From the Rabbi

   To me, the beauty of the Torah is that it is not only philosophical and faith based but also has a practical side to it that is designed to help protect the Jewish people from hurting themselves.

   In this weeks Torah portion “Shofteem’” we are commanded to appoint Judges and Police to ensure that there is a level of fairness across-the-board that did not exist in the world until this point. Instead of just a king or a brutal tyrant, determining who shall live or who shall die, a system of fairness and equality had to be established in order for the nation to survive.

   In other words, HaShem through Moses helps the Jewish people to find a better way to live than the nations surrounding them. Moses says to the nation to find righteous people who can judge fairly. They are commanded to not look and see, who is in front of them, but rather to judge the situation and the actions. That way a rich person would not get a better deal than a poor person.

   It may seem obvious to us living in America that everyone should get a fair trial and be treated equally. We know that in reality that doesn’t even happen here all the time. A great society cannot exist without equality and justice. It is comforting to know that the Jewish people brought these rights to the world.

   Isaiah, the great prophet of the destruction and the redemption of the Jewish people is constantly railing against the aristocracy and the king to treat all people equally. The people did not listen and the temple was destroyed. This weeks Haftarah is a message of Hope and redemption.

Maybe we see this speedily in our day, Amen.

Shabbat Shalom, Cantor Marty