Holy Spies

A dream lives within a people's mind for centuries. It begins as a promise to Abraham, "to your children I will give this land," continues through to Isaac and Jacob, and sustains a nation through two-hundred and ten years of slavery. This is the dream of a land, a land that G-d has chosen as his own, flowing with milk and honey, blessed with seven fruit. It is the land that holds the holiest city on earth, the land that holds the future site of the Holy Temple. It is the Land of Israel.

And yet in this week's Parshah when Moses sends spies to scout out this land so that, now, when G-d has finally told them that they are ready to enter it, they can conquer it swiftly and easily, they come back saying, we don't want to go, "it is a land that devours its people."

How can this be? For centuries the People of Israel yearned for their land, and finally when the moment comes, they are suddenly not interested?

The Torah tells us that the spies that Moses sent out were righteous individuals. So we must realize that their intent was pure and virtuous. How so? The Chassidic masters explain:

When the Jews were traveling in the desert, G-d pampered them--they lived in a sort of paradise. Clouds surrounded them to smooth out any irregularities in the ground, to shield them from the heat of the sun, to clear the path before them, to wash and tailor their clothing. Their food came down from the heaven, literally, in the form of Manna. They had no worldly concerns and were able to devote all their time to spiritual pursuits and the study of Torah.

When the spies came to the Land of Israel, they saw what real life is like. In order to live, man must work for his food: plow his field, sow the seeds, tend to the crop, and harvest the produce. He must grind the wheat, knead the dough, bake the bread. They thought, what a waste of time! All those valuable hours, wasted on these physical matters when they can be used to serve G-d. "It is a land that devours its people," they said, if we go there, it'll consume all our time and energies.

So they had pure intentions, they wanted to remain in their bubble of spirituality and serve G-d without any distractions.

But they were wrong. Because that is exactly what serving G-d is about. Living in this physical world, working it and interacting with it, and making it into a vessel for serving G-d.

Because yes, it's nice to live in the clouds, but if G-d desired to be served by angels, he could have left the Torah up in heaven. But He didn't. He brought the Torah down to this earth and gave it to us mortals, so we should live in this earth, work with it, and through it all, serve Him. That is true spirituality.

Timely Reminders:

This Shabbat is Shabbat Mevorchim-we bless the incoming month of Tammuz.

This Monday and Tuesday, June 26-27, will be Rosh Chodesh Tammuz. After the Shacharit amidah we read the incomplete Hallel, and recite the Musaf for Rosh Chodesh. Also, a special section, the Ya'aleh Viyavo, is inserted in the Amidah of all the prayers and the Grace after Meals.

On The Lighter Side...

Becky's husband dies. It was not until sometime after that Becky was finally able to speak about what a thoughtful and wonderful man her late husband had been.

"Sidney thought of everything," she told some friends. "Just before he died, Sidney called me to his bedside and handed me 3 envelopes."

"Becky," he told me, "I have put all my last wishes in these 3 envelopes. After I am gone, open them in sequence and do exactly as I have written. Only then can I rest in peace."

"What was in the 1st envelope?" her friends asked.

"It contained $5,000 with a note, 'Please use this money to buy me a nice coffin'. So I bought a beautiful mahogany coffin for him."

"The 2nd envelope contained $10,000 with a note, 'Please use this for a nice funeral'. I made Sidney a very dignified funeral and bought all his favorite foods for the Shiva, including some fine malt whisky."

"And the 3rd envelope?" asked her friends.

"The 3rd envelope contained $25,000 with a note, 'Please use this to buy a nice stone'. So I did."

Becky then held up her hand and pointed to her 5 carat diamond ring. "So," said Becky, "You like my stone?"