“RABBI’S MUSINGS (& AMUSINGS)”
Erev Shabbos Kodesh parshas Chukas
9 Tamuz 5779/July 12, 2019 - Avos perek 5
Rabbi Noach Sauber, a seasoned and popular
educator and a personal mentor of mine, is the Assistant Principal and Head of Judaic Studies at RTMA in Elizabeth, NJ, as well as the Learning Director here in
Camp Dora Golding.
Rabbi Sauber related that a few winters ago, he was teaching
parshas Vayeira to his students in RTMA. When he reached the Torah’s account of
Avrohom Avinu offering his beloved son Yitzchak as a sacrifice to Hashem at the
akeidah, he paused. He was about to teach about the greatest act of personal
sacrifice ever displayed by a human being towards G-d, but they would not be
able to relate to it at all. The whole story, including the idea of G-d calling
for human sacrifice, was incredibly foreign to a group of twenty-first century Modern
Orthodox kids. He felt it would be a missed opportunity if he couldn’t somehow
bring the story down to their lives, so they could gain from the heroic story
in a practical manner.
He thought long and hard until he was struck by an epiphany.
He then said a silent prayer that his idea and efforts be successful.
The following day, at the beginning of shiur, his students filed
into class and settled into their seats. Five minutes after he began class, Jeff,
who was notoriously late, sauntered into class. The rule in RTMA is that all
students must place their cell phones in a basket on the teacher’s desk at the
beginning of each class. Being late, Jeff was a bit flustered and forgot to
give in his phone.
As Jeff sat down, Rabbi Sauber pretended he was frustrated
with Jeff and asked him where his phone was. Jeff apologized and pulled it out
of his pocket, walked up to the front, and handed it to Rabbi Sauber. At that
point, Rabbi Sauber grabbed the phone, walked over to the window, threw it open,
and emphatically declared that he had it with the lateness and the phones. He
then threw the phone out the window, at least that is how it appeared to a very
shocked Jeff and his classmates.
The classroom was dead silent. Rabbi Sauber looked at Jeff
and asked him what was wrong. Jeff looked up in shock, “What’s wrong? My whole
life is on that phone and you just threw it out the window.” At that point,
Rabbi Sauber opened his hand and showed Jeff that he never thrown it at all. “But
Jeff, you’re telling me that your phone has your whole life on it. I want to
ask you a question, but you have to answer me honestly. If G-d Himself appeared
to you today and instructed you to throw your cell phone out the window, would
you do it?”
Jeff looked up slowly, “Honestly, I am not sure I could do
it, even if G-d Himself told me to.” At that point, Rabbi Sauber told his class,
“Now we are going to learn about the greatest act of self-sacrifice that ever
occurred. Now perhaps you can have a small glimpse of what it took for Avrohom
Avinu to perform the akeidah.”
Rabbi Moshe Wolfson notes
that the word nefesh refers to one’s desires. When Avrohom Avinu was negotiating
with Ephron and the B’nei Cheis to purchase the Cave of Machpelah, he said, “אם יש את נפשכם – If it is
your desire” (Bereishis 23:8).
The greatest level of mesiras
nefesh is giving up one’s life, because our ultimate desire is to live.
However, any time one suppresses or overcomes a desire or a personal craving in
order to fulfill G-d’s Will, he has been moser nesfeh – i.e. he has
given up some of his nefesh.
That means that every individual
has the opportunity to be moser nefesh constantly. Every time we challenge
our base desires and overcome our whims, we demonstrate mastery over the
animalistic component of ourselves. One who averts his senses, alters his
behaviors, or invests added resources and efforts into his spiritual pursuits, exercises
his soul over his physical body and becomes that much greater.
We do not need to offer our
child upon the akeidah in order to follow in the footsteps of Avrohom Avinu. We
need only to prioritize the Will of G-d over our own.
Shabbat Shalom & Good Shabbos,
R’ Dani and Chani Staum