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Parshat Shelach June 1, 2013 23 Sivan, 5773

The episode of the spieshas rightly puzzledcommentatorsthroughout the centuries.How could they have gotit so wrong? The land,they said, was as Moseshad promiased. It wasindeed flowing with milkand honey. Butconquering it wasimpossible. The peoplewho live there arepowerful, and the citiesfortified and very large.We even sawdescendants of the giantthere We cant attackthose people; they arestronger than we are All the people we sawthere are of great size.We saw the titans there We seemed likegrasshoppers in our owneyes, and so we seemedin theirs (Num. 13: 28-

33).

They were terrified of theinhabitants of the land,and entirely failed torealize that theinhabitants were terrifiedof them. Rahab, theprostitute in Jericho, tellsthe spies sent by Joshuaa generation later: Iknow that the Lord hasgiven you this land andthat a great fear of youhas fallen on us, so that

all who live in this

country are melting in fearbecause of you our heartsmelted in fear and everyonescourage failed because of you,for the Lord your God is God inheaven above and on the earthbelow (Joshua 2: 10-11). Thetruth was the exact opposite ofthe spies report. Theinhabitants feared theIsraelites more than theIsraelites feared the

inhabitants. We hear this atthe start of the story ofBilaam: Now Balak son ofZippor saw all that Israel haddone to the Amorites, andMoab was terrified becausethere were so many people.Indeed, Moab was filled withdread because of theIsraelites. Earlier theIsraelites themselves had sungat the Red Sea: The people ofCanaan will melt away; terrorand dread will fall onthem (Ex. 15: 15-16). How

then did the spies err soegregiously? Did theymisinterpret what they saw?Did they lack faith in God? Didthey more likely lack faithin themselves? Or was itsimply, as Maimonides arguesin The Guide for the Perplexed,that their fear was inevitablegiven their past history? Theyhad spent most of their livesas slaves. Only recently hadthey acquired their freedom.They were not yet ready tofight a prolonged series of

battles and establish

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks on Parshas Shelachthemselves as a free peoplein their own land. Thatwould take a newgeneration, born infreedom. Humans change,but not that quickly (GuideIII, 32).

Most of the commentatorsassume that the spies wereguilty of a failure of nerve,or faith, or both. It is hard

to read the text otherwise.However, in the Hassidicliterature from the BaalShem Tov to R. YehudahLeib Alter of Ger (SefatEmet) to the LubavitcherRebbe, R. MenachemMendel Schneersohn anentirely different line ofinterpretation emerged,reading the text against thegrain to dramatic effect sothat it remains relevant andpowerful today. Accordingto their interpretation, the

spies were well-intentioned.They were, after all,princes, chieftains,leaders (Num. 13: 2-3).They did not doubt thatIsrael could win its battleswith the inhabitants of theland. They did not fearfailure; they feared success.Their concern was notphysical but spiritual. Theydid not want to leave thewilderness. They did notwant to become justanother nation among the

nations of the earth. They

Times

Candle Lighting 8:01 pm

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Parsha Shiur 8:30 am

Youth Minyan 8:30 am

Main Minyan 9:00 am

Beit Midrash 9:15 pm

Gemorah Shiur 6:55 pm

Mincha 7:55 pm

Shabbat Ends 9:10 pm

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Tues., Wed., Fri. 6:45/7:45 am

Mincha 8:05 pm

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Candle Lighting 8:06 pm

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TORAHArtscroll 798

Hertz 623HAFTORAH

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Kiddush Is

Sponsored By

Great Neck Synagogue

With a herring table

Sponsored by

Roya & Ben Shavolian

in honor of their son

Jonathans Layning

Seudah Shlishit

is sponsored by

Sheila & Moosa Ebrahimian

in memory of his father

Amin Ebrahimian, z"l

and her father

Faizullah Aminoff, z"l.

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June 8 & Sun. June 9Molad

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did not want to lose their unique relationship with God inthe reverberating silence of the desert, far removedfrom civilization and its discontents.

Here they were close to God, closer than any generationbefore or since. He was a palpable presence in theSanctuary in their midst, and in the clouds of glory thatsurrounded them. Here His people ate manna fromheaven and water from the rock and experienced

miracles daily. So long as they stayed in the desertunder Gods sheltering canopy, they did not need toplough the earth, plant seeds, gather harvests, defend acountry, run an economy, maintain a welfare system, orshoulder any of the other earthly burdens anddistractions that take peoples minds away from theDivine. Here, in no-mans-land, in liminal space,suspended between past and future, they were able tolive with a simplicity and directness of encounter theycould not hope to find once they had re-entered thegravitational pull of everyday life in the material world.Paradoxically, since a desert is normally the exactopposite of a garden, the wilderness was the IsraelitesEden. Here they were as close to God as were the firsthumans before their loss of innocence.

