Good Advice from the Torah Portion

The Torah doesn’t mince words. Especially not in this week’s reading. I won’t quote–but you can check it out yourself (Leviticus 18:22-26).

These verses state what used to be commonly accepted norms of social behavior until fairly recently in most parts of the world.

No more. I’m not going to comment on my feelings about this because they are irrelevant. What counts is G-d’s opinion, and He has one. If you engage in these behaviors, the land will vomit you out.

Vomit–a metaphor for that most natural and, at the same time, unnatural of human activities. The reverse digestion that occurs after ingesting something toxic.

We’re not prophets, but G-d granted us the common sense to interpret current events. From following the news, it seems that the Jews of  Israel are in a vomit process. We’ve lost our northern border towns and some communities in the South. Our land has shrunk since October 7.

That tough but it’s not all bad

Will anyone ever April 14, the night Iran sent 300 ballistic missiles our way? If even one of them had exploded here, thousands of lives would have ended. G-d was kind. That night, we experienced a miracle, and we still can’t wrap our collective heads around it, but it was a close call. Very close, and it indicates that all is not well here in Israel. G-d allowed our enemies to scare us nearly to death.

We need to clean up our act.

Our claim to this land is based on our Torah, and we like to say that. Our diplomats have been known to quote chapter and verse in their speeches, but the Torah imposes conditions, and the verses I quoted spell out those conditions as clearly as possible.

The land of Israel is holy. What cuts it in New York, London, Paris, and San Francisco won’t always work here. Engaging in acts the Torah condemns is akin to digging a hole in our collective ship of state and causing it to think..

We may tell ourselves that private behavior does not impact the public sphere. What you do in the privacy of your own home is your business, and no one has a right to cramp your style.,right?

The Torah profoundly disagrees.

We need to double down. No matter how many bombs Biden does or doesn’t send, if we dont respect G-d’s rules, this land will VOMIT us out.

I have no desire to be vomited out of my home.

Do you? Probably not.

Messing with G-d’s rules on G-d’s land is not smart. We need to take this seriously.

Is it moral to prioritize personal pleasure over the safety of 9 million Israeli Jews?

I dont think so.

Yes, lifestyle change is a big ask, but this change will also prevent a great deal of suffering. And to anyone who wants to take up the challenge know that G-d has your back.  The Torah teaches that when someone wants to purify themselves, heaven helps. Your struggle is holy and will be richly rewarded.

Let us all realign ourselves with the Torah and ensure our future in our beloved home.