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8 September 2018 28 5778 ends 8.19pm 7.31pm

Volume 30 No. 51 Nitzavim Artscroll p.1086 | p.1202 Hertz p.878 | Haftarah p.883 Soncino p.1138 | Haftarah p.1145

In loving memory of Yochanan ben Moshe

“I have placed and death before you, and curse; and you shall choose life, so that you will live, you and your offspring” ( 30:19). 1 NITZAVIM Vol.30 No.51.qxp_Layout 1 14/08/2018 11:42 Page 2

Sidrah Summary: Nitzavim

1st Aliya (Kohen) – Devarim 29:9-11 5th Aliya (Chamishi) – 30:7-10 On the last day of his life, Moshe gathers every After Israel’s return to God, His wrath will turn member of the nation, from the heads of the upon those enemies who persecuted her. tribes and the elders to the very young children. God will bless the nation like He blessed their forefathers, in “the fruit of your womb, Point to Consider: What was the background of the fruit of your animals and the fruit of your the ‘wood-hewers’ who were summoned by Land”. Moshe? (see to 29:10) 6th Aliya (Shishi) – 30:11-14 2nd Aliya (Levi) – 29:12-14 The is not hidden, nor is it so far away Moshe enters them into a with God, that it is inaccessible – it is not “in the heavens”, that they will be “a people to Him and He will be nor is it “across the sea”; Rather it is “very close” a God to them”, which He promised to Avraham, to us. Yitzchak and Yaakov. This covenant will be binding for future generations too. 7th Aliya (Shevi’i) – 30:15-20 God has placed “life and good, death and evil” 3rd Aliya (Shlishi) – 29:15-28 in front of the people, who are urged to “choose Moshe warns them against , which they life”. That means loving Him and walking in had witnessed during the Egyptian exile. His ways. Heaven and Earth are called to Forsaking the covenant will provoke God’s wrath bear witness to this responsibility and its and result in the Land being destroyed and the consequences. nation exiled. Haftarah Question: Which previous destruction is Taken from the book of Yeshaya, this is the referred to when warning that the Land could last of the seven ‘haftarot of consolation’ read be destroyed in the future? (29:22) Answer on after Tisha B’Av. The redemption will come, bottom of page 6. when Israel will be like “a bride who bedecks herself in her jewellery”. The nations of the world will recognise Israel’s splendour. Though (Revi’i) 4th Aliya – 30:1-6 sullied by the blood-stains of the struggles If the nation does indeed stray and is exiled, it of exile, the nation should always be aware will return to God “with all your heart and all your that God loves them and is guarding them. ”. God will have mercy upon the people, Eventually, Israel will be known as “the holy releasing them from their captivity and bringing people, the redeemed of God”. them in from wherever they have been dispersed. He will open the hearts of the nation to love Him wholeheartedly.

United Daf Hashavua Produced by US Living & Learning together with the Rabbinical Council of the United Synagogue Editor: Chaim Gross Editor-in-Chief: Rabbi Baruch Davis Editorial Team: Rabbi Daniel Sturgess, Michael Laitner, Sharon Radley Available also via email US website www.theus.org.uk ©United Synagogue To sponsor Daf Hashavua please contact Gila Howard on 020 8343 5699, or [email protected] If you have any comments or questions regarding Daf Hashavua please email [email protected]

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Nitzavim and by David Frei, Director of External and Legal Services for the United Synagogue

