What is it that we truly value above all else? If you say family, God or Eretz Yisrael then good for you. However, if you dig deeply into the hearts of some people, unfortunately, we might find something else. That was the cynical view that Moshe expresses in this week’s parsha of Vaeschanan.
Moshe predicts that when the Jewish people have been in Eretz Yisrael for many generations they may grow corrupt and may “do evil in the eyes of Hashem” (4:25). Moshe predicts that the resulting punishment will be an exile where “Hashem will scatter you among the people and you will be left few in number among the nations where Hashem will lead you “(4:27). In effect, Moshe was predicting the exiles that we mourned this past Tisha B’Av.
Specifically, he admonished the Jewish people not to “worship foreign gods, the handiwork of men, wood and stone which do not see and do not hear, do not eat and do not smell.” (4:28) Does this phrase sound familiar? It should. We recite something very similar in Tehilim (Psalms) ch. 115, verse 4. Speaking about the other nations and what they worship we read the following: “Their idols are silver and gold, products of human hands. They have a mouth but cannot speak, they have ears but cannot hear, they have a nose but cannot smell. They have hands but cannot feel, they have feet but cannot walk.”
My late Menahel in Mesivta Torah Vodaas, R’ Nessanel Quinn, a”h, once humorously reiterated the verse in one of our mussar classes as follows: When the verse says, “their idols are silver and gold,” it does not mean that the idols were crafted out of silver and gold. Instead, he pointed out that it should be read literally, i.e., they worshiped silver and gold. In other words, for many people, their avodah zara is money. Once they value money above all else, they become insensitive and indifferent to the needs of others. They have a mouth but cannot speak to help someone in need. They have ears but they cannot hear the pleas of the poor asking for tzedaka. Their senses no longer work as they should and they no longer feel for others or walk the extra mile to help their neighbors in need.
I am reminded of a personal anecdote in this regard. I was once in Tuvia’s Bookstore in Monsey looking for a tractate of Gemara called “Avodah Zara.” I looked up and down the rows and shelves but had no luck in finding this tractate of Talmud. I finally saw the bookstore owner and called out to Tuvia Rotenberg, “Tuvia, I need an “Avodah Zara!” He answered with a smile and said, “Come to my house. I have a 60-inch TV.” Of course, he was making a joke. But it made me wonder. How many people spend more time with their TV than with their wife or children? How many people are there who are addicted to their computers or smartphones and forget to treasure their human relationships? How many people think that Facebook is a substitute for interacting face to face with a live human being? What do they value above all else?
The good news is that, even though some people might be corrupted by extraneous values, Moshe promises that Hashem will accept the Jewish people back when they do teshuva. “Hashem will not abandon you…” (4:30). Hashem will remember the covenant that he made with our forefathers and will “do good to you and your children…” (4:40). This is also the main theme of this week’s Haftorah that comes from Isaiah. We call this Shabbos “Shabbos Nachamu,” the Shabbos of our Consolation. This is the first of seven weeks of consolation where we are promised that no matter how we are led astray and no matter what sort of “avodah zara” we value, be it money, television or the internet, Hashem will accept our teshuva and find a way to accept us and take us back again.
So when the TV commercial asks, “What’s in your wallet?” we need to rephrase it and ask ourselves, “What is important to us? What do we value above all else? Is it money, TV and our internet social media sites? Or is it family, loved ones and our Torah true values? Hopefully, the answer will become more clear as we think about it.
Rabbi Dr. Avi Kuperberg is a forensic, clinical psychologist and a member of the American Psychology-Law Society. He is the coordinator of Bikur Cholim/Chesed at Congregation Torah Ohr in Boca Raton, Florida. He can be reached at [email protected].
