“Shall your brothers go to war while you stay here?”
(Bamidbar/Numbers 32:6)
In this week’s Torah portion, Reuven (Reuben) and Gad ask Moshe
(Moses) for permission to settle on the other side of the Jordan, rather than
in the land of Canaan with the other tribes. The two tribes have accumulated
much livestock and the leaders observe that the land east of the Jordan will be
a good place to raise cattle. Moshe questions their priorities because it
appears that they are opting out of fighting alongside the other tribes in
Canaan. (It will take another 14 years until the tribes can peacefully settle
in Canaan.) Reuven and Gad agree to leave their families and livestock behind and
join the other tribes in battle.
What can we learn from Moshe’s challenge?
Rabbis Yisroel and Osher Anshel Jungreis write in Torah
for Your Table: “We the Jewish
people are one family. If any one of us is hurting, we are all hurting. The
heart of each and every Jew must beat with the heart of his people…The question
of Moses speaks to us…in our everyday family life as well. Can it be that you
are buying jewelry while your sister can’t pay her rent?...Can it be that you
are celebrating at your holiday table while your brother sits alone in his dark
apartment? Can it be?...Moses’ challenge
demands that we take a good look at our lives and examine to what extent we
feel empathy for our families, for our people.”
As parents, we must teach our children to look out for the welfare
of their siblings and for their extended family. We also must make them aware
that they are part of the larger family of the Jewish people. When rockets fire
over Israel, our sisters and brothers in Israel are in danger. We shed tears, pray,
recite Tehillim (psalms), and do mitzvot (commandments) such as learning Torah, lighting Shabbat candles,
donning tefillin (phylacteries) and giving tzedekah (charity). We
find ways to support Israeli soldiers and the people of Israel in their time of
need. We do not stand by idly as our brethren suffer.
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