Weekly Torah Portion: BeHar + Jeremiah 32

It is so hot in Israel these days, it is hard to think, and it is harder to write. My Yiddish speaking next door neighbors moved away two weeks ago, and in their place an older couple moved in. They are Americans, they are religious, they are new comers to the Land (only a few weeks here!), they don't speak any Hebrew at all. I'm pretty sure they are converts. I haven't asked them if it is so or not, but with names like Ruth and Boaz and the unmistakable beautiful Arian look, I don't think they can be anything else. Anyway, it makes me very happy. I love converts and I feel it is a great privilege for me to be able to help them, which I hope to do as much as I can. When the wife came here so I'll help her with some bureaucratic staff, she told me joyfully that they had prayed so much to have good neighbors. Well, I hope to be that for them, for sure.

Two days ago people in my new neighborhood posted that they found a baby bird in their garden, and since they are older, they can't take care of it, would anyone take it? I went there and saw the bird. It was a Laughing Dove. It was scared and frightened. They said it doesn't eat or drink and doesn't even poop. I was afraid to take it, fearing it would die in my custody. But no one else offered himself, so I had no choice. They gave me some seeds for her and I took her. I called her Yonah, which means "dove" in Hebrew. I'm not sure whether it is a male or a female, but since in Hebrew a dove is a feminine noun, I refer to it as 'her'. I placed her beak in water, and she took one or two sips and that's it. She didn't want to eat anything. When it was getting dark, she found a quiet, hidden corner in my living room and sat there, very quietly. When I woke up in the morning I found her in the same place, and realized she must have eaten something, because her poop was all around her. It was nice to have her, but my fear that she might die kept nagging me. Happily, I found adequate people who are bird lovers and have a lot of experience with birds, to take her and take care of her. I feel relief on the one hand that she is in more adequate hands right now, but also a bit sad that I didn't take care of her myself until she is old enough to be in nature on her own. Still, I think it was the best thing for her. There is a lot of symbolism in this story for me, but most of it is very private, so I won't share it here.

This week's Torah Portion is BeHar (Leviticus 25:1- 26:2) and the Haftorah is from Jeremiah 32. The Portion talks about the commandment of observing a Shemitah year - a seventh year of rest for the land, in which we are supposed to not work the land at all, to let it rest. This commandment takes place only on the land of Israel, so Jews who live in other countries can keep working the land there. Many religious farmers in Israel observe this commandment, and report amazing miracles following it. This is a very hard commandment to perform - a farmer is supposed to stop working for a whole year, to let others eat freely from whatever grows that year in his field, without getting money from the government for that. The farmer must trust that his livelihood will come from HaShem, and according to the stories told by farmers who observe it - their livelihood indeed comes in amazing, unexpected ways. During those Shemitah years, we, religious consumers, try not to purchase vegetables and fruits from farmers who do not keep this commandment. It is not easy, but it is a great merit for us to do that. Instead, we buy carrots from Holland, oranges from Spain, etc. It is challenging, but we do it.

In the Torah Portion it is said: "You shall do my commandments and keep my ordinances and do them, and you shall dwell in the land in safety" - our safe dwelling in the Land is dependent on our fulfilling of the Law. The connection between the Land and our moral and religious behavior is constantly reiterated in the Torah. If we do G-d's will, we will have the Land and live safely in it. If we don't observe His Law, we will live here unsafely and lose the Land eventually.

In the Prophets portion (Haftorah) of this week, we read the exact same thing, in different words, about the Land and us: "And they came in, and possessed it, but they did not listen to Your voice nor did they walk in Your law. They have done nothing of all that You commanded them to do, therefore you caused all this evil to befall on them". (Jeremiah 32:23). If we behave properly, we get the land. If not, we suffer and might lose it.

One of my favorite quotes in the whole Bible appears in this week's Prophet Portion, Jeremiah 32:15:
"For thus said the Lord of hosts, the G-d of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall yet again be bought in this land". Isn't it amazing that we live in an era in which this ancient prophecy, this divine promise, comes true? Thank G-d! It is this kind of prophesies that opened my eyes to the truth of the Torah and the Prophet's words.

Shabbat Shalom!