“RABBI’S MUSINGS (& AMUSINGS)”
Erev Shabbos Kodesh parshas Tzav-Erev
Pesach
13 Nissan 5781/March 27, 2021
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לרפואה שלימה נטע יצחק בן רחל
POSITIVE PRAISE
This
week the New York Times published an article by David Leonhardt
entitled, “Is bad news the only kind?” In it Leonhardt notes that almost all
the news throughout the pandemic was negative.
“When
Covid cases were rising in the U.S., the news coverage emphasized the increase.
When cases were falling, the coverage instead focused on those places where
cases were rising. And when vaccine research began showing positive results,
the coverage downplayed it.”
He continues
that US media are outliers in their overwhelming bias towards negative news.
Still, he defends the media claiming that they aren’t distorting the news as
much as choosing to emphasize the negative over the positive. He adds that the
American consumer seems to prefer reading negative news over positive news, so
the news outlets are only providing what the consumer is seeking.
In a
lecture given on September 19, 2003, the late radio broadcaster
Paul Harvey recounted that he’s often asked why newsmen don’t report more good
news instead of all of the tragedy, destruction, discord, disaster and dissent
they always report about? He explained, “My own network, ABC, once tried
broadcasting a program of just good news. You know how long that lasted? Thirteen
weeks. Not enough listeners wanted just good news.
In
Sacramento, California, a little tabloid called itself The Good newspaper,
printed just good news, lasted 36 months before it went bankrupt. As far as I
have been able to ascertain, there's only one newspaper in the USA today
printing just good news. It's a little tabloid, comes out once a week in Indiana
and they have to give it away, because that good news that you all keep saying
you want just won't buy. And that's why you can listen to any broadcast, and
records are crashing and it's the worst wind and the worst flood or fire or
earthquake or whatever, because noise news makes news, and... sin make news,
and one gunshot makes more noise than a thousand prayers. It doesn't mean it's
more important, just that it sells more newspapers.”
By
nature, we are more inclined towards negativity than positivity. Dennis Prager
noted that we all suffer from “missing tile syndrome”. If someone is sitting in
a room, looking up at a tiled ceiling, and there is one tile missing, that’s
where he focuses his vision. He doesn’t notice all the other perfect tiles.
Prager notes
that doing so undermines our happiness, because we are always focusing on the
missing tiles in our lives. Our choice is whether we focus on the tiles we do
have, or on the ones we’re missing? The answer to that question largely
determines how happy we feel.
The
night of the Seder is devoted to praising Hashem and expressing gratitude for
the myriad miracles He performed throughout the process of Yetzias Mitzrayim.
The
Medrash (Shemos Rabbah 6:4) writes that the four cups of wine correspond to
four decrees that the nation were subjected to during the exile and were
redeemed from.
The
Matnos Kehuna explains that the four decrees were their being forced to perform
backbreaking labor, all male babies being cast in the Nile, slaughtering the
children so Pharaoh could bathe in their blood, and when the Egyptians stopped
providing straw for the bricks.
Rav
Matisyahu Salomon points out that all of those decrees were enacted and stopped
well before the nation actually left Egypt. This symbolizes to us that we must
not only celebrate and express gratitude when a challenging situation is
completely remedied. Rather, we must be thankful for every step and modicum of
salvation along the way.
How
poignant is that message for us at the current time! During the last year we
have all lived through a traumatic and challenging ordeal. Yet, within the
darkness there was noticeable chesed from Hashem.
It
wouldn’t be too difficult to write a dayeinu like paragraph including all the
glimmers of light we have experienced during this period of darkness.
The fact
that vaccinations are being disseminated at a dizzying pace with hopes of a
return to normalcy sooner than later is itself astounding. That for some reason
the virus relatively didn’t affect the youth was also an incredible chesed from
Hashem. That we were able to at least communicate remotely via zoom and the
like, mitigated somewhat the emotional pain of isolation.
And the
fact that we were able to return to our yeshivos and continue to teach our
children in person to the extent possible is something not to be taken lightly.
After
over a year of not having in person classes, public school teachers are still
vying to remain remote. Only now are they getting ready to allow 25% capacity
in the classroom. Yet, throughout this time, we have done all in our power to
ensure the continued education of our children.
Prior to
makkas arov, Moshe warned that Hashem would “place a separation between my
nation and your nation.” During the past months those words have come to life.
Our children have grown tremendously despite the painful predicament. They saw
how much we prioritize their chinuch, even while public schools remained shut.
That’s an invaluable lesson.
The
night before the exodus, our ancestors held the first seder with the Korbon
Pesach, matzah and marror.
If
marror is eaten as a reminder of the pain of the servitude, why did the Jews
have to eat marror at their seder the night before Yetzias Mitzrayim? Did they
need a reminder of the painful slavery and body breaking work they had endured
for decades?
Rav
Avigdor Nebenzhal explains that the Jewish servitude ended six months before
the actual exodus (see Rosh Hashanah 11a). Six months is more than enough time
for people to forget how things were. Just look at how quickly the Egyptians
“forgot about Yosef” and began to persecute the Jews.
Although
the pandemic is not over, we have reason to be hopeful for the immediate
future. We dare not just return to the way things were before. Unfortunately,
human nature is that we quickly forget and move on. But when significant events
occur – for good or for better, we must take note of it, learn from it and grow
from it.
The
Jewish people not only seek to remember the matzah and the korbon Pesach, but
we also seek to remember the marror, and we thank G-d for all of it. But
the first step is to recognize the Hand of G-d in every step of the way.
Shabbat Shalom & Good Shabbos
Good Yom Tov & Chag Kasher V’someiach
R’ Dani and Chani Staum