Poor Jews Never Have Christmas Trees (Parshat Ekev)

Poor Jews never have Christmas trees (parshat Ekev)

 יז וְאָֽמַרְתָּ֖ בִּלְבָבֶ֑ךָ כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י עָ֥שָׂה לִ֖י אֶת־הַחַ֥יִל הַזֶּֽה׃ יח וְזָֽכַרְתָּ֙ אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ כִּ֣י ה֗וּא הַנֹּתֵ֥ן לְךָ֛ כֹּ֖חַ לַֽעֲשׂ֣וֹת חָ֑יִל לְמַ֨עַן הָקִ֧ים אֶת־בְּרִית֛וֹ אֲשֶׁר־נִשְׁבַּ֥ע לַֽאֲבֹתֶ֖יךָ כַּיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּֽה׃ {פ}
יט וְהָיָ֗ה אִם־שָׁכֹ֤חַ תִּשְׁכַּח֙ אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ וְהָֽלַכְתָּ֗ אַֽחֲרֵי֙ אֱלֹהִ֣ים אֲחֵרִ֔ים וַֽעֲבַדְתָּ֖ם וְהִשְׁתַּֽחֲוִ֣יתָ לָהֶ֑ם הַֽעִדֹ֤תִי בָכֶם֙ הַיּ֔וֹם כִּ֥י אָבֹ֖ד תֹּֽאבֵדֽוּן׃ כ כַּגּוֹיִ֗ם אֲשֶׁ֤ר יְהוָה֙ מַֽאֲבִ֣יד מִפְּנֵיכֶ֔ם כֵּ֖ן תֹּֽאבֵד֑וּן עֵ֚קֶב לֹ֣א תִשְׁמְע֔וּן בְּק֖וֹל יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶֽם׃ {פ}

… and you say in your heart: ‘My power and the mightof my hand has gotten me this wealth.’ But you should remember the LORD your G-d, for it is He that gives you the power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore unto you fathers, as it is this day. And it shall be, if you should forget the LORD your G-d, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I forewarn you this day that you shall surely perish.

Deuteronomy/Devarim 8: 17-19

I find it interesting that the Torah has a fixation on personal wealth, and the accumulation of treasure is seen as a worthy goal in life. Indeed, this obsession with “making it” is perhaps the single most consistent attribute of our People since the very beginning. And it isn’t just about laymen who are hungry to “make it”. No, it is , with a few noteworthy exceptions, rabbis as well.

There is no shortage of Talmudic sages who were extremely wealthy. With the debut of the title of chief city rabbi – as European Jews starting flocking en masse to major metropolises – chief rabbis sought wealthy matches for themselves and their sons and daughters. They would often turn their clerical fiefdom into a multi-generational family business, enjoying the coziest relationships – and carefully curated shidduchs – with the richest members of the community,

It could well be that the Torah understood our People only too well. And that being an עם קשה עורף, a stiff-necked people, was not our only endearing quality. We also had a lust for the good life. Materialism has no limit. More is never enough.  One rarely looks at those who are less successful, and counts their blessings. Instead they look up at those who are even more successful, and aspire to the next rung up the ladder.

No doubt there have always been exceptions. Some people are are lucky to be born without the greed gene, they never learn to envy others, and are content with what they have.

I would like to think the materialism in our Jewish DNA is there for a reason. That it serves as an eternal challenge from on High to see if we can maintain faith and adherence despite our material success. If anything, it is almost sadistic. Because fewer things are more challenging to one’s faith than making it big.

The world famous Chain Bridge in Budapest was largely financed by a wealthy Jew named Albert Bela Wodianer. He was the third generation of a very successful and equally pious Jewish family.

Albert Wodianer leveraged his inherited fortune into mega wealth. Ultimately, while the rest of his family kept the faith, he converted to Christianity in order to be eligible to join a billiard club that only accepted Christian members. And that, if you ask me, is about as a valid a reason for becoming a Christian as any. Indeed, most Jewish apostates in the 19^th Century had similar spiritual reasons for abandoning the faith of their forefathers.

There is loss of “faith” and there is loss of “religion”. They are not the same thing. One can lose one’s faith in G-d, temporarily or permanently, yet still remain a member of the community of Jews.

Loss of faith happens all the time, usually as a result of tragedy or calamity that causes one to be angry with the Almighty and lose their trust and faith in Him. Nevertheless, such loss of faith does not necessarily, or even typically, result in leaving the Jewish fold. There are many people who are angry at G-d yet attend synagogue services regularly, and put on their tefillin even as their faith, per se, is in eclipse.

