david

David’s Corner – September 5, 2002

by David's Corner

You Man Think You are a Big Shot

You may think you’re a big shot in battle

When you’ve captured a beautiful woman

And that she is yours to possess immediately

But don’t even consider it.

Instead, take her into your household,

Change her captive’s clothes to clean ones,

Pedicure and manicure her, 

So she begins to feel human again.

Allow her a month to mourn her parents.

Then you can make your move and marry her.

If after lovemaking you discover in your heart

That you’re no longer interested in her,

Show some class:

Don’t turn her into a slave

By selling her for money.

Release her immediately.

david

David’s Corner – August 22, 2022

by David's Corner

One God of Israel, yes. Polytheist Canaanites, no.

Follow only the laws of the One God

Smash all altars to pagan gods

And destroy any Canaanite who builds one.

Eat nothing that is abhorrent, because 

It reflects  the disgusting unholy diet of Canaanites.

(For a complete list consult a priest)

Don’t let the Levites go hungry

Nor the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow

Observe the laws of remission:

When Jubilee rolls around

Make sure your freed kinsman has been furnished 

From the flock, the threshing floor and vat

So he can get started.

Remember you were once slaves in Egypt

And the Lord redeemed you.

Observe the festival of Passover in Abib (Nissan)

And let the Lord determine where the sacrifice will take place.

Eat no leavened bread during the festival.

Count off seven weeks and then count your blessings!

david

David’s Corner – August 15, 2022

by David's Corner

Moses said:

Fear Adonai, not your enemies.

Your enemies lack laws and practices

That can serve a society.

They are focused only on their wicked ways, 

So Adonai will help you destroy them,

No matter that they greatly outnumber you.

Be disciplined and focus instead on keeping

The laws and commandments that

Adonai has given you.

If you follow them, 

You will live a prosperous life

In the ancient land

Adonai has promised you.

If you don’t follow them,

Your life will be that of 

Famine, misery, and eventual dispersion.

It is your choice.

Choose wisely.

david

David’s Corner – August 8, 2022

by David's Corner

Moses Connects With His People

And Moses let down his guard as he spoke

To his people in his own voice:

I feel your frustration and I must tell you I too

I have experienced that feeling,

For I have wanted badly to join the young generation

In Canaan.

I wanted the Lord to rescind his decree and allow me

To pass with you.

He not only said no, but ordered me never

To discuss the subject with him again.

You know, there are times I feel desperate

About this still,

But then I remember how wondrous

Our one God is.

We may enjoy all the elements and nature around us,

But we need pray only to him in thanks

Through discipline we can jettison our polytheistic

Past and focus on our becoming

A special and unique people

Who loves and serves this one deity,

By following laws that will allow us

To survive from generation to generation.

How marvelous it is that these rules and commandments

Will outlive me and my siblings.

Recognize that I want only the best for you.

The leaving of Egypt will only matter

If we can choose the path

That allows us to prosper and

Experience a profound contentment.

I want you to choose this life

Instead of chasing after trash

And doing nothing but complain

To a God you will obey

Only if that God satisfies your selfish ends.

No wonder God has been so angry with you!

HIs impatience is rooted in your perpetually

Repeating the same errors in thinking and behavior.

Speaking for myself, I have grown exhausted

Having to be the intermediary between you and him.

Begging for mercy as yet another plague

Whisks away another ten thousand of your fellow Israelites.

What will you do when I am gone?

What if the Lord decides no longer

To hang out from his cloud

And never speaks to us again?

Will you continue to be like small children

And whine until all hours,

Or will you choose to act like responsible adults?

My people, for the next few weeks while I still live

I will serve you by reviewing  all that has

Transpired in a way I hope you will understand.

I will speak from my heart

And hope you will listen with yours.

Shema Yisroel….

david

David’s Corner – August 1, 2022

by David's Corner

Moses begins his review

I,  Moses, now speak directly to my people

To remind them of all that has transpired

Since the Exodus

And what now is expected of them.

Do not make the same mistake

The last generation made,

When they refused Adonai’s command

To take the Land promised to them.

That refusal resulted in 40 years wandering 

From encampment to encampment

With no hope of ever entering the land.

Now Adonai is commanding you 

A second time to take the land.

When Adonai tells you to fight, 

What will you do?

Will you merely hanker for land you crave?

Or will you fight alongside your brothers?

If you fight like that, you will win.

David’s Corner – July 25, 2022

by David's Corner

Watch what you vow!

According to the Torah

If you’re a man, every vow you make, shall stand.

If you are a young woman, still in your father’s house,

Your father can object on the day he finds out, and 

the vow shall not stand.This is not a policy based on sexism.

Rather, it recognizes the immaturity and vulnerability of youth.

If, you, a woman are married while the vow you’ve taken is in
effect,

And your partner objects on the day he finds out,

The vow shall not stand.

This promotes intimacy, for sharing with your partner

Sooner rather than later recognizes trust in the partnership.

But don’t mess around.

If your husband fails to object on the day he finds out,

The vow shall stand, for both of you are responsible now.

