Parshat Ki Tissa February 19, 2011 15 Adar 1, 5771

Rabbi Jonathon Sacks on Parshat Ki Tisa

TORAH This week’s sedra begins fighting men, and said to the there is another possibility.
ARTSCROLL, 484 Lord, "I have sinned greatly in Why do nations normally
with a strange command:
HERTZ, 352 what I have done. Now, O Lord, take a census of their
When you take a census I beg you, take away the guilt of population? To establish
HAFTORAH
ARTSCROLL, 1160 [literally, “when you lift the your servant. I have done a their strength: military (the
HERTZ, 369 head”] of the Israelites to very foolish thing." number of people who can
determine their number, be conscripted into an
each one is to give to the The result, however, was army), economic (the
Lord an atonement tragedy. A plague struck the number from whom taxes
Times offering for his life when people, taking many lives. can be raised) or simply
they are counted, so that There is a tantalizing mystery demographic (the
Candle Lighting 5:15 pm they will not be stricken by here. Why is it dangerous to numerical growth or decline
plague when they are count Jews? The of the nation). The
Friday Mincha 5:15 pm
counted. (Exodus 30: 12) commentators offered many assumption beneath every
Hashkama 8:00 am suggestions. Rashi says that census is: there is strength
Evidently, it is dangerous counting is fraught with the in numbers. The more
Youth 8:30 am
to count Jews. This is danger of “the evil eye”. numerous a people, the
Parsha Shiur 8:30 am confirmed by an episode Rabbenu Bachya suggests that stronger it is.
in II Samuel 24. On one when people are being
Main Minyan 9:00 am counted, they are numbered That is why it is dangerous
occasion, King David
Intermediate 9:00 am decided to take a census one by one rather than all to count Jews. We are a
Minyan of the people. His chief of together. For a moment they tiny people. The late Milton
staff Joab strongly are individuals, separated from Himmelfarb once wrote that
Beit Midrash 9:15 am the community. Hence the the total population of Jews
advised against it:
Gemorah Shiur 4:10 pm danger that an individual’s throughout the world is
“But Joab replied to the merit may not be sufficiently smaller than a small
Mincha 5:10 pm king, "May the Lord your great to save him from adverse statistical error in the
Shabbat Ends 6:24 pm G-d multiply the troops a judgment. Sforno says that a
census reminds us of change; it This Friday is the
hundred times over, and
Sunday Feb. 20 7:30/8:30 am draws attention both to those 7th Yahrzeit of
may the eyes of my lord
the king see it. But why who have died and those who Rabbi Dr.
Mon. Thurs. 6:35/7:45 am does my lord the king are still alive. This too is Ephraim Wolf
want to do such a thing?" ” dangerous, since it raises the
As we do each year, a
Tues.Wed.Fri. 6:45/7:45 am question: by what right am I
special tribute to
However, David overruled here and others not? To avert
Late Maariv 8:15 pm Rabbi Wolf, zt”l,
him. Once the census was this we must give, by way of
and a shiur in his memory
taken, David began to ransom, a gift to the
Mincha Sun/Fri. 5:25 pm are available
realize that he had done a on the GNS website
great wrong; he was If only by way of midrash, and
www.gns.org
Latest times for conscience-stricken after with no suggestion that this is
Shema/Shmoneh Esrei he had counted the the plain sense of the verse,
February 19 9:26/10:20 am
February 26 9:20/10:16 am Kiddush is
co-sponsored by
Next Shabbat
Vayakhel GNS and the NSHA hockey team
in honor of their upcoming
Candle lighting 5:24 pm first place game this Saturday night
Mincha 5:25 pm
26 Old Mill Road, Great Neck, NY 11023 (516) 487-6100 Shabbat Announcements Parshat Ki Tisa 5771

in a way that almost defies comprehension. It was not

Chinese census. We are a fifth of a per cent of the
once that the Jewish imagination caught fire, but in
population of the world: by any normal standards too small
century after century, sometimes under the worst
to be significant. Nor is this true only now. It was then. In
persecution known to any nation on earth. Time and
one of his concluding addresses in Deuteronomy, Moses
again, in the wake of tragedy, the Jewish people renewed
said:
itself in a burst of creativity. The destruction of the First
The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you
Temple gave rise to systematic Torah study in Babylon.
