(This week’s Torah portion opens with Moshe calling together the people of Israel. A “kahal”, congregation, is composed of individuals who share a common background, destiny, ideology. Often, a “kahal” is centered in a particular location. But a “kahal” can also be composed of individuals who may be in different locations, but who share ideas and ideals. This week’s Angel for Shabbat column is based on an address I delivered at the annual dinner of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, held on Sunday night March 11. It relates not just to the large “kahal” that attended the dinner, but to the worldwide “kahal” of Jews who believe in an intellectually vibrant, compassionate, inclusive Orthodox Judaism.)

In this week’s Torah portion, we read of the tragic deaths of two of Aaron’s sons. When he learned the sad news, “Aaron was silent,” vayidom Aharon. Commentators have offered various explanations of Aaron’s silence. He may have been speechless due to shock; he may have had angry thoughts in his heart, but he controlled himself from uttering them; he may have been silent as a sign of acceptance of God’s judgment.

Within biblical tradition, there are a number of phrases relating to confrontation with tragedy.

“Min haMetsar Karati Y-ah,” I call out to God from distress. When in pain, it is natural to cry out to God, to shed tears, to lament our sufferings and our losses. To cry out when we are in distress is a first step in the grieving process.

The Sages of Talmudic times often expressed profound ideas in terse, enigmatic statements. An example of this is found in the Midrashic comment: “The world was created in the merit of three things: in the merit of [the mitzvoth of] Hallah, tithes, and first fruits” (Yalkut Shimoni, Bereishith 1:2). If we were to speculate as to which mitzvoth were absolutely vital to the creation, we might have chosen other—seemingly more important—commandments: e.g. the Sabbath, the laws of holiness, the sanctification of One God etc.

At a recent lunch meeting with friends, we were discussing the ugliness and lack of civility which too frequently characterize blog sites and online comments.  Modern technology makes it quite easy for people to post hostile remarks against those with whom they disagree. These ad hominem attacks gain lives of their own, being forwarded to readers who then forward them to others etc.  In a matter of a few seconds, people can spread “lashon hara” to a wide audience.

How many times has this happened to you? You’ve gone out of your way to help someone. You’ve spent time and energy, and possibly even incurred financial expense. Yet, once the person has benefitted from your kindness, he/she doesn’t bother to show appreciation, not even to say a sincere thank you.

I call this the “paper towel syndrome.” People use you like a paper towel, and then toss you out without a second thought. They’ve gotten what they needed out of you, and then they move right along with their lives as though they had always been entitled to your acts of kindness.

Thanks to Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams, the Egyptians were spared a terrible calamity. Joseph offered a plan whereby the Egyptians could store produce of the seven years of abundance, so that they would have food during the following seven years of famine.

What if Joseph had not been there to give this advice? Presumably, the Egyptians would have fully enjoyed the seven years of abundance, thinking that prosperity would never end. When the famine would then arrive, the people would have been unprepared for the economic downturn. They would soon have run out of food and would have suffered years of starvation.

Sports aren’t just about games; they are about life. Good sportsmanship isn’t just an extra frill; it is the essence of sports education. Middot aren’t only to be learned in the classroom; they are to be learned in the gym and on the basketball court.

I recently learned of a shorthand symbol used in online communications among Jewish singles. It is “JFK”.  For example: “Don’t go out with him, he’s ‘JFK’.”  “He’s not reliable, he’s ‘JFK’.”

Some years ago, my wife and I visited Rome. Among the historic sites we visited was the Arch of Titus--a monument to the Roman conquest of Judea in 70 C.E.  The Romans destroyed Jerusalem, razed the Temple, killed and enslaved many thousands of Jews--and sent our people into an Exile that lasted until the rise of the State of Israel in 1948.  On the inner wall of the Arch of Titus is a depiction of  the Roman victory over the Jews, with the Romans carrying off the Menorah which had graced the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.