Parashat Nitzavim is abstinence and confessions of , but normally read on the how do reconcile the festive nature of the Yom Shabbat before Rosh Tov meals on Rosh Hashanah with the necessary Hashanah. In his halachic fear of judgement? compendium, the Tur, Rabbi Yaakov Ben Asher (d. 1343) The answer lies in a passage in the Book of sets out a mnemonic for the Nechemiah (chapter 8). read publicly from scheduling of the various the Torah and the people listening broke down in parshiyot. He uses the phrase ‘kumu vetik'u’ – tears. He told them not to mourn or weep, as it meaning ‘stand and blow’ – to emphasise that was Rosh Hashanah. Instead, he told them to eat parashat Nitzavim (which means ‘standing’) is sumptuously and drink sweet beverages “for the read the Shabbat before one blows the shofar joy of God is your strength”. The fact that they on Rosh Hashanah. mourned and wept showed that they were fearful of God's judgement and this itself became a Commentators through the ages have therefore cause for celebration. sought to find links between our parasha and the judgement process which takes place on Upon reflection, this is the message of the our New Year. opening verse of parashat Nitzavim: “You are all standing today before the Lord, your God” Rabbi Leib Chasman (the spiritual mentor of the (Devarim 29:9). Rashi (d. 1105) notes the Chevron Yeshiva, d.1931), in an address given juxtaposition of last week's parasha (), prior to the commencement of which was full of dire predictions as to what (penitential prayers), noted that all types of would befall the Jewish people if they were to transgressors, however severe their mistakes stray from the Torah, and the beginning of may have been, can find forgiveness from God Nitzavim. He says that upon hearing the curses through true repentance. However, Nitzavim of Ki Tavo, the nation panicked, wondering how describes one type of person who will not be they could possibly survive. The opening words forgiven. The Torah states that God will not of Nitzavim are Moshe's response – ‘you are still forgive a person who blithely ignores the around’. In other words, the mere fact that you prospect of punishment, "blessing himself" in his fear God's retribution is an acceptance of his heart that he will be immune from any retribution Kingship; this is the key to your salvation. (Devarim 29:18-19). May the coming year be filled with peace, That is why, on the first occasion that we say good health and prosperity for the whole selichot every year before Rosh Hashanah, we Jewish people. declare how the Jewish people "tremble and quake at the day of Your coming". We are accepting God's dominion and jurisdiction over us. Once we accept this jurisdiction and feel trepidation about the consequences of our transgressions, we can approach Rosh Hashanah with a positive attitude.

Many commentators question the dual nature of Rosh Hashanah. We can understand the

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Creative Jewish Education by Rabbi Yoni Birnbaum, Hadley Wood Jewish Community

The most popular TED Jewish education, if executed effectively, talk of all time was naturally lends itself to wonderful creativity. delivered in February Intellectually, we think of the vivid arguments 2016 by Sir Ken developed in the course of Talmudic learning. Robinson. To date, it has Throughout the Jewish year, there are been viewed over 40 tremendous opportunities for the use of creative million times, across talents, whether through succah building, some 160 countries. It innovative chessed ideas or formulating a was a talk about education, entitled Do Schools dynamic Seder experience. Kill Creativity? One challenge may be that it can get harder and The thrust of Robinson’s talk was that harder as children grow up. As the American intelligence is diverse, because we think in many political satirist P.J. O’Rourke put it, “you know different ways, such as visually, through sound, your children are growing up when they stop movement and in abstract. It is dynamic, as asking you where they came from and stop original ideas come about from the interaction of telling you where they are going…” many different ways of seeing things. Intelligence is also distinct, because people have their own Yet children play a major role in our future, and way of doing things. together we have a personal and communal responsibility to ensure that they carry the torch The problem with schools today, Robinson of our heritage forward. This year, as we pray for argues, is that to be creative means that you life on Rosh Hashanah, let us also strive to invest have to be willing to get things wrong, yet the more energy in creative Jewish education. Doing education system treats being wrong as the so could make a real difference to the future of worst possible thing. In doing so, the system our people. removes children’s natural urge to ‘give it a go’. When we think of education, according to Robinson, we should be thinking about creativity as much as we think about literacy. Not just sending children to school in order to attend university, but enabling their own creativity to flourish in order to help them succeed in an unknown future.

This is also a key perspective when faced with a very powerful directive of the Torah, which appears in this week’s sidrah: “Choose life – in a way that you and your descendants will live” (Devarim 30:19). When you choose your path in life, the Torah tells us, choose wisely. Think of the next generation: how will they live? What environment will they grow up in? How will they see practiced in the home?

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Navigating Difficult Get Cases Part 3: Sanctions – The Last Resort by Joanne Greenaway, Get Case Director at the London Beth Din

