Parsha Shelach - June 14, 2014

Parsha: Shelach

Date: June 14,2014

By: Dan Cohen

A very mini-drash in honor of the OHDS Graduates 

(and each of you)

With apologies to those who heard this at the OHDS graduation earlier this week, please indulge a quick thought and prayer for each of you and for all of our community’s graduates.

This week’s parsha, Shelach, highlights one of the early moments in which the Jewish people’s doubts about G-d delivering us into Israel leads to disastrous outcomes.  In the parsha, Moses is convinced to send scouts into the land of Israel.  The cycle of deceit, despair, and slow destruction of an entire generation of Jews that follows is well-documented.

However, on the positive side, I was moved by an idea from Rabbi Ephy Greene. When Moses commanded the spies to explore the land, one of the things he tells them to look for is, “HaYesh Bah Etz Im Ayin”, “Is there a tree there…” (Numbers 13:20)

Rashi explains that this tree is a metaphor for a righteous person. But why? 

Rashi adds that just like a tree provides shade, so too this Tzaddik will protect the people of the land. In our own lives, we know that a truly righteous person can impact the lives of many and when we act in a righteous manner, there is no limit to the impact we can have on others.

However, the metaphor goes even deeper. Man’s potential, our potential, for growth and positive, productive activity is also comparable to the tree that the parsha cites. The Maharal writes that man is called Adam from the word Adamah or Earth.  And that from the earth we can grow and bear fruit. 

For our graduates (from OHDS and every institution), my prayer is that you have set strong roots, and that the fruit – the potential – is yet to come.   For each of you, the opportunity and challenge remains to continue to grow, to find moments (however brief) to be more like a Tzaddik, and to share the fruits of our positive impacts with as many people as we can.