Every year, around Parashat Eikev, I am reminded of the time I stopped at a food stand in Manhattan and ordered a small cup of freshly-squeezed orange juice. The owner handed me an enormous cup of juice. “I asked for a small,” I said, but then he pointed out two cups even bigger than that one and said, “What I gave you was a small. Look, here are sizes medium and large!” It was then that I discovered that the cup that was considered “large” here in Israel will also be considered “small” in the United States. I have no doubt that in a few more years our “large” here in Israel will also be considered “small!”
The Book of Devarim describes the great danger of living in a prosperous society that offers people everything they desire and in “large” amounts. It’s challenging to live in poverty – but it’s also challenging to live in wealth. It’s very difficult to be hungry – but it’s not easy to be satiated. And today that challenge is perhaps more acute than ever.
Moshe Rabbeinu is worried that the “good life” might cause people to forget both their past and the direction in which they are meant to be heading. Here is his powerful warning from this week’s parasha:
“When you have eaten your fill, and have built fine houses to live in, and your herds and flocks have multiplied, and your silver and gold have increased, and everything you own has prospered, beware lest your heart grow haughty and you forget the Lord your G-d, who freed you from the land of Egypt, the house of bondage…and you say to yourselves, ‘My own power and the might of my own hand have won this wealth for me.’”
For thousands of years, Jews struggled with poverty and failure. Today, they face the challenge of wealth and success. It is important that we continue to hold onto our values even in comfortable circumstances, even when grasping that massive cup of orange juice.
Five Points About Tu B’Av
Tu B’Av was this week.
Here are five points about this special day:
1) What happened on the Jewish festival of Love? Many things. First of all, as a punishment for the Sin of the Golden Calf, it was decreed that Bnei Yisrael would wander in the desert for forty years and die there. On Tu B’Av, this stopped. This day marked the end of their punishment and the beginning of their entry into the Land of Israel. Thus, it is also a festival celebrating our love of Israel.
2) Once Bnei Yisrael were settled in the land, members of different tribes started marrying one another. In this way, they began to repair the feelings of disconnection and tension that had previously existed among the tribes.
3) In later years, following the division of the land into two kingdoms, King Yeravam ben Nevat did not allow the residents of the kingdom of Israel to travel to the Temple in Jerusalem for the festivals. But on Tu B’Av this decree was abolished. From that time forward, the Jewish people could once again celebrate the holidays together, as one nation, in Jerusalem.
4) On this day, the daughters of Jerusalem would go out in white clothes and dance in the vineyards to find their mates. Reflecting on this beautiful custom, our sages declared: “There were no days of greater joy in Israel than the fifteen of Av and Yom Kippur.”
5) According to Kabbalah, Tu B’Av ushers in the period of teshuva, which formally begins in Elul. There are those who have the custom of greeting one another, starting today, with the words: “Ktiva Va’Chatima Tova – May you be inscribed and sealed in the Book of Life.” This year, we need this blessing more than ever.
6) What is the common theme of Tu B’Av? For thousands of years, this has been a day of connection, reconciliation, and love. If only we could all feel this way today.
Translated by Janine Muller Sherr
