As we are about to celebrate Chag HaSukkot in the shemitah year and during the continuing covid-19 pandemic, I cannot help but notice the common “teachable moments” for us as parents that are present in all three events.
The reason for Sukkot, as noted in ויקרא כג:מג
מגלְמַ֘עַן֘ יֵֽדְע֣וּ דֹרֹֽתֵיכֶם֒ כִּ֣י בַסֻּכּ֗וֹת הוֹשַׁ֨בְתִּי֙ אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל בְּהֽוֹצִיאִ֥י אוֹתָ֖ם מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרָ֑יִם אֲנִ֖י ה'
אֱלֹֽקיכֶֽם:
In order that your [ensuing] generations should know that I had the children of Israel live in booths when I took them out of the land of Egypt. I am the Lord, your God.
But the Jewish people were living in sukkot for 40 years ! Why say specifically בְּהֽוֹצִיאִ֥י אוֹתָ֖ם מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרָ֑יִם- when they left Egypt? How about saying, “I had them live in booths for forty years in the desert?” Rabbi David Fohrman notes that if you look carefully the pasuk is telling us to pay attention to a specific סוכות - סוכות that specifically happened when they left Egypt, as noted in שמות יב:לז
לזוַיִּסְע֧וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל מֵֽרַעְמְסֵ֖ס סֻכֹּ֑תָה כְּשֵֽׁשׁ־מֵא֨וֹת אֶ֧לֶף רַגְלִ֛י הַגְּבָרִ֖ים לְבַד מִטָּֽף
The children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot, the men, besides the young children.
It is no coincidence that the first place they camped when they left Egypt was called Sukkot. (Which was called such as it says in בראשית לג: יז because Yaakov built sukkot- animal pens- there for his animals). The pasuk in Vayikra is telling us that this Yomtov celebrates something that particularly happened in that place called Sukkot which happened “when I took them out of the land of Egypt.” Somehow, what occurred in that first encampment is celebrated on Chag HaSukkot.
Rabbi Fohrman continues and points out that a few pesukim later in פסוק מ the Torah tells us a fact we already know:
מוּמוֹשַׁב֙ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר יָֽשְׁב֖וּ בְּמִצְרָ֑יִם שְׁלשִׁ֣ים שָׁנָ֔ה וְאַרְבַּ֥ע מֵא֖וֹת שָׁנָֽה:
And the habitation of the children of Israel, that they dwelled in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years.
Why tell us that now? The purpose is to show the contrast. In Egypt- יָֽשְׁב֖וּ- they were settled in permanent homes. When they left Egypt they went to סוכות- flimsy huts. Not only were they no longer in true homes, but they had no real food.
As Rabbi Fohrman aptly notes,
“‘The text that tells us of the journey to Sukkot emphasizes the tentative nature of the journey by telling us: וְגַם-צֵדָה, לֹא-עָשׂוּ לָהֶם – they hadn't even packed provisions for the journey. So there they were that first night, sleeping under the stars, in the ridiculous cattle pens they set up for these animals; there they were, eating their last morsel of half-baked bread realizing, with stunning clarity, that there was no more where that came from – there they were, for the first time, utterly and totally in God's embrace.’They then made the choice to trust that Hashem would take care of all their basic needs. They left everything that could be taken for granted behind, and believed Hashem would take care of them.”
And, that is what Yirmiyahu meant in ב:ב:
זָכַ֚רְתִּי לָךְ֙ חֶ֣סֶד נְעוּרַ֔יִךְ אַֽהֲבַ֖ת כְּלוּלֹתָ֑יִךְ לֶכְתֵּ֚ךְ אַֽחֲרַי֙ בַּמִּדְבָּ֔ר בְּאֶ֖רֶץ לֹ֥א זְרוּעָֽה
So said the Lord: I remember to you the lovingkindness of your youth, the love of your nuptials, your following Me in the desert, in a land not sown.
At that night we told Hashem that we trusted Him. And, so on Sukkot we leave our permanent homes today for more flimsy ones to remind ourselves that we are reliant on Hashem as well. And, specifically at the time of year when we gather our crops to remind us all our accomplishments in life are from Hashem. He will always take care of us.
Rabbi Jonathan Zacks, zl, notes that it is truly “remarkable” that in the flimsy, uncertain sukkot the Jews can still have simcha:
What is truly remarkable is that it is called, by tradition, zeman simchatenu, “our time of joy.” That to me is the wonder at the heart of the Jewish experience: that Jews throughout the ages were able to experience risk and uncertainty at every level of their existence and yet – while they sat betzila de-mehemnuta, “under the shadow of faith” (this is the Zohar’s description of the sukkah: Zohar, Emor, 103a) – they were able to rejoice. That is spiritual courage of a high order. I have often argued that faith is not certainty: faith is the courage to live with uncertainty. That is what Sukkot represents if what we celebrate is sukkot mammash, not the clouds of glory but the vulnerability of actual huts, open to the wind, the rain and the cold.
