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Parashat Nitzavim - Vayelech

Dedicated for the Refuah Shelemah of Eliyahu ben Esther


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Parashat Nitzavim / Vayelech



Nitzavim—Standing



The parasha begins with the passuk, “Atem nitzavim hayom kullachem lifnei Hashem Elokechem—You are standing today, all of you, before Hashem, your God (29:9).” Moshe is telling B’nei Yisrael, “You made it! You came through the desert for 40 years and reached your destination! Israel is just beyond the Jordan River.” Rabbi Mansour commented that there is another interpretation of the verse: “You are standing today.” As opposed to encouragement, this phrase also expresses harsh rebuke and admonition.



Humans differ from angels in their ability to change, grow, and improve. Angels cannot change; they remain the same from the moment they come into existence until they expire. For this reason, the prophets generally describe angels as omdim—standing. Angels stand in only one place, unable to advance or progress forward. Human beings, by contrast, are often referred to as holchim—walking. This refers to their capacity to progress, move forward, grow, work on their characters, and become better. If a person remains stagnant and complacent and has no interest in improving himself and advancing to the next level in religious observance and character refinement, he has negated his most basic human quality.



Moshe perhaps sensed that after forty years of traveling in the wilderness, the people began lowering their engines, relaxing their efforts, and going into cruise control. He, therefore, rebuked them. “Atem nitzavim hayom—you are all just standing! You have become like the angels, who are omdim, who remain in one place without progressing forward.”



Rabbi Joey Haber told a story about complacency. A religious nurse worked in an oncology ward in the hospital. Shirley, a very ill patient in her 70’s told the nurse, Bruchy, her story. “My parents were both Holocaust survivors and I was their pride and joy. I took it all for granted, my faith was tested through their stories, and I renounced religion and married a gentile. My parents sat shiva for me.



“I divorced him a few years later, and now here I am with no one left, with only a few weeks to live. Bruchy, you look religious. What can I do in my last few weeks here to serve G-d?”



Bruchy said, “Shirley, my friend is getting married in a couple of weeks, and she is so short on funds. Her parents can’t afford to give her a wedding. Maybe if you sponsored the wedding, you would have the zechut to have a piece in building a Jewish home. They need $25,000.”



Shirley was ecstatic to be able to do a chesed and a mitzvah of this magnitude on her deathbed. She asked who she could make the check out to, and Bruchy answered, “My friend’s name is Sarah Leah.” Shirley started to cry, stunned to hear the Hebrew name she was given by her parents. She wrote the check and passed away a couple of weeks later.



We can’t live our lives stagnant and complacent like the angels, waiting until it’s almost too late to move forward and do mitzvot. Elul is the most exciting time of the year—a time when we get to look in the mirror and say, “I have greatness inside of me. I can maximize my potential.” We have to wake up, grab this chance and opportunity, and use our incredible power to live life with purpose and Torah.



Growing Up



“You are standing today, all of you, before Hashem, your G-d – your leaders, your tribes, your elders and officials, all the men of Israel, your children, your wives, the strangers in your camp, from woodcutter to water-drawer – to enter into the covenant of Hashem, your G-d, and its oath, which Hashem, your G-d, is making with you today, to establish you today as His people, that He may be your G-d, as He promised you and swore to your ancestors, Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov (29:9-12).



Something seemingly unremarkable happened in Parashat Nitzavim that was, in fact, monumental with life-changing implications: Rabbi Sacks explained that the terms of Jewish history were about to shift from Divine initiative to human initiative. Moshe was preparing the Israelites for this during the last month of his life in the long series of public addresses that make up the book of Devarim. It’s as if he had said, “Until now, G-d has led you in a pillar of cloud and fire, and you followed. Now, Hashem is handing over the reins to you. From here on, you must lead. If your hearts are with Him, He will be with you, but you are no longer children; you are adults.” An adult still has parents as a child does, but the relationship is different. An adult knows the burden of responsibility. An adult doesn’t wait for someone else to take the first step.



That is the significance of Nitzavim. The parasha stands almost at the end of the Torah, and we read it almost at the end of the year. It’s about getting ready for a new beginning, in which we act for G-d instead of waiting for Him to act for us.