because you were more numerous than other peoples, for
The destruction of the Second precipitated the great
you are the fewest of all peoples. (Deuteronomy 7: 7).
literature of the Oral tradition: Midrash, Mishnah and
Gemarah. Encounters with Karaites, and later, Christians,
The danger in counting Jews is that if they believed, even
produced the great Torah commentaries. The challenge
for a moment, that there is strength in numbers, the Jewish
of Islamic neo-Platonism and neo-Aristotelianism
people would long ago have given way to despair.
provoked one of the great ages of Jewish philosophy.
How then do you estimate the strength of the Jewish
If you want to know the strength of the Jewish people,
people? To this the Torah gives an answer of surpassing
ask them to give, and then count the contributions. That
beauty. Ask Jews to give, and then count their
is the majestic idea at the opening of this week’s sedra.
contributions. Numerically we are small, but in terms of our
contributions to civilization and humankind, we are vast.
Nor is this mere conjecture. There is one episode in the
Book of Judges (chapters 6-7) that epitomizes this
Think only of the makers of modern thought: in physics,
dazzling truth. The Israelites had suffered a devastating
Einstein; in philosophy, Wittgenstein; in sociology,
series of attacks from the Midianites. G-d called on a
Durkheim; in anthropology, Levi-Strauss; in psychiatry,
warrior, Gideon, and told him to wage war against them.
Freud; in economics, a whole string of great thinkers from
Gideon duly assembled an army of 32,000 men. G-d
David Ricardo to Milton Friedman to Alan Greenspan to
responded with what must surely be one of the strangest
Joe Stiglitz (including 40 per cent of the winners of the
lines in history: "You have too many men for me to deliver
Nobel Prize for economics). In literature, there were writers
Midian into their hands” (Judges 7: 2). G-d tells Gideon to
from Proust to Kafka to Agnon to Isaac Bashevis Singer; in
announce that anyone who wishes to go home should go
music, classical composers like Mahler and Schoenberg,
home. 22, 000 men did so; now a mere 10, 000
popular composers like Irving Berlin and George Gershwin,
remained. G-d said: There are still too many men.
as well as some of the world’s greatest soloists and
conductors. Jews have won 48 Nobel prizes in medicine.
He told Gideon to take the men to a place of water and
They have made an outstanding contribution to law (in
observe how they drank. 9,700 kneeled down to the
Britain, where they are one-half of a percent of the
water to drink it directly. A mere 300 cupped the water in
population, they contributed two of the last three Lord Chief
their hands and stayed standing. G-d told Gideon to
Justices, the highest judicial office in the land). And all this
dismiss the 9,700, leaving a mere 300 troops, an
without mentioning the Jewish contribution to industry,
absurdly small number for any military engagement, let
finance, academic life, the media, and politics (under John
alone a war against a powerful enemy. Only then did G-d
Major, at one time both the Home Secretary and Foreign
say to Gideon: "With the three hundred men that lapped I
Secretary were Jews).
will save you and give the Midianites into your hands.” (7:
7). Mounting a surprise attack at night, and using
But it is, of course, the Jewish contribution to the life of the
ingenious tactics to suggest the presence of a large army,
spirit that is not only unique but shaped the entire course of
Gideon struck and won.
