This Monday and Tuesday, we begin the observance of Passover. One of the most important parts of the seder is when we respond to the Torah’s warning:
“When in time to come your children will ask, what mean all the decrees laws and rules that God has commanded?”
I have been thinking about this phrase not just because of Passover but also in light of yesterday’s events with our nation’s missile strike on Syria. I am not sure that I have any special wisdom regarding the appropriateness of the attack in either objective or scope. So I have little to offer other than prayer. We pray, Ribono shel olam, Master of the Universe that the needless suffering of innocents will come to an end. We pray for an end to the rule of heartless tyrants like Bashar al Assad. We pray for healing among the survivors in the gas attacks, and we pray for comfort for the relatives left to bury their loved ones. We pray for comfort to anyone who mourns. We pray that the nations of the world including the United States of America, open their doors to refugees fleeing the terror in their land. We pray that this will not spark a larger world conflict with globally catastrophic ramifications. And lastly, we pray that this decision proves to be wise, not just for those who live today, but for the future generations who will inherit the consequences of these actions.
This last prayer is perhaps the most complicated. We cannot know the outcome. It is easy to see pictures and be moved to action. We are hardwired to respond to our impulses. It’s almost Newtonian. Every action has an equal opposite reaction. However, as humans, thoughtful beings with intellect, we do not respond to the world merely by reflex. Rather, we can subdue reflex and be analytical in forming our response.
A classic example is in dealing with our “fight or flight” response. In a threatening situation, a wild dog either lashes out or runs away. Usually they lash out. Evolution has provided us with the same impulses. However, we cannot be like wild dogs. Living with rule of law, part of our social contract keeps us from lashing out just on impulse. We have the ability to subdue our inclination. And that is a very good thing.
As Psychlologist, Marc Schoen of UCLA points out, in the information age, as we are accustomed to instant gratification, we have become hypersensitive and little things, even insignificant things can trigger a stress response. Fight or flight can hit us at any time, even when we are enduring something mundane like a slow internet. The more sped up we are, the lower our threshold for discomfort, the blurred the line becomes between real danger and and other stresses, and the more fight or flight kicks in. If we choose fight every time…. that could lead to trouble. Living as citizens of the world demands of us more than reacting to stresses in the moment. We can lash out resolving our need for instant gratification, or we can stifle our impulse, and save ourselves and others from embarrassment or pain in the moment.
Still, our reaction in the moment is only part of the story. At all times, we must consider our impact on the future. Some would argue that we can only be accountable to the people who are alive today. We can’t see hear or talk to future people, so let’s just focus on the world as it stands before us. As a more cynical extension, one might say, who are we to assume that we know what future people will want or need? So Carpe Diem! Let us live for today.
Judaism prohibits us from thinking this way. We are to operate under the assumption that future generations will be more or less like us, with the same basic desires and needs, for life, love, and security. Therefore, we must resist the impulse to react in the moment. Instead, we must give clear thought to the results, and the potential chain reaction of events we might set in place. To this end, this week’s parasha gives us a framework for responding to the stresses of the world. It begins with the word “Tzav,” meaning “Command.” Specifically, God is telling Moses to command Aaron regarding the burnt offering to be done in the Temple. But the action being described here is less important than that powerful word at the beginning of the verse. Rashi, in his commentary ponders, why this word here when the Torah usually has Moses, “speaking” or “saying” something to the people. He wants to know why the Torah here uses stronger language of “commanding” like it’s an order of higher imperative. Rashi states that “Command” is used to reinforce that a particular deed is to be done right away, to benefit this generation, AND it is intended for the good of future generations. So Tzav for us underscores the value that what we do today, can and does affect what will be done in the future.
It is an echo of what we hear when we read in Deuteronomy about God’s covenant with us:
“I the LORD your God am an impassioned God, visiting the guilt of the parents upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generations of those who reject Me, 10 but showing kindness to the thousandth generation of those who love Me and keep My commandments.”
The message is clear. What has been done in the past affects us today. And what we do today will affect those who come after us. So we must be thoughtful and clear-headed and avoid the temptation to react in the moment, lashing out in disgust or anger. Instead we should always keep an eye toward the future and the consequences which our great grandchildren will inherit.
This is what we must hope about our nation’s actions in Syria. We must recognize the severity of this act against another sovereign nation and all it implies. We must hope that our leaders have done this as more than just emotional reflex. We hope they have acted with clear heads and a plan which anticipates the potential fallout. There is no question that actions of Bashar Al Assad are a travesty, and that he has committed war crimes against his own nation. There is also no question that this is occurring in a region of the world with a very delicate balance of power and significant key players who seem more than willing to escalate the conflict. Our past actions and thoughtful inaction has kept those realities in mind. It is our hope that this most recent action has done the same, and that we are prepared to bear the consequences, and furthermore that those are consequences we will be proud to give our children.
When it comes to Syria, the recent past has been dark. The present, quite murky. The future is yet unknown. We can only hope and pray that it work out for the best, bringing us closer to witnessing the end of the people’s suffering and the world closer, God willing to peace. Any other outcome is unthinkable, and whatsmore unconscionable.
And so as we gather around our seder tables, and our children ask what mean all of these things, may our answer be, as prescribed in the Torah.
“God freed us in order to take us to the Promised Land, and we were commanded to observe the laws, to revere Adonai our God, for our lasting good and for our future survival.”
May it be so for us. May it be so for those who suffer from oppression. May it be so for all people in ever generation who wish for nothing more than to live in peace.