Rabbi's Blog

Every year Beth Jacob puts out a beautiful calendar for all members and other interested people both in San Diego and throughout the country. The calendar contains the basics of any standard calendar: the month, days of the week, and year. Alongside the secular dates,  our calendar also includes the Hebrew calendar. Included with the two synthesized dates – secular and Hebrew, are the candle-lighting times for the start of each Shabbos and Yom Tov, the davening times and additional secular and Jewish holidays. One of the major events of the year is the annual spring picnic. This past week everyone who attended had a terrific time which consisted of eating wonderful grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, socializing, ball playing, hill-climbing, and just having lots of fun.  There was no davening or learning, yet everyone got credit for coming to ‘Shul’!

Throughout the afternoon we  all joked, making facetious cracks about how  people enjoy the social side of getting together as opposed to the religious things we do in Shul, particularly on Shabbos. As I thought about this a little more seriously, I realized how special and unique our members are for understanding and appreciating enjoying each other’s company in a secular, non-holy environment outside of the Shul. Shul is not the place to socialize, play ball, bring pets and simply shmooz and socialize together. It takes good, smart people to not only recognize that certain activities are appropriate in Shul while other activities are not. Focusing on the physical and social events outside of Shul while keeping the appropriate holiness inside Shul, Beth Jacob has shaped a close, cohesive and growing cross-generational community which was so evident at last Sunday’s picnic.

I often remark that the Shul is the spiritual Jewish Community Center. The JCC is the community center to gather on a Sunday and the other weekdays to work on our physical life, while the Beis HaKnesses is also the JCC – the spiritual Jewish Community Tzenter - the tenth man representing the need for a minyan for Tefillah/ prayer. One of the most important lessons a person needs to attain in life is knowing when and where is it appropriate to do things. The Shul’s role is for Ruchniyus/spirituality while the JCC and other Shul outings may be for Gashmiyus/physicality. The distinction and importance of this segregation is paramount to keeping the holiness of the Jewish people. This is not only mentioned in this week’s parsha; it is emphasized in a rare way.

In this week’s Parsha B’har Vayikra 26:2, the Torah states “Es Shabbsosai Tishmoru V’Es Mikdashi Tiraoo, Ani Hashem” - “My Sabbaths shall you observe and My sanctuary shall you revere – I am Hashem”.  The verse links Shabbos to the Sanctuary. What is the significance of the two together?  I would like to suggest that the Sanctuary of today is the Synagogue, and Shabbos is the primary day that we all gather there. Any time people congregate, the chance of sin and wrong doing escalates. *Rabbi Avraham Sabba, in his commentary Tzror Hamor, points out that a Shul is a melting pot of Jews from all different backgrounds. People come from different socio-economic levels, differences in observance and differences in their genetic and cultural make-up. Therefore, the Torah warns us to be careful to avoid dissension in Shul, especially on Shabbos and Yom Tov, times when many gather together.

Researching this passuk, I have discovered something fascinating. How many pesukim are there in the Torah that are identical besides “And Hashem spoke to Moshe thus saying?”  Lo and behold this same, identical verse appears not too much earlier in Vayikra 19:30.  The concept of repetition in Jewish thought is used to describe the end of something as when we repeat the last verse of a chapter or a sefer and then repeat someone’s name. In the case of Avraham Avinu, God called out and said, “Avraham, Avraham!” and the commentaries explain that this is a term of endearment. I believe such is the case here as well. Two of the top things Hashem savors are Shabbos, which reminds the world of creation, and the gathering of His people in the ‘Mikdash’, the Sanctuary where He is found more than anyplace else. Therefore, careful instructions are issued to safeguard Shabbos and to be in awe of the Sanctuary. 

The fusion of Shabbos and the Mikdash is discussed in the Talmud. The Gemara Kiddushin 81a states in the name of Avin “Sakva D’Shata Rigla” The sore spot of the year is Yom Tov. Artscroll notes Yom Tov is a sore spot because people dress in attractive clothing, indulge in eating and drinking, and have more idle time on Yom Tov, making it more likely to be tempted to commit transgressions. It is interesting to note that in both places the Torah discusses some form of idolatry. The Midrash Me’or Afeila on this passuk says the Torah juxtaposed the safeguarding of Shabbos and idolatry in order to teach us that whoever embarrasses or despises Yom Tov and Shabbos is akin to worshipping Avodah Zarah.

This emphasis calls our attention to proper behavior. It is especially important to point this detail out particularly in our day and age when there are so few boundaries left which separate the holy from the non-holy. It is critical to create time, place and activity for the mundane things that we enjoy and in which we should participate, with the caveat, of course, that the activities are proper and appropriate. Once we know that the fun and games are relegated to the picnics and such we, in turn, come to the realization that when we walk into Shul our primary focus and goal is to create and enhance the special relationship we have with God.

With this recognition we will be able to experience the promise that all of the Batei Knesios and Batei Medrashim who acted properly will be relocated to Eretz Yisrael where we will experience the rebuilding of the third Beis HaMikdash in Yerushalayim Ir HaKodesh!

Ah Gut Shabbos

Rabbi Avraham Bogopulsky

* Rabbi Avraham Sabba was born in Castile in 1440 and spent the first 50 years of his life in the regions of Spain where Jews lived in prosperity and security. His genius is evident from the manner in which he selected hundreds of quotations from the Zohar, the most famous mystical text, demonstrating that the author of the Zohar is capable of being understood by the average Jew, (as opposed to scholars) and that the Zohar is helpful in understanding many difficult passages in the Torah. 

Rabbi Sabba was forced to flee  to Portugal in 1492 and then to North Africa in 1497 following persecution and witnessing many members of his family die for kiddush hashem. He had to rewrite this commentary completely from memory, as in Fez, Morocco he had no library at his disposal. He died on a ship bound for Italy and was buried in Verona in 1510.