Ve'ethchanan: (The Quality of )Mercy

Ve'ethchanan: (The Quality of )Mercy

The parsha opens with Moshe's plea to enter the Promised Land, to obtain the reward the he had hoped for. The plea is rejected. 

"None like Moshe will arise again in Israel."  This is a line in Yigdal, the devotional hymn that opens the daily prayer  service.  Even Moshe-  who talked to Gd, who wrote the Torah, who overcame his dread and led the Israelites out of Egypt - does not obtain the prize he had hoped for. 

Most of the remainder of the parsha  is an exhortation to follow the commandments... so that you will obtain the reward.  If  you scrupulously carry out the mitzvoth, you will prosper in the land.  We, who cannot conceive of  the purity that Moshe attained will receive  as  payment for our puny actions and abstentions, that which was denied our foundational leader!  That is hard to believe!

Actually, the situation is different.  Entry into the land was not promised to Moshe.  For him, participating in the conquest of the Canaanite lands was a codicil, not part of the original contract.  For the audience of the parsha, life in the land of milk and honey is the basis of the agreement.  The parsha  is merely pointing out the conditions for fulfillment of the contract.  The Ten Commandments and the Shema are the way to avoid a breech. 

The plea, tachanun, is a request to go beyond the prior agreement.  What is the message of Gd's refusal to do so for Moshe?   How poignant  is the plea of  Portia in the Merchant of Venice?  What does our Tachanun mean, when Moshe's is rejected?

Do not expect anything that is not stated in writing.  But you can still ask. 

The quality of mercy is not strained;
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
‘T is mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown:
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
But mercy is above this sceptred sway;
It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God’s
When mercy seasons justice. Therefore, Jew, 
Though justice be thy plea, consider this,
That, in the course of justice, none of us
Should see salvation: we do pray for mercy;
And that same prayer doth teach us all to render
The deeds of mercy. I have spoke thus much
To mitigate the justice of thy plea;
Which if thou follow, this strict court of Venice
Must needs give sentence ‘gainst the merchant there.

Dvarim: Encouragement

In Dvarim. Moshe tells his version of  the events.  These are the words that Moshe said.    Geography dominates the context.  The tale is all about the approach to the Promised land and the (incidental)  conquest of  the neighboring lands of Sichon and Og. 

The drama of  the Exodus from Egypt is not mentioned.  The story begins  at Horeb ( Sinai?),in a tone of impatience. Gd told Moshe that the Israelites had stayed long enough  at that mountain.  It was time to take the 11 day journey to border of  the Promised Land. 

 How much will Gd do for the people and how much must they do for themselves?  It is reasonable to send scouts into the land to discover the paths and the obstacles. Success is far more likely if the army is prepared.  There will always be unknowns and victory will depend upon many unpredictables, but good  data can be very helpful.  To march forward on faith would be like  artificial intelligence, relying on the  previously established correlation.  Up until now, when Israel was faced with overwhelming odds against them, they emerged victorious.  But Moshe does not even mention the plagues and the splitting of the sea.  

Sending scouts morphed into humans taking the lead with  Gd  in the background.  The people could not realistically prevail over nations of giants, ensconced in their own territories, in a toxic land. Their model predicted defeat.  They would not rely on the data derived from their past experiences.  Gd would not abide this error. 

Thirty eight years later, Moshe looks around.  The descendants of Esau have taken Seir from giants, the descendants of  Lot have displaced supermen.  The Israelites can do likewise.  The first Rashi in Bereshith  is brought to mind. The earth belongs to Gd, its creator.  Gd places nations, regardless of  prior habitation. This is a very uncomfortable idea for a modern American ( after the Indian wars, the Spanish American War, the Conquistadors,  Napolean, ...).  Sometimes, I just  need to deal with my discomfort. 

Moshe encourages  the people.  He gives them courage, he stirs them to hope, an insubstantial that can vanquish great enemies. 

I use the lesson in my medical practice.  I see patients who have poor chances of survival. It would be arrogant to claim knowledge sufficient to say that the situation is hopeless.  My mother, a survivor despite terrible odds, used to say: " Where there is life there is hope."  The odds are never so poor that there is no room for hope.  But if there is no hope ... 

Matos-Massei: Adjustments

What a nice word - adjust:  ad toward, just correct. The law , especially this law from Sinai, is set in stone.  On the plains of Moav, some adjustments are made.  Situations are handled, requests are considered, valid interests are balanced

The Israelites are a collection of tribes, twelve states and a unifying tribe of Levi. This combination of nationhood and tribalism is familiar.  The United States, and many, if not most, other countries are organized into this dynamic tension. There are issues that divide and issues that unify.   Although it always leads to a level of conflict, the dynamic tension between them  fosters growth. 

The tribes of Reuben and Gad make a request. Perhaps they had mustered the courage to approach Moshe, Aaron and the elders from the success of the daughters of Zelophchod. They had seen how even a revolutionary request had not only been treated with respect, it had actually been  granated!

  From their perspective, staying on the newly conquered land east of the Jordan, an area destined to be "The Territories"  makes perfect sense.  These tribes  can put this land, suitable only for grazing, not fertile enough for farming, to its best use, its maximum productive efficiency.  Herding their sheep and cattle on this  arid land was the best possible application. Wouldn't that be good for everyone? 

From the national point of view, this is a secession.  The power of a unified army  had just been demonstrated in the Midian War.  Was that army going to be reduced by 17%?   Would more young men from the remaining 10 tribes die in battle while those of  Reuben and Gad grew rich in their lone star state? 

Moshe makes an agreement with the Confederate tribes.  They can settle the eastern territories, but the army must be unified and they will contribute their share. This accord becomes the paradigm  of the halachic contract.  The conditions for fulfillment are clearly defined, the actions that constitute breech are spelled out, and the consequences for non-fulfillment are established ( and not excessively punitive).  This is the section of the Torah that spawns lawyers.

The law is an ass.  It must be goaded into justice