Devarim: How We Retell Our Story

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The book of Devarim is also called Mishneh Torah, the “repetition” of the Torah. The retelling of one story in particular shows how the way we remember our past shapes both our leaders and ourselves.

The first historical narrative Moshe shares with the second generation in the desert is the story of the meraglim (spies). It is not the Exodus, the revelation at Sinai, nor the sin of the golden calf. Why this story? There are also notable differences between the account in Devarim and its original telling in Bamidbar. In Devarim, it is not God who initiates the sending of the scouts, but the nation. Nor is it the spies, the tribal leaders, who bear primary responsibility for rejecting the land, but the people themselves. Rav Tamir Granot explains that Moshe chose to retell this story because its lessons were the most relevant for this generation. Bamidbar emphasizes the failings of the leaders; Devarim shifts the focus to the responsibility of the people.

A similar approach was taken by the rabbis in retelling the story of the churban, commemorated on Tisha B’Av. Historical sources and the Talmud recount the corruption of the priesthood at the end of the Second Temple period. They also tell of the enmity between Qamtza and Bar Qamtza and the silence of the rabbis who witnessed it, all of which contributed to Jerusalem’s destruction. Our leaders failed us then, and some accepted responsibility for those failures. Ultimately, however, the rabbis teach that it was because of sinat chinam – baseless hatred among the people – that God destroyed the Temple.

These messages resonate powerfully today. We must hold our leaders accountable and learn from their failures. Yet blame alone cannot move a nation forward. The most enduring response to historical trauma – then and now – is for every member of the Jewish people to accept personal responsibility for shaping a better future. Shabbat Shalom -Karen Miller Jackson

Parshat Devarim: Positive Words

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Parshat Devarim, literally “words,” teaches that the language we choose to use can influence people’s motivation levels and feelings of optimism.

Devarim opens with naming several places where the nation traveled in the desert. However, these places were never mentioned in the Torah before. Rashi teaches that this was how Moshe rebuked the generation whose parents sinned in the desert. Moshe alludes to these events indirectly, out of respect for Israel. Instead of using words which were shaming and demotivating, Moshe models how to speak words of criticism in a way which is respectful and can have positive outcomes.

Our choice of words can also have a positive affect on our mindset and well-being. In masechet Pesachim Rabbi Yehoshua b. Levi advises not to use negative language. He bases this on the fact that the Torah teaches the value of speaking positively by the addition of extra letters in the Noah narrative. Rather than calling the animals “impure,” the Torah states, “those that are not pure.” Similarly, Rabbi Joseph Telushkin writes in his book “Rebbe,” that the Lubavitcher Rebbe believed that carefully chosen words could positively influence the emotional state of ourselves and others. For instance, the Rebbe refused to call a hospital a “beit cholim” (house of the sick) but rather called it “beit refuah” (house of healing).

As Tisha B’Av approaches, we learn that the Beit Hamikdash was destroyed because of sinat chinam (baseless hatred). Moreover, the enmity between Qamtza and Bar Qamtza and the silence of the rabbis who were with them led to the destruction of Jerusalem. Parshat Devarim and Tisha B’Av are reminders that speaking respectfully and positively spreads ahavat chinam and optimism in our world. Shabbat Shalom🌷 -Karen Miller Jackson