Nitzavim marks the end of the childhood of the Jewish people. From there on, Judaism became Hashem’s call to human responsibility. For us, faith is not waiting for G-d. Faith is the realization that G-d is waiting for us.



This idea can be put into practice with people we interact with. Whenever you find yourself distressed because someone hasn’t done what you think they should have done for you, turn the thought around and do it for them. Don’t wait to be praised; praise others. Don’t wait to be respected; respect others. Don’t stand on the sidelines, criticizing people. Do something yourself to make things better.



Don’t wait for the world to get better. Take the initiative yourself. The world is waiting for you.



Moshe’s Jealousy



In our second parasha of the week, Parashat Vayelech, Hashem informed Moshe of the sad news that “The day of your death is approaching (31:14).” Moshe Rabbenu did not want to die. On that last day, he wrote 13 Torah scrolls, one for each tribe, plus a master copy that would remain in the Ark. Moshe reasoned, “Since I’m occupying myself with Torah which is the source of life, the day will pass, and the decree that I am to die will be nullified.”



Rabbi Frand quotes a midrash that says Hashem instructed Moshe to call Yehoshua. Moshe offered Hashem a deal. “Let Yehoshua take over my role and lead the Jewish people but allow me to live.” Hashem responded, “If so, you will have to relate to Yehoshua as he related to you. He will be the leader, and you will be his disciple.” Moshe agreed to this offer. He went to Yehoshua’s house, straying from the previous arrangement of Yehoshua coming to him. From there, they went into the Tent of Meeting – Yehoshua as the rav and Moshe as the disciple. The Shechina descended and spoke to Yehoshua. When the Shechina left, Moshe asked Yehoshua, “What Word came to you?”



Asking such a question for the first time in his life must have been a most humbling experience for Moshe. Yehoshua answered, “When the Word came to you, did I know what was spoken to you?” This was a very gentle way of telling Moshe, “It is none of your business. I am the rabbi, and you are the student now.”



The midrash concludes that Moshe began to scream at that moment, “Let me die 100 times rather than suffer this pang of jealousy that I am now feeling.” He was envious of Yehoshua. How is that possible? We are taught that a person is jealous of everyone except his son and his student (Sanhedrin 105b).



Chiddushei Harim says, “If I am a rabbi and my son becomes a Rosh Yeshivah, I will not be jealous; I will be proud of him. If he becomes far more successful than I ever was, I will take it in stride and with pride. However, if he takes MY job, if I am forced into retirement, and he takes over my congregation or my yeshivah, that is hard to take, even from a disciple or a son.”



Rabbi Frand said that Moshe Rabbenu was 120 years old and about to die. And yet, he, himself, felt that he was being gripped with envy. He admitted that the emotion he felt was worse than one hundred deaths. We see from here that if anyone ever claims, “I am too old to be jealous,” or “I am above that already,” don’t believe him. We are never finished with the challenge of being jealous until we are in the grave. At least Moshe recognized and acknowledged it. He was sensitive and wise enough to feel it and declare, “I don’t want any part of it!” We must be firm like Moshe Rabbenu, not just pretend to overcome jealousy, but admit to it and try to run away from it.



The Children Shall Learn




Parashat Vayelech continues, “Gather the people—men, women, children, and the strangers in your communities—so that they may hear and learn to revere your G-d and to observe faithfully every word of this Teaching. And their children … shall hear and learn to fear Hashem, your G-d, all the days that you live on the land to which you are crossing the Jordan, to possess it (31:12-13).”




Shouldn’t the Torah say, “all the days that they live on the land?” Why does the Torah tell the adults to teach the children for all the days their parents live on the land? Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky explains that we learn here that children must be trained and taught not for post-parental existence but rather “all the days that you live.” We must teach them to practice while we can enjoy the nachat! Torah is a living entity, not only to pass from dying embers to rekindle new flames but to pass a vibrant torch with leaping flames onto the youth whose boundless energy will inspire new generations!




A Golden Opportunity




Before World War I, there was a man who was working in a stone quarry in Jerusalem. He would chisel marble and rock to harvest the stones. One day, a massive boulder fell on his leg, and he was very badly hurt. At that time, the hospitals in Israel were very behind in medical advancements, and the doctor informed the man his suggestion was to amputate the leg. The man refused, and the doctor said, “Well, if you go to the hospital in Vienna, there’s a chance that they will be able to save the leg.”