If that comparison is too discordant, recall that Hoseaand Jeremiah both compared the wilderness to ahoneymoon. Hosea said in the name of God: I am nowgoing to allure her; I will lead her into the wildernessand speak tenderly to her (Hos. 2: 16), implying that inthe future God would take the people back there tocelebrate a second honeymoon. Jeremiah said in Godsname, I remember the devotion of your youth, how asa bride you loved me and followed me through thewilderness, through a land not sown (Jer. 2: 2). Forboth prophets, the wilderness years were the time of thefirst love between God and the Israelites. That is whatthe spies did not want to leave.

Clearly this interpretation is not the plain sense of thenarrative, but we should not dismiss it on that account.It is, as it were, a psychoanalytical reading, an accountof the unconscious mindset of the spies. They did notwant to let go of the intimacy and innocence ofchildhood and enter the adult world. Sometimes it ishard for parents to let go of their children; at others it isthe other way round. But there must be a measure ofseparation if children are to become responsible adults.

26 Old Mill Road, Great Neck, NY 11023 (516) 487-6100 Shabbat Announcements Parshat Shelach 5773

Great Neck Synagogue

Shabbat Activities Program

Dale Polakoff, Rabbi

Ian Lichter, Assistant Rabbi

Dr. Ephraim Wolf ,zl, Rabbi Emeritus

Zeev Kron, Cantor

Eleazer Schulman, zl, Cantor Emeritus

Rabbi Sholom Jensen, Youth Director

Zehava & Michael Atlas, Youth Directors

Mark Twersky, Executive Director

Rabbi Avraham Bronstein, Program Director

Dr. Scott Danoff, President

Harold Domnitch, Chairman of the Board

Ultimately the spies feared freedom and its responsibilities.But that is what Torah is about. Judaism is not a religion ofmonastic retreat from the world. It is supremely a religion ofengagement with the world. The Torah is a template for theconstruction of a society with all its gritty details: laws ofwarfare and welfare, harvests and livestock, loans andemployer-employee relationships, the code of a nation in itsland, part of the real world of politics and economics, yetsomehow pointing to a better world where justice and

compassion, love of the neighbor and stranger, are notremote ideals but part of the texture of everyday life. Godchose Israel to make His presence visible in the world, andthat means that Israel must live in the world.

To be sure, the Jewish people were not without their desert-dwellers and ascetics. The Qumran sect known to us from theDead Sea Scrolls was such a group. The Talmud speaks of R.Shimon bar Yochai in similar terms. Having lived for thirteenyears in a cave, he could not bear to see people engaged insuch earthly pursuits as plowing a field. Maimonides speaksof people who live as hermits in the desert to escape thecorruptions of society (Laws of ethical character, 6: 1; EightChapters, ch. 4). But these were the exceptions, not the rule.This is not the destiny of Israel, to live outside time and

space in ashrams or monasteries as the worlds recluses. Farfrom being the supreme height of faith, such a fear offreedom and its responsibilities is according to both theGerer and Lubavitcher Rebbe the sin of the spies.

There is a voice within the tradition, most famously identifiedwith R. Shimon bar Yochai, that regards engagement with theworld as fundamentally incompatible with the heights ofspirituality. But the mainstream held otherwise. Torah studywithout an occupation will in the end fail and lead tosin (Avot 2: 2). One who makes his mind up to study Torahand not to work but to live on charity, profanes the name ofGod, brings the Torah into contempt, extinguishes the light ofreligion, brings evil upon himself, and deprives himself of lifeereafter (Maimonides, Laws of Torah Study 3:10). The spiesdid not want to contaminate Judaism by bringing it intocontact with the real world. They sought the eternalchildhood of Gods protection and the endless honeymoon ofHis all-embracing love. There is something noble about thisdesire, but also something profoundly irresponsible thatdemoralized the people and provoked Gods anger. For theJewish project the Torah as the constitution of the Jewishnation under the sovereignty of God is about building asociety in the land of Israel that so honors human dignity andfreedom that it will one day lead the world to say, Surelythis great nation is a wise and understanding people (Deut.4: 6). The Jewish task is not to fear the real world but toenter and transform it. That is what the spies did notunderstand. Do we Jews of faith understand it even now?

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Tuesdaynight,June4that8PM

KravMagaclass

forwomenonly.

This

method

teaches

simple

self

protection

techniquesspecificallycateredto

realitybasedattacksituationsincorporating

instinctivemovements

andrealworldsituationaltraining.

Youwillgetafullunderstanding

onhowtoescape"unpleasant"situations

withouteverraisingyourhand,

howtodevelopandusesimpleitemsfound

inyour

purse

to

discourage

awouldbeattacker.

Therewillbea(small)feeof$10perperson.

