Parashat
Shoftim
4
Elul 5774 / 29-30 August 2014
Torah:
Deuteronomy 16:18 - 21:9
Haftarah: Isaiah 51:12
- 52:12 (Fourth Haftarah of Consolation)
For full
Calendar of Events and lots of information about our community, check out our
web site at: http://www.bethmeier.org/
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THE MIDDLE
OF THE ROAD
"Thus
(the king) will not act haughtily to his fellows or deviate to the right or to
the left from the commandment ..." Deuteronomy 17:20
In the
verses preceding the above, the king is instructed to always have a
personally written copy of the Torah at his side and to study it all his
life. It is to serve as a constant guide to him, to keep him from
straying off the path that is commanded in the opening verses of this
parashah ("Justice, justice you shall pursue" - 16:20 - found at the
entrance to the US Supreme Court)
The past
few years have seen an increasing coarseness and shrillness in our “civil”
discourse. Whether discussing political or economic issues, matters of war and
peace, local or international concerns, we seem to be losing our way in the
manner in which we treat each other. “Respect” is merely a word. Those in
power, those who seek power, and those who support them, at any level of
society, more and more often treat those with whom they disagree as the enemy
of all that is right and good. Extreme rhetoric begets extreme positions beget
extreme conduct - it’s a dangerous path.
It is
worth remembering that the Torah has a different approach to how rulers ought
to exercise their authority. Staying between the lines of right and
left, traveling down the middle of the lane - that is the way to
go. What happens when a driver goes too far to the right or to the
left? A wreck!
The staking
out of extreme positions to placate a "base" is the exact opposite of
what the Torah instructs. Look at the road - the lanes are wide - the
boundary lines at the edges are narrow. This is why Rambam teaches in
Hilchot De'ot (Laws of Character Traits) 1:3 - "The two extremes of each
trait, which are distant from each other, do not make a proper path. It is
improper for a man to follow them or to teach them to himself." This
applies not only to our rulers, but to each and every one of us!
Extreme
moderation - that is the rule of the road.
Shabbat
Shalom!
Rabbi
Richard A. Flom - ZSRS '00
Congregation
Beth Meier
Studio
City, CA
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PROGRAM
NOTES:
1. Beth
Meier RELIGIOUS SCHOOL will commence Sunday, September 7, at 9:30 am. There has
been NO increase in fees for this year. Please contact Rabbi Flom or the Beth
Meier office at (818) 769-0515, or email office@bethmeier.org
for information and registration.
2. Beth
Meier is sponsoring “Team Selma” for a 5K walk/run in the race to defeat
ovarian cancer on Sunday, September 14. We hope as many members, including our
Religious School students and their families, will join in.
Info at: http://www.ovariancancerrun.com/
3. Please
get your membership and High Holy Day ticket forms and fees in to Beth Meier at
your earliest convenience. Yontiff waits for no one!
CALENDAR:
Candle lighting: 7:04 pm
Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Join us for a joyful
service, followed by Oneg Shabbat.
Saturday: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Light Kiddush lunch
follows.
Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – 12:00 noon.
This d'var torah is offered
in memory of my sister-in-law, Janis Devorah Kronzek, whose yahrzeit falls on 7
Elul (Tuesday). May her memory be a blessing.
This d'var
torah is offered in honor of Isaac Echeto, becoming a bar mitzvah this
Shabbat. Mazal tov!
This d'var
torah is offered in honor of Barry Glass, Kerry Katz, Beck Saunders,
Melinda Trauman, and Warrren Trauman, for conducting services this Shabbat in
my absence. Y’yasher kochakhem!
This d'var
torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya,
Sarah Mindel bat Toby, Bonnie Baird, Elsbet Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Dr.
Samuel Fersht, Jerry Forman, Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Jeannie Kottler,
Gail Neiman, and Annie Rivera.
Please let
me know if there is anyone you would like to add to the refuah shleimah list or
if there is anyone who may be removed from the list.
My weekly
divrei torah are also available via the Cyber
Torah e-mail list.
Cyber
Torah list management (no
salesman will call!):
To subscribe
to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah”
to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
Send requests
for dedications of Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of a loved
one or for a refuah shleimah to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an
e-mail with the subject heading “Unsubscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
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