Tradition, Tradition – Tinkering With The Status Quo

Priorities!

“We’re having an open bar”

“Oh, and a wedding”

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Rabbi Avraham Korf (senior Shliach in the state of Florida) shared the following anecdote: “Rabbi Berel Baumgarten a”h, told me that R’ Shlomo Carelbach a”h was on Shlichus during the same period of time that he [Rabbi Baumgarten] was. It so happened that R’ Shlomo, who had a very powerful knack for Kiruv work, took the path that he took. This prompted R’ Berel, at some point, to ask the (Lubavitcher) Rebbe: ‘What security is there for anyone to remain on the proper path and not veer aside?’ To this the Rebbe answered him ‘As Men Folgt, Farkricht Men Nisht’ (when one listens/follows, one does not go astray).”

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Call it Judaism light, Orthodox light, Chassidic light, or any name you want, but you know it when you see it. What I’m referring to is the numerous newfangled trends within our traditional religious cultures.

What are we to make of all these, if only minor, modifications to our meticulous and painstakingly preserved spiritual systems? Does the fact that they appear to be only “Outer,” or “Minor,” make them Kosher?

This week we conclude the book of Bamidbar/Numbers with the double Parsha of Matos-Ma’asei. The beginning of Parsha of Matos (Chapter 32), finds the people encamped on the east side of the Jordan River preparing to enter and conquer the Promised Land of Canaan. In a strange twist of events, the tribal leaders of Reuven and Gad approach Moshe, Elazar and the heads of the community requesting to be allowed to settle on these lands rather than cross the Jordan and enter the Promised Land:

“The children of Reuven and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of livestock; and when they saw the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead, that indeed the region was a place for livestock, the children of Gad and the children of Reuven came and spoke to Moshe, to Elazar the priest, and to the leaders of the congregation, saying, ‘Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer… the country which the Lord defeated before the congregation of Israel, is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock. They said, “If it pleases you, let this land be given to your servants as a heritage; do not take us across the Jordan.”  (Numbers 32:1-5).

Moshe’s initial reaction is one of shock and indignation. He scolds them in scathing rebuke, accusing them of evoking disaster by discouraging the other Israelites, even as the ten spies discouraged them forty years earlier when they were about to enter into the promised land (Canaan). Only upon agreeing to leave their possessions behind and fight with the rest of the tribes to conquer the land, are they reluctantly granted their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan.

This is a fascinating episode, which, not unlike the other trials and tribulations of the forty year desert sojourn, contains much relevance for all of time, including our own. It identifies yet another fork in the road in man’s journey towards the Promised Land – the fulfillment of his Divine mission.

The infraction of Reuven and Gad is not quite as blatant and rebellious in nature as some of those portrayed earlier. It is unique by virtue of the fact that it entails a mindset that in no way aims to sever itself from G-d and His people. It actually appeals for Divine authorization and nod of approval, even as it attempts to break with the defined established agenda and status quo.

The broader nature of this infraction is to push the envelope on altering established religious observance and tradition to fit one’s own liking while remaining within the margins of the law. This more docile form of defiance could be very dangerous, perhaps even lethal. As mentioned above, this syndrome, which targets the spirit more than the law, finds expression in various forms in our present day and age. It lurks in many different communities on many different levels.

By its very nature, change is a highly sensitive matter when it comes to religion. Judaism, for good reasons, treats change with utmost suspicion, especially when it is initiated from the bottom up. After all, if our religion stems from G-d, who are we to improve upon it? Few are the times in our history as a people, that grass root change has been a positive phenomenon. Change in Judaism, to whatever extent it might be warranted, is meant to come from the top down, as opposed to the converse.

Historically it was only the supreme leadership, i.e., Moshe, Yehoshua, the profits, the collective body of the Great Assembly and acclaimed generational leaders, who possessed the authority to initiate a directional change within Judaism. It is needless to say that this authority is derived directly from the Torah: “According to the Torah which they [the Sages] teach you and according to the law which they expound to you, shall you act, you shall not turn from that which they tell you – neither right nor left,” (Devarim 17:11).

The Torah itself recalls a total of two incidences where change that was initiated by Israelite men and women was found to be favorable; one being Pesach Sheni – a second opportunity to bring the Pascal sacrifice for those who were originally unable. The other is the request from the daughters of Tzelafchad who wished to inherit their deceased fathers’ would-be portion in the land of Israel. Both of these cases the changes to the law were granted after a respectful appeal to the Almighty, via Moshe.