Pleasewearcomfortableclothingandbring

awaterbottle.Ifyouhaveanyquestions,

pleaseemailJudyLillienat

syny98@gmail.com

GreatNeckSynagogueMensClub

GOINGFISHING(again!)Haveafunday,bringthewholefamily

OntheCAPT.PETEfromFreeport,NY(30minutesfromGreatNeck)onSunday,JUNE30,2013

Theboatwillbedepartingat9:00am,withthereturntodockat1:30pm

Thecost,whichincludesbreakfastandlunch,is$48perperson

$36forchildren612(nochildrenunder6)

(thefirst6kids12andunderfreewithpayingadult1perfamily)

ContactSteveBlumner6398941,MarkFriedman4821062orHillyMilun4484890

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Numberofadultsandteenagers_________at$48perperson $_______________

Numberofchildren11andunder_________at$36each $_______________

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

YAHRZEIT

WITHIN OUR FAMILY

Saturday, 23 SivanMoshe Apelbaum for Shai Apelbaum

Erein Justin for Moshe TwegAlan Prawer for Genia Prawer

Sunday, 24 SivanWilliam B. Helmreich for Mark Helmreich

Manny Strulovic for Helen StrulovicMonday, 25 Sivan

Jack Lipsky for David LipskyTuesday, 26 Sivan

Barry Maher for Javaher Maher-AfarinWednesday, 27 Sivan

Moosa Ebrahimian for Amin EbrahimianMindy Leventhal for Charlotte ScheinnkmanMahin Mardkha for Amin Ebrahimian

Mali Meisel for Annie MaultaschGerald Traub for Mollie Traub

Thursday, 28 SivanHerschel Flax for Joshua PasvolskyMary F. Flax for Joshua Pasvolsky

Joseph Gil for Esther GilRichard Lillien for Sol Engelhard

Benjamin Lunzer for Shoshana LunzerFriday, 29 Sivan

Myles Mittleman for Philip Mittleman

GNS UPCOMING EVENTS

Mazal Tov to Deborah & Hal Chadow on the recent marriageof her son Alex Rabizadeh to Merav Shitrit daughter ofSmadar & Rafii Shitrit of Jamaica Estates.Mazal Tov to Jane & Yosi Tuvia on the engagement of theirdaughter Tali to Yishai Yehonadav, of Zur Yigal, Israel, andon Tali's recent graduation from medical school.

Mazal Tov to Michael Cohen son ofLaura & Elie Cohen forcompleting the TD Five Borough Bike Tour (43 miles) as theyoungest member on Team OHEL. He raised over $1800 forOHEL's simcha fund to help fund a Bar Mitzvah celebration fora boy in foster care.Mazal Tov to Tali & Liat Brody upon graduating Summa CumLaude and receiving the Accounting and Interdisciplinary StudiesAward, respectively.Mazal Tov to Jolanta & Frank Rosenstein and Marilyn &Harry Wanderer on the Bat Mitzvah of their granddaughterDaniella Etta Kaminetzky daughter ofJill & NoamKaminetzky of Boca Raton, Florida.

OHEL SHABBATONWe are looking for host families for our next OHEL Shabbatonon June 1st. Host duties will include sleeping arrangementsand Friday night dinner. All host families will be invited tospend lunch at GNS together with OHEL. If you are interestedin housing, please contact Rabbi Lichter at ilichter@gns.org

PARLOR MEETINGA wine and cheese parlor meeting for Uri L'Tzedek will takeplace on Wed., May 29, from 8:00 to 9:30 at the home ofRebecca & Nate Wiesel, 52 Radnor Road.

SAVE THE DATE - Tuesday night, June 4th at 8 PM -we'll have aKrav Maga class for women only. This methodteaches simple self protection techniques specifically cateredto reality based attack situations incorporating instinctivemovements and real-world situational training. This FearlessFitness for women is an innovative solution to all your selfdefense needs. Our seminar will give you a simple yetincredibly effective way to defend yourself if the need everarises. You will get a full understanding on how to es-cape"unpleasant" situations without ever raising your hand,how to develop and use simple items found in your purse todiscourage a would be attacker, and also you will have achance to have a very fun and healthy activity with yourgroup! Really - this is what we need - you'll never feelscared again!There will be a (small) fee of $10 per person.Please wear comfortable clothing and bring a water bottle. Ifyou have any questions, please email Judy Lillien atsyny98@gmail.com

GNS TALMUD TORAH PARLOR MEETING

The Talmud Torah of Great Neck Synagogue invites you to aparlor meeting to discuss the upcoming year Thursday nightJune 6th at 8 pm at the home ofJessica and DavidSmooha at 45 Dickenson Place. Please contact Vivian Kron,Jessica Smooha or Rabbi Lichter for any questions.

UPCOMING EVENTS SAVE THE DATE

June 8: Annual End-of-YearGrand Raffle

and Youth Bash.Details to follow.

June 15: Annual Graduationand Congregation Kiddush

$100 per family.Please call the office

or email mtwersky@gns.org

Bracha Kron and family wish to thank Rabbi Polakoff,

Ellen Polakoff, Rabbi Lichter, Sharon Goldwyn and the

community for their support following the passing of her

father Zvi Bornstein zl.

COMMUNITY UPCOMING EVENTS

SUNDAY BREAKFASTBreakfast is sponsored by Janice & Michael Raitzin inmemory of his father Reuven Raitzin, z"l.

HASHKAMA MINYAN

Kiddush is sponsored by Mel Fox in honor of his Family.