RABBI AVI WEISS
Three britot (covenants) are mentioned in the Torah:
the covenant of the pieces (Genesis 15:18), the
covenant at Sinai (Exodus 19; 24:7), and the
covenant of our portion, which was made just prior to
our entry into Israel (Deuteronomy 29). Upon reflection,
they each contribute to the making of the nation of
Israel.
The covenant of the pieces between God and
Abraham established the family of Israel. It was nothing
less than the planting of the seeds from which the
Jewish People ultimately emerged. Abraham and Sarah
were designated as the father and mother. From them,
the children of Jacob were ultimately born. Soon after,
we coalesced into a peoplehood.
The covenant of Sinai introduces a new
element. As we became a people, it was crucial that we
be governed by law. That law, given at Sinai, is the
Torah. Its principles and precepts form a foundation
that unites Jews, creating a sense of mission that we
become “a kingdom of priests and a holy people”
)Exodus 19:6).
The covenant of Nitzvaim introduces a third
critical component. It is not enough to be a people
governed by law. Another essential element is required
for nationhood – a land. This feature is addressed by
the brit of our portion. Standing as we were, just days
before entry into Israel, the brit was reaffirmed.
(Deuteronomy 29:11).
Not coincidentally, these three covenants --
people, Torah, and land -- comprise the basis of Jewish
nationhood. Nationhood is, in the words of Rabbi Kook,
a combination of the people of Israel with the Torah of
Israel in the land of Israel.
Throughout the centuries, various groups and
individuals have been bent on destroying the Jewish
nation by attacking one of these three pillars. Some –
like Amalek in biblical times or the Nazis in the modern
era – have focused their venom on the Jewish People.
Their goal was to annihilate us.
Others have directed their hatred against our
Torah. A prime example is the Christian persecution of
Jews in what historian Raul Hilberg calls “fifteen
hundred years of anti-Semitic activities.” Their claim
was that they had no intention to murder Jews. Rather,
they aimed to kill those who rejected their primary
belief. Basically, they stated, we accept Jews, but only
if they embrace Jesus. In the end, however, it became
clear that their goal of destroying our fundamental
Torah beliefs was the equivalent of destroying the
Jewish People.
Today, another type of Jew-hatred has
emerged in the form of anti-Zionism. Truth be told, in
the post-Holocaust era, it is still not considered polite to
directly target Jews or even their Torah. Hence, the
attack is focused instead against the Jewish land. In the
end, however, a Jewish land is so fundamental to
Judaism that any attempt to deny Jews their homeland
is nothing less than an attempted destruction of the
Jewish People. While there are anti-Zionists who are
not anti-Semites, there are many – too many – who are.
When challenged, we must raise a strong voice
of Jewish conscience and fight anti-Semitism in all its
forms – whether directed at our peoplehood, ideology,
or homeland. To be silent is to be complicit. © 2021
Hebrew Institute of Riverdale & CJC-AMCHA. Rabbi Avi
Weiss is Founder and Dean of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, the
Open Orthodox Rabbinical School,
|