In the two previous articles, The way in which sanctions are implemented will we discussed the various always depend on the needs of the case, given strategies employed by the the personalities and communities involved. We London Beth Din to prevent have produced newspaper adverts, poster Get refusal cases from campaigns for local shops, shuls and homes and escalating and becoming formal notices circulated to Batei Din worldwide. intractable. However, we have Social media can be extremely effective at seen that obtaining the spreading a message and is particularly useful consent of a recalcitrant spouse can be very when a Get refuser is unaffiliated to a particular challenging. Inevitably, there are some spouses community. For US members, we can implement that evade any effort to reach a collaborative regulations which allow us to withdraw privileges resolution, irrespective of the time and effort of membership, including burial rights. This is an expended on working with them. There is effective and emotive sanction in many cases. therefore, unfortunately, a need for more draconian measures to be employed. Use of these sanctions requires awareness amongst the communities who implement them. We follow the precedent in Jewish law of We strive to increase understanding across the the ‘harchakot d’Rabbeinu Tam’ (literally ‘the community of the abusive elements of Get distancing methods of Rabbeinu Tam’) which refusal. We have a duty, on both a communal form the basis for social and communal and an individual level, to make it clear that sanctions. These direct us, when a Beth Din Get refusal is not tolerated and, importantly, has ruled in a case of Get refusal, not to accept to provide every possible support for the victims a Get refuser into synagogue, nor to host him or of Get refusal in what can be a painful and do business with him. People sometimes isolating experience. question how these instructions fit within a compassionate religion. However, it clearly says We have been able, through the threat or use of in the that: “he who is compassionate to such sanctions, to be able to solve many difficult those who are cruel, becomes cruel to the Get cases. Nonetheless, our approach is that compassionate”. This approach is premised on prevention is better than cure and we strive to the fact that abuse of the Get process is prevent new cases of Get refusal from arising. unacceptable and that a woman has a right to We are careful to clearly communicate our remarry and move on with her life. expectations of proper behavior right from the outset – that a Get should be dealt with as early These sanctions were introduced in the 12th as possible, that a civil divorce need not be century by Rabbeinu Tam (d. 1171), grandson of completed prior to a Get and that, ultimately, we Rashi and the leading halachic authority of his have sanctions at our disposal which may time. This approach is more moderate than that unfortunately need to be invoked. of (the Rambam d. 1204), which allows, when necessary, to physically beat someone until he gives the Get. In any event, such an approach is clearly not acceptable within our criminal justice system. We ensure that we always work both within clear halachic parameters and clear legal parameters.

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The Life of Hess 1: A Purpose and a Programme by Rabbi Jeremy Lawrence, Finchley United Synagogue

This year, as we mark Engels to communism. Hess’ influence is evident 70 years since the founding in the 1848 Communist Manifesto. of the State of Israel, much has been written Over the 1843-48 period, Hess moved between about the dramatic and Paris, Zurich and Brussels. He wrote many miraculous changes in the articles for radical publications, including his over the past 1846 Kommunitsiches Bekenntnis in Fragen und 150 years or so. Antworten, a Communist Credo FAQ.

By way of introduction, in a eulogy given on July After the European revolutions of 1848, Hess 3 1904 to mark the death of Theodor Herzl, Rabbi moved back to Geneva, where he headed the Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook (d. 1935), first League of Communists. He continued to travel Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of the Land of Israel, and write. The Prussians sought to arrest him. He implied that although Herzl was secular, his work was expelled from Belgium and in 1853 came in progressing the physical and material well- back to Paris. being of the Jewish nation gave him messianic stature. The seeds of redemption can be sown in He began a correspondence with the German unexpected places. Jewish historian Heinrich Graetz and later translated a volume of Graetz’s History of the With Rabbi Kook’s words in mind, this series will into French. reflect on another man’s contribution to the cause. As one of the early Zionist visionaries, In 1860 he started writing Rome and Jerusalem. Moses Hess is often referred to as a “precursor” The second chapter begins: to Zionism. His life was unusual, his writings “The great teachers of the knowledge of God remarkable. His father was a Rabbi and his wife (if were always Jews. Our people… created the they did marry) was a Catholic. His friends and noblest religion of the ancient world, a religion literary collaborators were Marx and Engels. which is destined to become the common Moses Hess was born in Bonn in 1812. As a property of the entire civilized world… The ‘end teenager he moved to Cologne, where he mixed of days’, so often spoken of by the Prophet with the Young Hegelians, venerating reason denotes the period when the development and and freedom. In the late 1830s, he became a education of humanity will reach their highest passionate socialist, writing anonymous treatises point. We are on the eve of the Sabbath of anticipating a socialist Europe. History and should prepare for our last mission through a thorough understanding of our In 1840, thirteen Jewish notables in Damascus historical religion”. were imprisoned and tortured for the alleged murder of a monk. This was a turning point in Rome and Jerusalem was published in 1862. Hess’ life, about which he later wrote: “No more Hess resumed writing about workers, unaware did I seek to suppress the voice of my Jewish that he had just triggered an entirely unexpected consciousness, but on the contrary, I carefully revolution. followed up its traces”.

In 1841, Hess met Karl Marx, who was in his early 20s. Together they collaborated on the

Rheinische Zeitung, a liberal paper, which Hess

edited. He also introduced the young Friedrich 19:24-25) Beresihit (see Answer: Sedom, Amorah, Admah and Tsevoim and Admah Amorah, Sedom, Answer:

In memory of Frida Mirel bat Chaim Simcha 6 NITZAVIM Vol.30 No.51.qxp_Layout 1 14/08/2018 11:42 Page 7

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