Moshe Burt


It's been just over a year since Prime Minister Sharon revealed to us all the full extent of his betrayal of those who have supported him for decades. He bulldozed upon us his evil decree -- the attempted evacuation of Gaza, the abandonment of part of The Land of Israel, the expulsion of Jews from Gush Katif and making a part of Eretz Yisrael Yudenrein.

And about the same time as Sharon hatched his evil drecree, we had an Earthquake rated over 5 on the Richter scale where suddenly floors, doors, windows and whole buildings shook, rattled and rolled. I had my first exposure to what Californians know quite well.  I remember that my building vibrated severely, seemed to lerch forward and then back and felt as if it would collapse.

We read each day in Pesukei D'Zimrah (The praises of G'd), "He balks at the designs of peoples.  Many designs are in man's heart, but the counsel of Hashem -- only it will prevail."   And so we watch yet another Gezeira Rah of making Eretz Yisrael Yudenrein pronounced by yet another Torah-distant government.  The unending list of Gezeirot Rah is long as to reach to the sky -- Oslo, Oslo 2, Chevron, Wye, dismantlement, disengagement, withdrawal, evacuation, bulldozing, unilateral Seperation or Security Fence (a useless, senseless, costly Israel-style Maginot Line obscenity to be read as Political Border) ... 

"...The counsel of Hashem -- only it will prevail."

And so I thought to equate the two contrasts, the designs of man and the will of Hashem, to our Parsha where Yithro makes suggestions to Moshe regarding the legal system for upholding Torah Law, it's enactment, enforcement and judgement.

We learn that when Yithro observed Moshe as he sat and judged amongst the entire B'nai Yisrael from sun-up until sundown each day, he appealed to Moshe to set up an efficient system of Judges and representation whereby Moshe's judgement duties would be delegated to his Talmidim, his disciples who would hear the bulk of the cases with only the difficult cases coming before Moshe
as the Judge of final appeal.

Yithro called for the appointment "...of able men, G'd-fearing men, men of truth, hating profit and place them over the people, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens."  (Sh'mos, Perek 18, posuk 21)  Four posukim later, we learn that "Moshe chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people..."(Sh'mos, Perek 18, posuk 25) On the omission of "G'd-fearing men" in this later posuk, the Ibn Ezra notes that "this is obvious, and the Torah did not mention 'G'd-fearing men' because only Hashem knows what is in man's heart." (Torah Gems Volume 2, page 131.)  I believe this knowledge to be what constitutes Intent.

I'll give a Mashal (a story or illustration) here.   I have, for the past year and a half, been learning Hilchos Shabbos in the Pirchei Shoshanim Program under the auspices of my Shul in Ramat Beit Shemesh.

We have learned two definitions very early on relating to issurim, violations of the Laws of Shabbos.  These terms are B'Shogaig; an accidental or unintentional violation of Shabbos dinim (laws) and B'Maizid; intentional or purposeful violations.  As we learn through the various sections on the laws of Shabbos, we distinguish Rabbinic fences built around the laws to protect us from the tendency of human nature to take leniencies, permitted under unusual circumstances,
and to project them (the leniences) into standard practice or intent contrary to the divine intent of the Laws of Shabbos. 

And we find that the issue of intent is spread throughout Halacha, in Tefillah, in our interactions with others, in the performance of Mitzvot and Chesed.  Are we acting with intent of al Kiddush Hashem (as to bring favor upon Hashem's name), in Yirat Hashem (in awe of Hashem), Ahavat Hashem (love of Hashem) in any particular matter or are we acting out of a narrow intent of self-interest,
self-enrichment, kavod (honor and influence for one's self)?   A friend of mine back in Chutz L'Aretz would relate to intent in asking if an action was "for the right reason."

And when it comes the current crop of "Leaders", the "...rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties..." of Medinat Yisrael; when they abrogate both their responsibility to make secure the people they rule over and their responsibility to possess the Eretz Yisrael which Hashem gave us, is their intent based on Pikuach Nefesh, or a poor self-image as grasshoppers in fear of nations, or is their intent fueled by base corruption, ill-gotten profits (i.e. Sharon's
and Weisglass's hopes for a Gaza Casino and their pockets lined with profits), self-perpetuation of their positions and a total disdain for the security of the people they lead and for the Land, without which they have no power, no little empires? 

Or is it, as alleged in an article written by an attorney which hit my email log this week, that Sharon and his sons are owned, lock, stock and barrel, in a bloodless Coup D'Etat, by the Labor Party, by Shimon Peres, by the leftist/socialist-dominated ministries and institutions of Israel?  Has Sharon, as alleged, meekly submitted to blackmail, at the nation's expense in order to avoid, or evade his and his sons' prosecutions for a variety of corruption, bribery and breach of public trust charges??  After all, his explanations, his rationale for "disengagement" from Gaza and part of the Shomron make no sense and run counter to all wisdom regarding an avowed enemy bent on our destruction and eradication.  To act in a way of endangering the security of the nation he leads is an out-and-out dereliction of duty -- the stuff of court-martials and impeachments in a normal, constitionally balanced government.

And it seems more than coincidental that this past week has seen the disclosure of 2 additional dangerous precedents; the revelation that college students learning in Israel's Yeshivot for college credit towards a degree will have that degree disallowed by the Ministry of Education should they later make Aliyah, and the announced disbanding of Hesder and Chareidi Army units.  It seems more and more apparent what the Prime Minister's true intent is.

As the Ibn Ezra says, "the Torah did not mention 'G'd-fearing men' because only Hashem knows what is in man's heart." (Torah Gems, Aharon Yaakov Greenberg, Parsha Yithro, page 131)

In the merit of our collective unity, emunah and actions,  may we ALL be zocha to have our Tefillah reach Shemayim, unimpeded, ungarbled.  As Rabbi Moshe Ungar would say each Thursday evening at his Gemara Shuir back in Phildelphia, in "the old country", B'Ezrat Hashem, may we be zocha to demand, to compel Hashem to do "what he wants to do, to bring us the Moshiach and the Ge'ula Shlaima, "bimhayro b'yameinu -- speedily, in our time." 

May we see an end to low, dirty politics, political equivocation, perfidy and false cheshbonot; freedom and long life in Eretz Yisrael for Jonathan Pollard and special merit for our brethren currently subject to police harrassment, political interrogation and political persecution. 

May we see the "Yom Hashem Al Kol HaGoyim" Achshav -- Immediately, Chik Chuk, Miyad, Etmol!!

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Moshe Burt, an Oleh, is a commentator on news and events in Israel and Founder and Director of  the Sefer Torah Recycling Network.  He lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh.
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