The Rules of the Game--Va-et'chanan

The Rules of the Game

D’var Torah for Parashat Va-et’chanan

By Rabbi Boaz D. Heilman

 As we watch the 2012 London Olympics, it’s hard not to be amazed by the feats of strength, grace and agility displayed by the athletes.  The broken records and other accomplishments are hardly accidental.  You can see the focus in the athletes’ eyes, registered on their taut faces. Noise from other parts of the arena is filtered out and visual distractions disappear.  Pain doesn’t count.  Mistakes are unforgiveable.  

It’s obvious that years of exclusive dedication and training are behind every step and move. 

Some moments from the games enter history.  Jesse Owens in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, defying Hitler; Greg Louganis in Seoul, 1988, who went on to win the gold shortly after hitting the back of his head against the springboard and suffering a concussion; the gymnast Nadia Comaneci; the great Michael Phelps—these are just some of the stars whose light continues to shine in the Olympic heavens.

Among the winners were several Jews, too.  Aly Raisman, of course, is still fresh in our minds. There are several others in this year’s Olympics, but a moment that will forever remain etched in Jewish memory and history is Munich, 1972.  It was at those games that the swimmer Mark Spitz won seven gold medals before quickly being whisked out following the massacre of the 11 Israeli athletes at the hands of PLO terrorists.  This was a high point and a low point at once.

Israel has fielded many participants since it first participated in 1952.  To date, it has won 7 medals—one gold, one silver and 5 bronze.

Israel’s strength in sports and athletics has never been legendary.  In the United States, sports was one way for Jewish immigrants to integrate, and many excelled in boxing and baseball, among other sports.  In Europe, as Jewish nationalism and pride gained momentum, so did the focus on physical strength.  

Jewish strength—at least in the last 2,000 years—has been our heart and mind.  Philosophy, literature, art, music, science and medicine, these were the fields where the Jew traditionally excelled.  Of course there were also business and commerce:  it was Jewish money that funded Columbus’s discovery of the New World, and many Jews (hidden as well as open) followed in the establishment and development of the global trade routes.

The secret of Jewish success in these fields has stymied all those who have sought our destruction throughout the eons.  But it isn’t a secret at all.  It’s as open and clear as can be, available to anyone who could read for nearly 2800 years.  The formula is found in this week’s Torah portion, Va-et’chanan (Deut. 3:23-7:11):  “And you shall keep [God’s laws and ordinances] and do [them], for that is your wisdom and your understanding” (Deut. 4:6). 

In this portion, Moses repeats over and over the importance of keeping alive our values and traditions.  It’s a little bit like listening to your coach reminding you time and time again—sometimes patiently, sometimes less so—to stay focused and, should you falter, to get up and try again.  The Jewish people has been training for centuries, and that’s part of the secret of our success.

Like much of the book of Deuteronomy, Parashat Va-et’chanan repeats and elaborates upon past teachings.  Va-et’chanan reiterates the most important of these: the Sh’ma, the prayer we call V’ahavta, and the Ten Commandments.  Among other essential teachings, we are instructed to remain loyal to our God, to our people, to our history and to our traditions.  Moreover, Moses cautions us that we also must be diligent in teaching these lessons to our children.  Holding fast to these laws throughout the generations is the reason we are here today.

In a seemingly random world and universe, our strength is our steadfast constancy, in our loyalty to the values we subscribed to so long ago.

It is no coincidence that the book of Deuteronomy is read during the summer months.  As the weeks disappear and the year wanes, this book reminds us that the sacred work our ancestors undertook nearly four thousand years ago still awaits our contribution.  It’s all too easy to sit back and count our past accomplishments like so many medals.  Whether our strengths be physical or intellectual, our gifts are the tools we use to carve out the future.  How we use them will determine the measure of our success.  Like Olympic athletes, undaunted determination, straight-forward gaze and sharp focus on our target will lead us to our goals.

With God’s help.

 

©2012 by Boaz D. Heilman