A Taste of Shabbos – Parashat Re’eh

We all know the saying, ‘What you see is what you get.’ However, the modern world in many ways from perspectives in science to social media prove that there is much more to what’s visible than meets the ‘eye’. This is one of the reasons why the title of this parasha is RE’EH- which is the command form of ‘SEE!’ The mandate here is to see beyond sensory perception.

I recently heard an interesting observation of how social media has affected the world as we know it, in the sense that many people, from small children to seniors, are so preoccupied with self-image. As a result, shame has become more important than guilt, and sensitivity to the present moment has been overtaken with creating visual memories.

Several details in parashat Re’eh can help us understand that the directive ‘See’ is meant to guide us to look beneath the surface rather than accept a superficial view as representing the whole story. In doing so, we can come to understand how Torah values often seem so counter intuitive to aspects of modernity.

One obvious example throughout this parasha is the plethora of commands to give of ourselves to others. This is most directly conveyed by the command, ‘Give a tenth (of your earnings) so that you will become wealthy. The materialist point of view says, ‘the more I give away, the less I have for myself.’ But if one tests that hypothesis, it often proves false, especially in the long run. There are countless true stories of people who have given much and somehow years later have gotten back in spades from the people they first helped! Beyond tangible results, the Hassidic masters point to the adage in Pirkei Avot, ‘the reward of a mitzvah is a mitzvah.’ This can refer to a chance to do another mitzvah, or it can mean the mitzvah itself is its own reward. If we recall that the word mitzvah means not only commandment, but primarily connection to G-d, as the wording later in Re’eh, ‘to Him you shall cleave,’ there can be no higher objective than the opportunity to act in a way that brings one closer to the Source of life.

One of the many verbal repetitions ‘Give, you shall give,’ is also in a verse about giving a loan to a deserving person, which is actually considered the highest form of charity. Even giving to an undeserving person can be commendable. The sages frequently insist that how we act on earth, is reciprocated from heaven; if we look too hard for someone unquestionably deserving, we may be similarly scrutinized by G-d.

Returning to the opening verse, which sets the tone for the whole parasha, there is a strange grammatical discrepancy. The word ‘see’ is in the singular grammatical form, while the following word, ‘before you,’ is in the plural. (English does not make that distinction, using the word ‘you’ for both singular and plural.) A response to this discrepancy is an obvious metaphor of light and heat emanating from the source of the sun, but how the light is internalized differs according to the reception.

The combination between the power of choice and the significance of Divine assistance is expressed by a contrast in the opening verse: With regard to the blessing, the wording is ‘when or that’ you will listen. However when it comes to the curse, the language is ‘IF’ you will listen. On one hand, the verse reminds us that being able to make choices is the most valuable gift for growth of human character. However, we have a promise that the measure of good is greater than the measure of the opposite. Therefore, there is a promise that despite the inevitable rises and falls in our lives, both individually and collectively, the end result will be the blessing. There is no final ‘doomsday’ perspective in Jewish history; it all leads to a ‘happy ending.’

Other counter intuitive dimensions in this parasha, are the many verses that refer to the land of Israel. The phrase repeated over and over again is, ‘When you come to the land that G-d has chosen.’ There is a story of a prominent rabbi who came from Europe to Israel and was observed as a ‘tree hugger.’ It was a Shmita year and he wished the tree ‘Good Shabbos!’  Indeed, in a Sabbatical year, the actual fruit of the earth in Israel is considered holy, with many details of how to properly treat the food. Even in a non-shmita year, many aspects of Israel can be considered counter intuitive. A superficial eye is likely to highlight the contrast between say, Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, as between ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal.’

There is a story of a man who made Aliya and was told how delicious the pomegranates were. Never having tasted them before, he bit into the white parts, and threw the seeds away, till someone had to show him how the seeds were the most edible parts. So too the sacredness of Israel is often not perceptible from a surface gaze. When I first went to Israel, the Egged bus station seemed as secular as any American bus station. I looked for a quiet place to pray and sure enough in the center of the station was a quiet, solemn room that served as a shul. I told myself afterward, this is how to look at the land and its people. It may seem like every modern country in the world, but in the recesses of the heart, burns an eternal soul. As in my favorite Leonard Cohen line: ‘There’s a blaze of light in every word.’

There is a similar dynamic with regard to Shabbat food. Actually, eating on Shabbat is more lenient than eating during the week, where we need to have a more deliberate intention to sanctify our eating. But on Shabbos itself, since we are endowed with an extra soul, the essence of the food is already connected to its spiritual domain, like the Manna. Thus it descends to us already pre-sanctified. In a comparable way, as the New Year approaches where our ‘bank account’ is determined for the coming year, it is good to keep in mind, in relation to Shabbos, we have an assurance- all your earnings are determined for the next year, except for money spent for Jewish education, and food for Sabbath and holidays. For the latter, we are provided with kind of a blank check for our necessities. On Shabbos, we need not ‘look’ so hard to find the G-dliness in the ordinary aspects of our lives. However, the blessings will come more easily and openly if we can take a few minutes each weekday to ‘see’ deeper than 20/20 physical eyesight.  As in the promised verse of the future Shabbos of history, ‘All flesh will see together, that the mouth of G-d is speaking.’