Blessing and Curse: How Much Is in Our Own Hands?
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B”H
Authentic Kabbalah - Sephardic Studies Benei Noah Studies - Anti-Missionary/Anti-Cult Materials
Blessing & Curse, How Much Is In Our Own Hands?
Commentary to Parashat Ki Tavo
By Rabbi Ariel Bar Tzadok Copyright © 2000 by Ariel Bar Tzadok. All rights reserved.
In this parasha we read one of the most ominous sections of the entire Torah – the blessings which come along with our observance of the mitzvot and the curses which come about as a result of our rebelliousness. While the blessings are sublime and lofty, the curses boggle the mind. How could so many bad things happen just because one doesn’t observe the mitzvot? Many who read this parasha understand the section of the blessings and the curses with a childlike simplicity. Their attitude is one that says “if I am good, then “daddy” HaShem will give me good things and if I am bad then “daddy” HaShem will “spank” me.” While childlike understandings are quite innocent, they are also quite immature. When we view HaShem’s blessings and curses as simply being Divine impositions on us and our world, we loose sight of the essential matter - how much of what happens is our own responsibility? One of the finest lines that a religious person must walk is the razor’s edge between faith in HaShem and individual responsibility. As Benjamin Franklin put it, “G-d helps those who help themselves.” When it comes to examining the blessings and the curses in light of 2,500 years of Jewish persecution, some disturbing questions arise. How much effort are we supposed to put into molding our own destiny? In other words, are we able to affect and/or neutralize HaShem’s curses, based on the actions that we take? When should we simply stand back in faith and allow HaShem, through nature, to take its course? When is too little mitzvah observance not enough? When is enough enough? I believe that if we had the answers to these questions and lived by them Mashiah would have been here a long time ago and our
B”H
Authentic Kabbalah - Sephardic Studies Benei Noah Studies - Anti-Missionary/Anti-Cult Materials
Blessing & Curse, How Much Is In Our Own Hands?
Commentary to Parashat Ki Tavo
By Rabbi Ariel Bar Tzadok Copyright © 2000 by Ariel Bar Tzadok. All rights reserved.
In this parasha we read one of the most ominous sections of the entire Torah – the blessings which come along with our observance of the mitzvot and the curses which come about as a result of our rebelliousness. While the blessings are sublime and lofty, the curses boggle the mind. How could so many bad things happen just because one doesn’t observe the mitzvot? Many who read this parasha understand the section of the blessings and the curses with a childlike simplicity. Their attitude is one that says “if I am good, then “daddy” HaShem will give me good things and if I am bad then “daddy” HaShem will “spank” me.” While childlike understandings are quite innocent, they are also quite immature. When we view HaShem’s blessings and curses as simply being Divine impositions on us and our world, we loose sight of the essential matter - how much of what happens is our own responsibility? One of the finest lines that a religious person must walk is the razor’s edge between faith in HaShem and individual responsibility. As Benjamin Franklin put it, “G-d helps those who help themselves.” When it comes to examining the blessings and the curses in light of 2,500 years of Jewish persecution, some disturbing questions arise. How much effort are we supposed to put into molding our own destiny? In other words, are we able to affect and/or neutralize HaShem’s curses, based on the actions that we take? When should we simply stand back in faith and allow HaShem, through nature, to take its course? When is too little mitzvah observance not enough? When is enough enough? I believe that if we had the answers to these questions and lived by them Mashiah would have been here a long time ago and our