The same is true if you are a widow or a divorced woman

You are a mature woman of some experience and know the rules,

So whatever you vow shall stand.

Watch what you vow!

David’s Corner – July 18, 2022

by David's Corner

Discipline maintains focus

No sooner had the Israelites defeated their foes

 

Then they decided to celebrate by fornicating with Moabite women.

 

God responded by inflicting yet another plague and hundreds died.

 

Pincus, Aaron’s grandson, picked  up a spear

 

And crying, “Enough of this self-sabotage,”

 

Pierced an Israelite and his Moabite lover.

 

The plague stopped and God praised Pincus

 

For understanding that the cycle of victory, 

 

Followed by undisciplined mischief could not stand.

 

Focus turned to naming Joshua, son of Nun 

 

As Moses’s successor with a worthy ritual.

 

With Eleazar, son of the departed Aaron,

 

In place as the Head Cohen,

 

The sacrificial calendar was reviewed,

 

With a precise focus not only on the daily sacrifice rituals,

 

But also on those rituals that marked special festivals each year.  

 

A full accounting of the animals to be sacrificed was made.

 

With that the parasha named for Pincus became a lodestar

 

For centuries to come.

David’s Corner – July 11, 2022

by David's Corner

The Donkey

Tossed to and fro

Pulling to the opposite

Side that Balaam did.

The donkey had been this agitated before,

But never before had he been able to say,

In a human tongue:

“You silly man!

What kind of prophet are you

To force a donkey 

To do your will?”

“And what kind of donkey 

Are you to speak to me

In my tongue?” responded Balaam.

“I’ve brayed at you for years,

But you never listened,” said the donkey.

“Now that I can speak in a human tongue

Would you like to know what I think?”

“I care not what you think!” said Balaam 

“I am waiting for God to tell me

Whether I should curse or not curse

The tribes of Israel.

“And why do you think I can 

Speak at all?” said the donkey.

“Hasn’t it occurred to you

That God is speaking 

This moment through me?

You can waste your time

Pulling me to and fro as usual

Or you can listen to what 

I have to say.”

Balaam sighed.  “So tell me”

“You are not to curse the people of Israel.

Rather, you are to bless them.”

“Bless them?  Really?

That cantankerous people?

You cannot possibly be God 

If you are suggesting such a thing.”

With that, Balaam’s foot 

Was caught in the stirrup

And he fell off the donkey,

Who dragged the prophet along

Until Balaam cried for mercy.

The donkey was succinct.

“You are to bless the Israelites.

And you must not reveal your source.

If you do, your King Balak 

And his entourage will chase you away,

Thinking you a madman

For even suggesting a donkey could speak.”

“But you have spoken just now!” cried  Balaam.

In response, the donkey simply brayed

But he did let Balaam dust himself off

And climb back on.

It was some distance from 

Where Balaam needed to be

To report God’s decision

And he needed to arrive before sunset,

For it would soon be shabbat.

 

david

David’s Corner – July 4, 2022

by David's Corner

Respect and Disrespect

When you consider how disrespectful

Korach, Dathan, and Abiram were toward Moses 

And by extension to Adonai,

It isn’t hard to discern a certain relief in their destruction.

But what about Adonai insisting on correct sacrificial ritual

For an animal that may not even exist?

Maybe by respecting a “red cow,”

We are respecting Adonai’s wishes

Without really having to know why.

It is like a blank check of trust

That may come in handy

When deeper concerns come up,

Such as the difficult reality of handling

The impurity of dead bodies.  

Not only are the Israelites respecting

Adonai’s wishes,

They are respecting the generation

That now must die

Before their descendants can enter the land.

In this parasha, both Miriam and Aaron die.

Guess who that leaves?

And why does Adonai say

That Moses will never cross over

To the Promised Land?

Moses displayed disrespect to Adonai

By hitting his rod against a rock,

Instead of trusting that Adonai

Would easily cause the water to flow

Without such violent action.

Moses takes this lesson to heart.

In dealing with the Israelites’ enemies.

The tribes of Israel,

The foreign kings are told, 

Only wish to pass through their lands,

Not to conquer them.  

(The Israelites even politely offer to pay 

For any well water used.)

It is only when the kings react violently

In their refusal to let the Israelites pass,

That they are destroyed.

Adonai, as we have seen in the Torah,

Cannot and will not tolerate disrespect

So why keep disrespecting Adonai?

Do the Israelites really wish to suffer

The same fate as Korach and company?

That is the question of the parasha

And Adonai awaits our answer 

Always.

David’s Corner – June 27, 2022

by David's Corner

Korach

We know that Amalek

Was the worst of the worst

But really, Korach,

When you add up all the folks

Who were swallowed up

With you 

And those who died in 

The plague that followed

Yours was a worse crime,

For you destroyed a part

Of your own people from within,

While casting doubt on Moses and Aaron.

How could you not remember 

The fate of Nadab and Abihu,

When they each picked up a fire pan 

And placed incense in it?

You deserved to die,

For your rebellion was restless stupidity.

Korach, you the man!