Numbers 30:2–32:42
Parshat Matot–Masei
Matot teaches the laws of vows and recounts the war against Midian. The tribes of Reuven and Gad ask to settle east of the Jordan and agree to cross first and fight alongside their brothers. In Masei, usually read together with it, the Torah lists the forty-two journeys through the desert and sets out the borders of the land, the cities of refuge and laws of inheritance.
Essays
Parsha Matos-Masei – Fighting the Wars of Midian and Amalek Anashim-Righteous Men After the Midianite leadership corrupted many of the Jewish men, causing a major plague that killed 24,000… Parsha Matos-Masei – Aaron’s Passing Ahavas Chinam is loving someone not because they are endowed with great spiritual, intellectual or physical talents. This love is not even engendered by another's positive behavior towards you. It is love that is based on the fact that the other person is G-d's creation. There does not have to be a Parsha Matos-Masei – A Journey Without an End When the Torah lists the 42 journeys from Egypt, they are all characterized as journeys from Mitzraim. Each and every journey that took then further away from the geographic region known as Mitzraim, they were simultaneously breaking out of yet another level and layer of confinement and spiritual st Parsha Matos-Masei – An Arm or a Leg We have two choices how to cope with the harsh nature of the earth that will determine the outcome of our struggle: The poorer choice is to wait until we are jolted into submission to normalcy. The ideal choice is for us to divorce ourselves from its harshness and negativity by equipping ourselves w Parsha Matos-Masei – Annul Your Vows When we realize that our true desire is to be close to G-d by observing His commandments, we free ourselves from the compulsion to compromise. The wish to compromise is often a result of not being in touch with our true desire. Being out of touch with that reality, we erroneously think we cannot acc Parsha Matos-Masei – Be There! No Jew can rest until all of his or her brothers in sisters anywhere in the world, particularly in Israel, are at peace. Moreover, we should realize that, insofar as our feelings are concerned, there is no “there” and “here.” We are all there spiritually and emotionally. Parsha Matos-Masei – Be Vindicated! In the present pre-Final Redemption era the virtues and flaws that are deeply embedded in our soul are surfacing. Some people whom we thought of as mediocre have achieved phenomenal success in their lives and, conversely, people whom we regarded as great have exhibited uncharacteristically negative Parsha Matos-Masei – Cities of Sensitivity Collectively, the Jewish people have been subjected to the paradoxical phenomenon of being hounded by the other nations who threaten to exterminate us, and being provided by G-d throughout history with places of refuge that have guaranteed our survival. This phenomenon is what our Sages referred to Parsha Matos-Masei – How Sacred Is Your Word? When a person feels incapable of dealing with temptation the Torah provided a vow. The vow is not just a psychological boost to buttress one’s inner strength and character. It actually generates greater G-dly energy helping the person to combat his weak nature. Parsha Matos-Masei – Innocent When Proven Guilty Every Jew possesses some measure of good. There are differences, as to the degree to which this good is covered up and concealed. When the judges find merit in a criminal, this is a sign that they have found his inner good and is therefore “capable” of receiving punishment that will prove beneficial Parsha Matos-Masei – Journeys There are many challenges along the way in our journeys. The first rule is that we must know our destination. Reaching the destination, the Messianic Age, is an integral part of Judaism. In the earlier stages of the journey, knowledge of its destination and objective was not so crucial; the focus wa Parsha Matos-Masei – Long Live the King Rabbi Mendel of Kotzk: The nation Moab was needed to give the Jewish people the concept of kingship. The entire concept of people empowered to exercise authority over others is foreign to the Jewish ethos. The idea of leadership had to be ‘borrowed’ from Moab. Parsha Matos-Masei – Murder! The Cities of Refuge afforded the person who had displayed callous disregard for another human life — when his or her negligence caused the untimely death of another — to reflect on his or her crime and to be rehabilitated. Parsha Matos-Masei – Paradox of Judaism: Rigidity and Flexibility When it comes to exercising leadership, one must have rigid standards. One cannot bend because the people are asking for changes. One cannot follow the way the wind is blowing to determine what standards to establish for society. The same can be said for one’s internal “government” and leadership ro Parsha Matos-Masei – Peaceful Zealotry, or a Zealous Peace? A time will come when Pinchas will shed his zealous— albeit, for the sake of peace—veneer, and assume the role of the peacemaker Elijah, and will usher in the ultimate age of unmitigated peace and goodness—the Messianic Age. Parsha Matos-Masei – Perpetual War Even when we resoundingly defeat our internal enemy, we must be poised to fight yet another battle with evil. The battle against one’s internal evil is continuous. In the Messianic Age it will be the struggle to climb to greater heights. Parsha Matos-Masei – Provisions for the Journey In our generation it is the Lubavitcher Rebbe who has led and continues to lead the Jewish people in the effort to hasten the Redemption. This, we can do, the Rebbe taught, by increasing in all matters of goodness and kindness. Every good thought, word or deed, can be the proverbial gesture that wil Parsha Matos-Masei – Purged by Fire and Water Life is a constant struggle. We are always fighting a war against one obstacle or another. In the process of fighting against our enemy we may occasionally appropriate the “utensils” or instruments of our enemy. We may possibly absorb certain customs and mores that were never a part of our own cultu Parsha Matos-Masei – Purging Our Utensils Moses’ devotion to his people was so great that he was willing to sacrifice his own spiritual standing, by virtue of his anger, to teach them important lessons and to help rehabilitate them. The faithful leader of the Jewish people was willing to degrade himself for their sake. And indeed, his anger Parsha Matos-Masei – Synchronization While we are standing on the threshold of the Final Redemption we are not yet living in a perfect world. Frequently the spiritual and physical realms are not in sync with one another. A beautiful soul can be housed in a unattractive body and vice versa. The Beis Hamikdash, the Holy Temple, was an ex Parsha Matos-Masei – The Four Exiles The designation of the Jewish people as Israel was based on their transcendence of nature. The name Israel was given to the Patriarch Jacob because he “fought with G-d’s angel (a metaphor for the forces of nature as well) and people (other nations) and prevailed.” The name Israel denotes all that wa Parsha Matos-Masei – The Great Equalizer The daughters of Tzelaphechad were intellectually different but on the level of piety they were the same. That sameness transcended their differences. Parsha Matos-Masei – The Smell of Justice As we approach the final journey into the Messianic Age, we must orient ourselves towards a greater understanding of the needs of others. We should be able to judge others favorably by giving them the benefit of the doubt. To cultivate this positive trait, it is crucial that we also cultivate a deep Parsha Matos-Masei – The Wandering Jew The soul cannot be content with intermittent spurts of energy. The soul, however, wants truth and consistency and will stop at nothing until it has achieved its goal. Parsha Matos-Masei – Turning Shadows Into Light Life is a vacuous cycle that gets us nowhere unless we connect it with a Mitzvah G-d’s will. G-d does not exist for something else, so too a Mitzvah, which is an expression of His will, does not have to serve some other need. It is not jut a means to an end; it is an end! Parsha Matos-Masei – Vows and Tongs in the Twilight Zone During the twilight period which bridges the gap between the weekdays and Shabbos, G-d empowers us to make the transition from the “repair the world” mode into an “uplift the world” mode. It equips us with the tools to raise an already perfected world to an even more sublime level.