Western civilization. Somehow this tiny people produced an
unceasing flow of patriarchs, priests, poets and prophets,
Clearly this is not just a story about war. Tanakh is a
masters of halakhah and aggadah, codifiers and
religious text, not a military one. What G-d was saying to
commentators, philosophers and mystics, sages and saints
Gideon – what tacitly He has been saying to us and our
ancestors for forty centuries – is that to win the Jewish
Great Neck Synagogue
battle, the battle of the spirit, the victory of heart, mind
Shabbat Activities Program
Great Neck Synagogue and soul, you do not need numbers. You need
Shabbat Activities Program dedication, commitment, study, prayer, vision, courage,
ideals, hope. You need a people who are instinctively
Dale Polakoff, Rabbi inclined to give, to contribute. Give, then count the
Ian Lichter, Assistant Rabbi contributions: the finest way ever devised to measure the
Dr. Ephraim Wolf ,z”l, Rabbi Emeritus strength of a people.
Michael Bleicher, Daniel Schwechter, Rabbinic Interns
Zeev Kron, Cantor
Eleazer Schulman, z”l, Cantor Emeritus
Mark Twersky, Executive Director
Joseph Hecht, President
Harold Domnitch, Chairman of the Board
 ANNOUNCEMENTS
PESACH SCOPE DEADLINE The deadline for the Pesach edition of
Scope magazine is Monday, March 7th. Please submit all articles,
photos, sponsorships and advertisements by that date to Diane Rein
at drein@verizon.net . Thank you very much!
AMIT MISHLOACH MANOT Please check your email for this year's
letter about how to participate in the program. If you did not receive
an email or would like additional information please contact Debbie
Goldberg at 482-6050 or email gngardner@gmail.com; or Sara
Shapiro at 829-4390 or email ilovered18@gmail.com. The deadline
for online orders is Sunday, February 27 and for paper orders
Thursday, February 24
MEN’S CLUB UPCOMING EVENTS
March 6th- Rabbi David Nesenoff
March 27: The Annual Rabbinic Dialogue,Sunday morning
at Temple Beth El.
June 12: Semi Annual Blood Drive
June 28-29:Defensive Driving Course
COMMUNITY WIDE MAIN EVENT Feb 19th at Har Torah in Little
Neck will be the NSHA vs Har Torah hockey game, 8:00 pm with
special guests from OHEL. There will be a special presentation/
hockey clinic between the 2nd and 3rd period. The players have been
raising Tzedeka for OHEL which will also be presented during the
game. Speak with the players or coaches
(Dan Horowitz & Isaac Greszes) if you want to contribute.
AM HASEFER On Tuesday, March 8th, Am Hasefer presents the book:
“The Prime Ministers: An Intimate Narrative of Israeli
Leadership by Yehuda Avner.” Rabbi Dale Polakoff will lead the
discussion of this book. Time and location to be announced. The book
is available on Amazon.com.
SISTERHOOD MEETING Please join us on Wednesday evening,
March 2nd at 8:00pm in the Braun Youth Center for a Sisterhood
meeting to discuss and plan upcoming events. Kindly let us know some
chesed related activities that you would like to help organize for
PARENT CHILD LEARNING ON MOTZAI SHABBAT
Sisterhood to benefit our community. Looking forward to seeing you !
SISTERHOOD ROSH CHODESH ADAR II EVENT WITH
REBBETZIN KATIE LICHTER
Please join us on Wed. evening, March 9th to bake hamantaschen
together! Details to follow. Please submit your favorite hamantaschen
recipe to Rebbetzin Katie Lichter at katielichr@gmail.com. We are
looking forward to a fun evening! Thank you very much to Cindy
Hodkin for organizing this event.
SISTERHOOD AND GNS TALMUD TORAH – MISHLOACH MANOT
CHESED PROJECT
The Sisterhood is excited to be joining the GNS Talmud Torah students
who will be baking hamantaschen and making mishloach manot
packages that the students will deliver on Purim to the residents who
live at the Arrandale Senior Citizen Home in Great Neck. Thank you
very much to Judy Lillien for this great idea!
SISTERHOOD PRE-PESACH BOUTIQUE AND BUY-BYE BLING
GOLD SALE Please join us on Wednesday, March 30th at Great Neck
Synagogue to shop at our Pre-Pesach boutique. Details to follow.
