how can I be sure you are?

You may want to read a recent New York Times opinion by Bradley Dreifuss, MD, of the University of Arizona (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/26/opinion/coronavirus-arizona-hospitals.html). He knows, like my own family members and relatives, the impact of the disease and of those who insist on their personal freedom over the public good.

If I refuse to take the necessary precautions and measures to protect myself and others, I am essentially acting as if it is okay to kill someone else. Only fanatics believe that the ends justify the means, including killing others. Insisting fanatically on personal freedom over the public good is tantamount to murder.

“[Hillel] used to say: If I am not for myself, who is for me? But if I am for my own self [only], what am I? And if not now, when?”  Pirkë Avot 1:14 – from Sefaria.org

 

PARSHA

From ReformJudaism.org

Chukat (חֻקַּת) – Hebrew for “decree” – The Ritual Law / Balak (בָּלָק – Hebrew for “Balak” a name) Numbers 19:1−22:1, 22:2−25:9

The Eternal One spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: “This is the ritual law that the Eternal has commanded: Instruct the Israelite people to bring you a red cow without blemish, in which there is no defect and on which no yoke has been laid.” – Numbers 19:1-2

Balak son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. – Numbers 22:2

SUMMARY:

• The laws of the red heifer to purify a person who has had contact with a corpse are given. (19:1-22)
• The people arrive at the wilderness of Zin. Miriam dies and is buried there. (20:1)
• The people complain that they have no water. Moses strikes the rock to get water for them [rather than speaking to it]. God tells Moses and Aaron they will not enter the Land of Israel. (20:2-13)
• The king of Edom refuses to let the Children of Israel pass through his land. After Aaron’s priestly garments are given to his son Eleazer, Aaron dies. (20:14-29)
• After they are punished for complaining about the lack of bread and water, the Israelites repent and are victorious in battle against the Amorites and the people of Bashan, whose lands they capture. (21:4-22:1)
• Balak, the king of Moab, persuades the prophet Balaam to curse the Israelites so that he can defeat them and drive them out of the region. However, Balaam blesses the Children of Israel instead and prophesies that Israel’s enemies will be defeated. (22:2-24:25)
• God punishes the Israelites with a plague for consorting with the Moabite women and their god. The plague is stayed after Pinchas kills an Israelite man and his Midianite woman. (25:1-9)

The Haftarah is Micah 5:6-6:8

From MyJewishLearning.com

When parashah Chukat is combined with parashah Balak [as it is this year] the haftarah is Micah 5:6–6:8. God laments that the people seem to think they can please Him with a steady stream of sacrifices, instead of by acting honorably. Finally, Micah closes with a famous summation of what God wants from His people: “He has told you, O man, what is good, and what the Lord requires of you: Only to do justice, and to love goodness, and to walk modestly with God.”

 

STRUGGLING WITH TORAH

There is much to consider in the combined Torah portions for this Shabbat. Ideas such as obedience, consequences, fantastical happenings, and questions about how and why our ancestors finally entered the Promised Land from the east deserve in-depth study and discussion. The connection of these portions with the idea of Independence, if any, needs to be explored. Are we supposed to be a part of or apart from the world?

Unfortunately, this week has been taken up by dealing with Zoom and preparing for online Erev Shabbat Services. Thus, we will wrestle with these issues and questions at another time. Until then, here is the following from Balak, which in some traditions is said upon entering a synagogue:

“Mah Tóvu – how fair are your tents, O Jacob, your dwellings, O Israel!” (Numbers 24:5)

 

PRAYERS

We recite MI SHEBËRACH for the victims of brutality, abuse, fear, natural disasters, pandemics, violence, and war; for all those in need of physical, emotional, and mental healing. “R’fuah sh’lëmah” – a complete recovery!

We say KADDISH YATOM for those of our friends and families who have died and been buried this last week; those in the period of Sh’loshim (30 days since burial); those who have died in the last year; and those whose Yahrzeits/Anyos occur at this time; as well as the victims of brutality, disease, natural disasters, war and violence. We remember, too, those victims of the Shoah (Holocaust) who died at this time of year and have us to say “Kaddish” for them. “Zichronam liv’rachah” – May their memories be for blessing.

 

ONLINE SERVICES – 7 PM

Being a part of, contributing to and connecting with Temple Kol Hamidbar helps us fulfill our three-fold purpose as a Beit Tefillah (House of Prayer), a Beit Midrash (House of Study) and a Beit Knesset (House of Community).

Given that most of our members are in the high-risk category, gathering in person is still sometime in the future. For the foreseeable future we will start our online Zoom Friday Evening Services at 7 PM.

More about Zoom

As previously notified, the new security features require users to download the latest version of Zoom onto their devices, which may require uninstalling any previous version(s) before installing the latest one.

Another feature is the waiting room. Everyone who joins a session must first enter a waiting room from which, as soon as able, the host will admit individuals to the scheduled session.

Making sure you have the latest version of Zoom, please join us online this evening:

Topic: Erev Shabbat Service

Time: Jul 3, 2020 07:00 PM Arizona

To join Zoom Meeting (please make sure you have the latest version)

Click on the following link [you may need to copy it into your browser]:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/72510500854?pwd=Z3VQZWF4U1BBZytNYmh3aHFTWkFDZz09

Or from Zoom go to join meeting and enter the following information:

Meeting ID: 725 1050 0854

Password: 4NrMk0

Hint: The last character of the password is the number zero.

Or, you may also access Erev Shabbat Services directly through the Temple Kol Hamidbar website at https://templekol.com/live-services-and-events

 

Happy Independence Day!

Shabbat Shalom – Buen Shabbat!

-Ruben