Shabbat Shalom: Parshiot Matot Masei (Numbers 30:2-36:13) By Shlomo Riskin Efrat, Israel - One of the most agonizing conversations I have ever had was with an American oleh (immigrant) to Israel whose twelve year old daughter had just been murdered by a terrorist attack. When I arrived at the bereaved home, I found the mother lying in bed - looking as though she had been rolled up into a foetal ball - in a state of what appeared to be mute shock. At length she acknowledged my presence, and said: "You know what frightens me the most, what fills me with such unspeakable guilt that I can't even begin to function? My mother is on the way from Florida, and the first thing she'll do is hurl the accusation at me that she warned me all along not to place my children at risk in such a dangerous country!" All of us with children and grandchildren in Israel - where the home, the school, the shopping center, the road have turned into front lines of battle, grist for the mill of suicidal homicide bombers - must ask ourselves this same question. I believe the answer may be found in a careful reading between the lines of a thrice-repeated dialogue found in this week's portion. Chapter 32 of the Book of Numbers - 42 verses long - deals with a request of the tribes of Reuven, Gad and half the tribe of Menashe to remain on the eastern side of the Jordan River, which had excellent grazing fields for the multitude of cattle which they had. Since this would mean that they would not be obligated to join in the major battle with the seven indigenous nations for the heartlands of Israel, Moses castigates them with repeating the sin of the Scouts who were afraid to fight a war. "Will your brethren go out to war while you remain here?", he challenges. (Numbers 32:6) The tribes desirous of remaining in Trans-Jordan modify their request: "We will build sheep fences for our cattle here and cities for our children. And we will be pioneer warriors in front of the children of Israel... We will not return to our own homes (in Trans-Jordan) until every member of the children of Israel inherit his land" (Numbers 32:16-19) Seemingly, they respond to Moses' charge and agree to participate in the war before inhabiting the Trans-Jordan. Nevertheless, what follows are two more dialogues between Moses and the tribesmen until the great leader is satisfied (Numbers 32:20-27, 28-32). What did Moses find disturbing in their attitude after they agreed to join in the battle? A careful reading of the text indicates three problematic qualities which still remained in the presentation of the 2 ½ tribes, two of which were attitudinal and the third which pertained to policy. Reuven and Gad couched their initial request to remain in Trans-Jordan as emanating from their desire to "build sheep fences for our cattle here and cities for our children." Moses corrects their order when, in his second dialogue, he re-formulates their request, telling them that as long as they participate in the war, they may "build cities for your children and fences for your sheep" (Numbers 32:24). He is gently but undeniably chiding them for prioritizing their cattle before their children; our children must be our prize possession, concern for whom must come before concern for material wealth or animal livestock. They learn their lesson, and so they respond - in this second dialogue - "Our children, our wives, our cattle and our animals will remain there, in the cities of the Gilad" (Numbers 32:25) - with their children coming before their cattle. In a similar vein, Reuven and Gad agree to be "pioneer warriors in front of the children of the children of Israel." Once again, Moses deems it necessary to correct their language, because phraseology reflects philosophy: "And Moses said to them, if you will do this thing, if you will be pioneer in front of G-d in the war" (Numbers 32:20) - the battle is to be fought in front of, and for the sake of, G-d, even more than in front of, and for the sake of, the children of Israel. The importance of the land of Israel is not merely in providing material sustenance and protection for the nation of Israel; the importance of the land of Israel is to provide a model society for the world based upon ethical monotheism, universal values of freedom, peace and equality for all. The battle for Israel is first and foremost a battle for the sake of heaven. And here again the Israelites "get the message;" in the second dialogue, they declare: "And every pioneer among your servants shall pass in the army before G-d to wage war just as my master has spoken." (Numbers 32:27). However, from Moses' perspective there still remains one point of contention even by the end of the second dialogue; Reuven and Gad still expected to first deposit their children and cattle safely in Trans-Jordan, and then go out to do battle with the rest of the Israelites (Numbers 32:26,27). Here, they are making a policy decision: the children's lives are not to be placed at risk. Moses must then open a third dialogue, in which he once again establishes the only acceptable proper order: first you must fight, and only then can you - together with your children and your possessions - settle in Trans-Jordan. (Numbers 32:29,30). The tribes finally acquiesce, declaring, "we will pass over as pioneers (warriors) before G-d into the land of Canaan, and with us will be the possession of our inheritance (our children and cattle) from the other side of the Jordan" (Numbers 32:32). The children must share in the danger - together with the rest of the Jewish people. The Torah is teaching a critical lesson in this segment to all subsequent generations - including our own. To be a Jew means that you belong to a "high-risk" profession: there are certain values for which you must be willing to sacrifice your lives and even the lives of your children. Indeed, we learn from the binding of Isaac the great paradox of Jewish history: only if you are willing to place the life of your future at risk for the sake of G-d, His Torah and His people, will you be worthy of having a future, a future in which the G-d of Justice and compassion will be seen not only by Israel but also by the entire world. In Israel today we are waging a war for Jewish future, an extension of our War of Independence; in Israel today we are waging a war for world Jewry, barely five decades after the Holocaust struggling under blatant European anti-Semitism; in Israel today we are waging a war for every free human being against the terror of suicidal homicide bombers targeting innocent women and children. Such a war is necessary for human survival and those of us in Israel - men, women and children - feel the necessity of responding to the call of history. Shabbat Shalom. ############################################################ You can find Rabbi Riskin's parshiot on the web at: http://www.ohrtorahstone.org.il/parsha/index.htm