The man went to his rabbi, who helped raise money for a ticket to Vienna. The man made it to Vienna and arrived at the hospital where the doctor told him it would be a very expensive operation to repair the leg, which he couldn’t afford. The man broke down, left the hospital, and limped to a park bench where he sat and cried bitter tears to Hashem. Suddenly, a beautiful coach rolled up in front of him, and a wealthy-looking man came out to ask him what was wrong. The man opened his heart and told his story to this stranger. The wealthy man wrote a note on a paper and said, “Give this to the doctor at the hospital. They will take care of your problem.”




The man went back to his hotel with the folded note, feeling defeated. He thought, “What will this goy be able to do? He can’t help me.” The man recounted the events of the day to the host at the hotel. The host asked to see the note and gasped, “Do you know who this was? You met the Kaiser, the Emperor of Austria! He signed this note telling the doctors at the hospital to repair your leg! You will be healed!”




The doctors fixed the man’s leg, and he returned to Jerusalem. He went back to his rabbi to tell him about his experience. After he told the story about how the Emperor of Austria came to him and listen to his tearful pleas, the man broke down in tears again. The rabbi said, “Why are you crying? This was a miracle from Hashem!” The man cried, “If I had only known I was speaking to the very powerful Kaiser, I would have asked for the world. I would have asked him for more time. I can’t believe I had his ear, and I let him go so quickly.”




On Rosh Hashanah, we are standing in front of Borei Olam. We stand before the King of Kings, and we have a golden opportunity to do teshuvah and to ask for whatever our heart desires. On Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, we are incredibly close to Hashem, and it is a sin to take this time for granted. The Rambam says that a person must look at himself as if his scale in heaven is at 50:50. He must take advantage of this amazing opportunity to be close to Hashem, and to do teshuvah, and pray that his mitzvot will outweigh the averot.




We read on Rosh Hashanah the stories of Sarah and Chana. Both these women were physically incapable of having children. However, because of Hashem’s infinite kindness, both women’s’ prayers were answered on Rosh Hashanah to teach us that anything is possible on this day. As Rabbi Nachman said, “Prayers have the ability to alter nature.”




Though we don’t always do what’s right, may we pick ourselves up, accept that we are still standing, and take the opportunity to return to Hashem. May we not stand stagnant in one place and continuously grow and move forward. May we strive to run away from jealousy like Moshe Rabbenu, who gave up going to Eretz Yisrael to not be plagued with such a feeling. May we take extra care to raise our children with Torah, so they will be kindhearted people who look out for their fellow Jews. May we be able to witness our children’s happiness and beracha and receive plenty of nachat from them for years to come. Amen!



Discussion Point:


What feelings come up when you think of starting the new year? What do you think you need to change going into the new year? How are you planning to make that change going forward?

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Le’ilui Nishmat…



Eliyahu Ben Rachel


Rabbi Shimon Chay Ben Yaasher


Avraham Ben Garaz


Sarah Bat Chanah


Esther Bat Sarah


Avraham Ben Mazal


Shulamit Bat Helaina


Rabbi Meyer Ben Chana


Rahamim Ben Mazal


Batsheva Bat Sarah Esther


Rafael Ben Miriam


Ovadia Ben Esther


Rav Haim Ben Rivka


Moshe Ben Mazal


Moshe Ben Yael


Yitzchak Ben Adele


Avraham Ben Mazal


Meir Ben Latifa


Chanah Bat Esther


Yaakov Ben Rachel


Malka Bat Garaz


Moshe Ben Garaz


Avraham Ben Kami


Yaakov Ben Leah


Mordechai Ben Rachel


Chacham Shaul Rachamim Ben Mazal


Natan Ben Rachel


Saadia Ben Miriam


Eliyah Ben Latifa Simhon


Margalit Bat Mazal


Ovadia Haim Ben Malaky


Rabbi Aharon Chaim Ben Ruchama


Luratte Bat Masouda


Esther Bat Menucha


Uri Ben Rahel


Rivka Bat Dona


Shalom Ben Zahra


Rachel Bat Sarah


Shalom Ben Zahra


Chava Yvette Bat Jamile




Refuah Shelemah…



Rachel Bat Devorah





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