The tribes of Reuven and Gad did not fare as well. While their request was in the end granted, it was only grudgingly and only after a stern reprimand, in which Moshe bestows harsh criticism upon them.

The basic fallacy of the Reuvenites’ and Gaddites’ is that after all the intense longing for the Promised Land during the forty years in the wilderness; they were eager and willing to give up the Divine inheritance for, of all things, the sake of their cattle. They had ostensibly placed their monetary possessions above their spirituality.

When we think of wealth in our modern world, we typically consider houses and cars and businesses. In that time period wealth was measured mainly by the amount of livestock a man owned. They were hence putting material matters – corporeal pursuits and pleasures – in front of spiritual fulfillment and blessing.

Instead of embarking on the journey of faith towards supernatural growth and achievement, they chose fertile soil; the lush and well-watered fields, for their abundant cattle.

In the dialogue that ensued between them and Moshe (Numbers 32:16-24), the Reuvanites and the Gaddites spoke first and foremost of building “Sheepfolds here for our cattle,” and only then of “Cities for our little ones.” While Moshe agreed to let them settle on the eastern shore, he made sure to point out their improper priorities: “Build cities for your little ones, and [then] folds for your sheep,” he declares in his response to them.

Imagine how disappointing this was to Moshe. Driven for forty years – despite a sustained assortment of trials and tribulation – by the common and unifying mission of becoming a holy nation in a holy land with a holy purpose, the members of these tribes had, at the very end, all but lost their enthusiasm for the sanctity and significance of the mission; they have lost their sense of priorities. Their misguided values, however, did not come without a price.

Rashi (32:24) states that the tribes of Gad and Reuven did not return home to the Trans-Jordan until after the seven years of conquest and the seven years of apportionment. They remained in Israel for a full fourteen years. So what about those little children they left behind, who were, say, 3 or 4 years old? How old were they when their fathers returned home? Teenagers! Practically adults. How well did they fare?

The Midrash affirms that their fathers were shocked to find that their sons had long hair, that they were influenced and indistinguishable from their pagan neighbors. These men paid a very high price as a result of their misguided values. What seemed like no big deal in the beginning was in the end a very big deal.

It is extremely disappointing when our children don’t share the same love and passion for what we consider to be the most important matters of life; the very purpose of our existence. We can all relate to this pain and disappointment. It is, in fact, the theme of perhaps the most popular Jewish theatrical production ever: Fiddler On The Roof; the story of how the central character – Tevya, witnesses his three daughters move increasingly farther away from their indigenous “Tradition.”

Yet as painful and undesirable as it might be to witness a child falter from the way he or she was raised – to watch them abandon the values and traditions that we hold so sacred and dear – it is that much more adverse to watch the sprouting of organized factions that advocate and espouse meddling and tinkering with our pristine and sacred systems and traditions.

There is an important phenomenon in Judaism, known as “Pritzas Geder,” which literally means tearing an opening in a fence. What this means is that, regardless of one’s perceived interpretation of a given law and its validity and importance, there is sanctity in the status quo – the established tradition.

This framework serves as an invisible security fence that preserves the integrity of the Torah, even in those areas not explicitly covered by the Halachah (Law) itself. It helps guide us as to what is and what is not appropriate behavior. We call that framework “Mesorah,” a tradition handed down through the ages that helps protect the Torah and Mitzvos from the inroads of foreign or hostile surroundings. (The fence analogy is not inapt: he who breaks through certain religious boundaries is known in Halachah as a Poretz Geder, one who “Breaches the fence.”)

It would serve us well to consider the end of Reuven and Gad. In choosing to remain in Transjordan rather than enter the Promised Land, they found themselves settling close to the land of Moav, where they would end up falling into their ways again; worshiping the idols of the land. After falling away from G-d, we read in Melachim 2, 15:29 that they were eventually taken away as captive by the Assyrians, years before the other tribes were driven into exile. Perhaps their pushing the envelope to the limit didn’t bode them so well after all.

By taking this lesson to heart we will help preserve the purity of Judaism and Torah, which will in turn hasten the coming of the righteous Moshiach BBA.