That is why Sukkot is called זמן שמחתינו- that simcha comes from realizing we will always be taken care of by Hashem and from the inner peace that all will be well at the end.
When we leave our homes to live in a “shack” we also are tapping into another source of happiness -the ability to stop and appreciate what we have. When we leave our homes to live in a “shack” we stop and are מכיר טוב and appreciate that which we have all year long. להכיר- first one needs to recognize the small things each day that we take for granted
Psychologist Dr. Tal Ben Shahar in his article "Appreciate The Good" writes,
The word appreciate has two meanings. The first is to be thankful—the opposite of taking something for granted—and the second is to increase in value, the way we say that assets appreciate when their value rises. When it comes to the role that appreciation plays in our life, both these meanings are relevant. Psychological research has repeatedly shown that when we are thankful for the good in our life, the good grows and we have more of it. The opposite, sadly, is also true: When we fail to appreciate the good, when we take it for granted, the good depreciates.
Dr. Ben Shachar continues and quotes a research study by psychologists Robert Emmons and Michale McCullough where subjects were asked to write down each day five things for which they were grateful- which could include trivial things as well. This group, compared to the control group, were not only more appreciative,
“but also enjoyed higher levels of well-being and positive emotions: These individuals felt happier, more determined, more energetic, and more optimistic. They were also more generous and more likely to offer support to others. Finally, those who expressed gratitude also slept better, exercised more, and experienced fewer symptoms of physical illness.When you think of all you can be grateful for, when you take stock, you feel better. When you feel better, you become more open to—and are more likely to notice and pursue—positive experiences. You then have more to be grateful for, which in turn improves the quality of your life, and so on. You can begin this positive spiral of happiness at any moment by choosing to reflect on the things for which you are grateful.”
Dr. Ben Shahar suggests keeping a gratitude journal and writing down five things each day before you go to bed, or at least notice good things in your life as you go through your day to increase happiness.
Shemitah relays the same messages as Sukkot.
First, when the farmer leaves his land for one year he stresses that Hashem is in charge, as the Sefer HaChinuch Mitzvah 84 states the reasons for shemitah, which sound very similar to the reasons for Sukkot.
All comes from Hashem. You need to stop and appreciate that without Him you would have nothing- to be grateful.
And, second, it reinforces emunah- that for the shemitah year you cannot actively grow your crops, but you must have faith that Hashem will provide and take care of you.
Covid has reinforced the lessons of Sukkot and shemitah. This importance of appreciating the good is one lesson covid has taught us. We suddenly appreciated the small things like going to shul, school, seeing our grandparents… Covid also has taught us that all we can count on is Hashem’s protection, and we can only rely on Him even or especially in times of uncertainty.
Just like with shemitah, covid forced many of us to stop work for a year and retreat from our regular lives. Sukkot, Shemittah and corona have taught us that there is a limit to what man can accomplish. We need Hashem for all the success we have in life. Everything is in His hands.
Shemitah also forces us, as did covid, to slow down from our normal hectic pace of life to evaluate and identify what is truly important.
These are the teachable emunah moments that we can share with our children as we leave our homes to live in sukkahs, tell them about the shemitah year, and discuss all that we have gone and are still going through during covid.
We know the plethora of psychological research substantiating the impact of belief in G-d and religion on lowering anxiety. 79% of studies in a 2015 review by Duke University of 3,000 research studies investigating the relationship between religion and psychological well-being showed a link between religion and psychological well-being. “Positive religious coping consists of strategies that reflect a trusting relationship with God and a sense of spiritual connectedness to others, including reframing stressful events as reflecting the work of a benevolent God and seeing oneself as collaborating with God to solve problems, among others.” Studies indicate that people who believe in G-d and pray to Him actually get healthier more quickly, can tolerate pain and difficulty better, have more positive attitudes, are more persistent, and are even happier. Higher levels of “religiosity” are overall associated with better mental health.
For those of you who have been reading my column for some time you know that I constantly stress at every opportunity I get (and will continue to do so!) that our children need this emunah more than ever during these challenging times in which we are living. As adults, many of us have been able to access faith to carry us through this difficult covid time to combat the fear, anxiety and uncertainty that we have faced these past months. But how about our children? Have we done a good job strengthening that emunah so that when they are confronted by a challenge- whether physical (or medical), or psychological they are able to lower that fear as they KNOW that Hashem is there for them? The best way to do so is by talking about it with them at any chance we get. We need to look for those moments that are “teachable” opportunities to point out belief in G-d.
The beliefs that all is בידי שמים and that Hashem is overseeing and orchestrating all have carried us through this covid-19 pandemic. May this Sukkot of the shemitah year be a source of strength for our children as well.
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