Thank you to Lisa Kagan for organizing this event for us. Also, on that
same day, there will be an opportunity for you to come to Great Neck
Synagogue to receive cash on the spot for your valuable gold and
silver items. (Gold Sale hours are 10:30am – 3:00pm and 5:00p –
9:00pm). Highest prices paid! The Sisterhood will receive a
percentage of all sales. Use your cash at the boutique! Thank you to
Lisa Kagan and Susan Sheena for co-chairing this event.
WANTED DONATION OF A USED CAR The synagogue is looking for
someone to donate a car for use as a deterrent for security measures.
It will be painted to look official and a beacon will be installed on the
roof. The car does not have to run well, it just has to be able to be
driven in and around the shul. The body needs to be in decent
condition. Please contact Scott Danoff if you have such a vehicle, and
would like to make a tax deductible donation to the shul. E-mail Scott,
at ScottDanoff.GNS@gmail.com
Within Our Family
Mazal Tov to Gail and Yaacov Mizrahi on the engagement of
their daughter Shira to Stephen Blank of Fairfield, Ct.
NCSY will be holding a Wine and Chocolate Tasting on Saturday
night, February 19th at 8:30pm in the home of Sara & Mitch
Shapiro, 18 Robin Way. This evening will be an opportunity for
people to view the prizes at the NCSY Chinese Auction which will
be held in March.
MARATHONS FOR CHARITY
Arnie and Viviane Breitbart will be running in Jerusalem on
March 25, where Arnie will be running the Jerusalem Marathon and
Viviane will be running the 10K. They are running to support Shalva,
a wonderful organization providing services for physically and
mentally challenged children in Israel. Contributions can be made out
to American Friends of Shalva and mailed to Arnie Breitbart,
10 Imperial Court, Great Neck, NY 11023. On March 20, 2011,
Tami Kramer will be running in the NYC Half-Marathon as part of
Team Sharsheret, a national non- for- profit organization supporting
Jewish women and their families facing breast and ovarian
cancer. To sponsor please visit her profile page at
https://www.sharsheret.org/halfmar2011-tamisecunda.php.
GNS/YIGN JOINT FRIDAY NIGHT ONEGS FOR HS STUDENTS
The first oneg to be held at Young Israel on Feb. 18th.
The second oneg to be held at GNS on April 8th. Don’t miss them !!
WOMEN’S TUESDAY LEARNING
The Tuesday class with Amit Yagoubi begins at 10:30 am. The class
will focus on “Tomer Devorah” How to tap into the 13 attributes of
G-D. Five weeks cost $50. Individual classes $12.
This Shabbat at 7:00 pm, parents and middle school age children are
invited to come to GNS for this special program.
RABBI REISMAN
The Rabbi Reisman simulcast takes place every Saturday evening in
the Weinstein Torah & Tech. Center. The time for Feb. is 8:00 pm.
Saturday, 15 Adar 1
Ronald Braun for Muriel Braun
Alan Prawer for Pinchas Prawer
Brenda Rosmarin for Samuel Ressler
Israel Slochowsky for Morris Slochowsky
Sunday, 16 Adar 1
Ivan Kaufman for Morris Enoch Kaufman
Ellen Polakoff for Helene Pinsker
Phyllis Ringel for Minnie Gitter
Y Hadassah Wachstock for Frieda Kessler
A Monday, 17 Adar 1
H Stanley Dacher for Lena Dacher
Myra Honig for Abraham Mathews
R Tuesday, 18 Adar 1
Z Murray Frank for Yetta Frank
Edwin Frederick for Bertha Frederick
E Thursday, 19 Adar 1
I Meryl Friedman for Hyman Karten
Stuart Kaufman for Dora Schwartz
T Carol Loewenstein for Anna Adamsky
Mali Meisel for Samuel Maultasch
David Wagner for Rose Wagner
Friday, 20 Adar 1
Gilbert Aronowitz for Isidore Luchansky
Rhona Lanzkowsky for Simon Chiat
Tricia Moslin for Estelle Solomon
Judy Weinstein for Edward Eichenhon