Then there are Jews who abandon their religion, even going so far as to convert to another faith, usually Christianity of one kind or another.

In 19^th Century Europe, especially in the more enlightened and liberal societies, apostasy among Jews was rampant. More recently, as religion per se lost its grip in western societies, such Jews would simply indulge in the accoutrements and celebrations, the feasts and festivals of Christians.

More often than not, this second group was, and continues to be, comprised of those who have nothing to complain about. On the contrary, these are people who typically enjoy material and social success. Their conversions, if they converted, were entirely cynical – just part of the social climbing that comes with material acquisition.

After all, can any Jew really imagine becoming a Christian for reasons of belief? Yes, there have been isolated cases of Jews who converted out of conviction. But these are the exceptions. Typically, the Jews, especially German, middle European and British Jews who marched to the baptismal font were doing so simply to boost their social status, and make their progeny eligible for advantageous -and certainly non rabbinical – marriages with the plutocracy.

The Torah often warns us against worshipping other gods. One would think this ‘paranoia’ on the part of G-d is unnecessary. After all who in his right mind would abandon the kind of G-d we have – invisible, almighty, one – for pieces of metal, trees, celestial bodies, or, lowest of all, a human being? Surely it is not the tendency of sentient creatures to move from high to low.

Why then is the Torah so obsessed with the possibility of our groveling before statuettes, wiping our backsides on the nose of Baal Peor, or, more recently, genuflecting to the image of a tortured Jew nailed to a cross? What exactly makes these more believable than G-d and His Torah?

The answer is in this week’s Parsha, specifically the verses cited above.

The Torah does not for a moment believe that a normal Jew would prefer Christianity to Judaism. What the Torah DOES believe is that a successful Jew is capable of convincing himself that he deserves all the credit for his material success.

Taking credit for one’s success – believing one deserves what he has amassed – is the ultimate apostasy. The greatest heresy is a sense of entitlement. וְאָֽמַרְתָּ֖ בִּלְבָבֶ֑ךָ כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י עָ֥שָׂה לִ֖י אֶת־הַחַ֥יִל הַזֶּֽה ‘My power and the might of my hand has gotten me this wealth.’(Deut. 8:17)

Once this happens, the barriers are down. The hubris of success impels one to attain even greater success. Having made the millions, nowadays the billions, one now wants to buy the social status to which he feels entitled.

Hence this warning against taking credit for one’s wealth is followed immediately by; וְהָיָ֗ה אִם־שָׁכֹ֤חַ תִּשְׁכַּח֙ אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ וְהָֽלַכְתָּ֗ אַֽחֲרֵי֙ אֱלֹהִ֣ים אֲחֵרִ֔ים וַֽעֲבַדְתָּ֖ם וְהִשְׁתַּֽחֲוִ֣יתָ לָהֶ֑ם הַֽעִדֹ֤תִי בָכֶם֙ הַיּ֔וֹם כִּ֥י אָבֹ֖ד תֹּֽאבֵדֽוּן And it shall be, if you should forget the LORD your G-d, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I forewarn you this day that you shall surely perish (Deut. 8:19). Because there is a direct causal relationship between the hubris of material success and apostasy.

In the past, the desire for upwardly mobile social acceptability would require conversion. Today one does not have to go quite that far. Nowadays religion is passé among more sophisticated westerners. For the modern success story, a Christmas tree is often enough, plus a nice dinner with its traditional ham and the heartwarming grog that ostensibly induces “peace on earth and goodwill among men”. Surely such innocent celebration of the prevailing culture can do no real harm to one’s Jewish identity. One can, after all, have a Passover seder AND a Christmas tree. But, as we all know, the generation that celebrates Passover and Christmas will yield children that only celebrate the latter.

“כחי ועוצם ידי”. The moment someone believes “my power and the might of my hand” is the sole basis of their success, they have embarked on the road to apostasy. The Torah’s challenge is to withstand this temptation. Idolatry and apostasy among Jews are driven not by genuine faith, but rather by genuine greed. Poor Jews don’t have Christmas trees. Giving material wealth to a Jew is like giving narcotics to someone with an addictive personality. The challenge is to know the meaning of enough, and to maintain perspective.

I would imagine G-d can forgive the true meshumad (apostate) who, after all, still believes in Him albeit with a misguided soul. What the Torah cannot forgive is the cynical apostate whose first crime is his inability to thank G-d for his good fortune. This lack of humility is the booster rocket for the need to achieve even greater success. And for this one needs a Christmas tree, at the very least.