From Columbus to Gaza and onto victory

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How could a series of misspelled and scribbled letters be so vital to our soldiers’ success? This week’s Torah portion has the answer.

Undoubtedly, the greatest and holiest Jew in history was Moses. He led a nation of slaves out of Egyptian bondage to ultimately receive the Torah as G-d’s  chosen people. Our tradition teaches that no human being has or will attain his lofty status.

Every time we conclude reading from the Torah in the synagogue, we stand as the Torah is lifted and covered. By doing so, we celebrate the legacy that Moses left us with by sharing the words “V’zot Hatorah asher sam Moshe L’fnei Bnei Yisroel” – “This is the Torah which Moses placed before the children of Israel.” These words come directly this week’s Torah portion Va’etchanan (Deuteronomy 4:44)

While this verse describes the great gift of the Torah, the biblical commentator Kli Yakar (Rabbi Solomon Luntschitz, 1550-1619) explained that the word Torah in this verse can alternatively refer to the word lesson.

What lesson was Moses trying to teach the Jewish people?

In the chapter preceding this verse, G-d’s commanded Moses to build three Cities of Refuge for those who have are in need. Since Moses died in the desert and never made it to Israel, he was unable to build the cities himself. It was only after Joshua’s conquest of Israel and his designation of three cities of refuge, that this commandment was ultimately fulfilled.

What the Kli Yakar finds fascinating is that while Moses was an amazing leader and led us to freedom, the Torah refers to his greatest lesson and gift to the Jews as something that would only ultimately completed by his successor, Joshua.

This is a profound lesson that has implications for our own lives. Despite our imperfections and perhaps a lack of visible achievements, we can still leave a legacy of good for those to come by just making the effort – by beginning projects that will ultimately yield positive results. This is what G‑d and the Jewish people have celebrated for thousands of years.

Each time someone achieves their goals and sets new records, it is indeed a great victories and cause for celebration.

Judaism, however, has never emphasized the stardom of finishing in first place, but rather with exerting your own very personal best. Perfection never became the yardstick of Jewish success. Our barometer of triumph has always been measured by our effort in overcoming our own personal challenges. To cross the finish line effectively means to outperform your own previous limitations and fixed standards of performance.

To cross the finish line effectively means to outperform your own previous limitations and fixed standards of performance.

Moses’ example teaches us that in life, we shouldn’t have an all-or-nothing attitude. The most faultless person in history, who spoke with G‑d face-to-face, began the City of Refuge project but he never saw its completion. The Torah acknowledges him for doing everything in his power to leave this world in a better state, even though he didn’t accomplish everything we set out to do.

When we set out to run a marathon, we do so with the idea of finishing the race. But if we can’t, no one looks down on us. The most important thing is that we at least turned up at the race and gave it our best. That is what counts.

Looking back to the cards our children wrote, we see that the intention put into them is what matters. We don’t judge them for being imperfect works of art, we appreciate them for the love, innocence and sincerity that went into them. It is this potency that will shield our soldiers from harm’s way.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Areyah Kaltmann