Nothing Just Happens
Posted on | September 3, 2006 | By Mark Frankel | 13 Comments
Although there were 74 mitzvos in the parsha this Shabbos, I said a Dvar Torah about Amalek and I happened to learn the piece in Strive for Truth about Amalek with my son. Both pieces emphasize the usage of the word Karcha (happened) and stress that Amalek’s philosophy is that things just happen, as opposed to our philosophy that Hashem’s hand guides all.
Davening Sunday was nice, and after davening I read a page from the Chafetz Chaim’s lesson a day. We started learning different Shmiras HaLashon seferim after davening about 10 years ago and since I suggested the practice, I’ve been doing the reading. However recently I’ve been davening at a later 7:00 minyan, and last Sunday I was away, so I haven’t read in the morning for about 2 weeks. The piece I read this morning was about Past History (Day 8) which states:
Another area involving Loshon Hora is that of past history. It is forbidden to relate something about an individual’s past which either the speaker or the listener considers shameful, though in reality it is not shameful at all.
Our Sages teach that “at the place where baalei teshuvah stand, perfect tzaddikim cannot stand: (Berachos 34b). Thus there is nothing shameful about being a baal teshuvah. Nevertheless, it is forbidden to related that someone is a baal teshvah if either the speaker or listener looks down at such people.
Nothing just happens.
Later in the morning I was learning with my Partners In Torah chavrusa and he was really bothered by why the Torah used the language of “you shall cut off her palm” when it really means monetary damage, just like he was bothered by the language of eye for an eye, when it means monetary damage. When I was learning the parsha I was also struck by why the Torah uses that language.
Nothing just happens.
After learning with my chavrusa, my wife called me to tell me that a belt on our car broke and she needed me to pick them up at Target where my oldest was shopping for seminary and my second daughter was shopping for school. So after learning I drove to Target to meet them at the checkout line. My oldest felt really bad as the total sales ascended past $300, $400, $500, … My second daughter brought a few more things to the counter and the cashier rang up the total – $613.00 on the nose. Talk about Shopping L’Shem Shemayim. It really helped to put it all in perspective.
Nothing just happens.
As we drove home we passed Flushing Meadow Park and I saw it was empty so I decided to go for a run. Parenthetically – I ran through a parking lot that was full of police officers putting on bullet proof vests and dressing undercover as they prepared to go to the US Open. As I was leaving the park and writing this piece in my head and thinking about the $613.00 “coincidence”, who do I see making a left onto the Van Wyck – Rabbi Welcher.
Nothing just happens.
Not all these events are equally amazing and certainly one could write them all off to chance, but the Elul Jew on the approach to Rosh Hoshana will surely come to the conclusion that – nothing just happens.
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September 3rd, 2006 @ 7:09 pm
When I went to Ben & Jerry’s on Friday afternoon, my change was exactly $6.13…
September 3rd, 2006 @ 9:48 pm
Very cool posting, Mark. When one is ‘plugged’ into their Judaism and one tries to live the way Hashem intended one to, then our perspective changes.
September 4th, 2006 @ 1:30 am
Mark , fascinating string of happenstance points, for pondering …. dot connecting… and meaningful spiritual picture creating .Awesome elucidations on the preordained/predestined (aside from free will) components, the glitter and sparkledust of everyday happenstance is really hardcoded with as opposed to being attributed to random acts / flukes / or mere coincidence.That Target total sum of 613 is perfectly profound in and of itself!! A couple of weeks ago, I bought food for a family and the bill was 61.35 .I never came up with something for the extra five cents but still thought that existing 61.35 even though divided by a decimal and extra five cents still gave me some inspiring subliminal charity good deed messaging thing.But your Target sum 613.00 total story is way better.
September 4th, 2006 @ 9:51 am
Rachel:
What flavor?
September 4th, 2006 @ 12:16 pm
I rode ain a 70 mile bike rally for the environment yesterday and I was distressed that I had forgotten to bring my rebbe dollar. The road was wet and slick – occasionally I would glance at my cyclometer and a quick random glan revealed that I was at mile 7.70 – nothing just happens!
virtually all of the riders were non-frum – a smattering of MO lite and even the world’s only gay orthodox rabbi (don’t ask) – while riding one of the girls said to me “Rabbi what is your mantra? (gevald – how do I get into these situations?) I replied – the first 20 miles which were my own (I trained for most of the summer) it was “baruch Hashem” – beyond that it changed to “Chasdei Hashem”!
someone borrowed my tefilin that morning to don before the ride. As we took a rest from walking up the last hill 2 miles from the end he thanked me for lending him my tefilin. I thanked him back telling him that it was the z’chus of his putting the tefilin on that got me to the finish line!
my bar mitzva parsha this past shabbos – as you know I have a weakness for country music – if parshas zachor was a country song I suppose it would be entitled “I keep forgetting to remember to forget”
September 4th, 2006 @ 12:53 pm
Although I’m a little afraid to ask, maybe we can have some lyrics to “I keep forgetting to remember to forget”. On second thought, perhaps we should hold off to the Simcha of Succos for that one.
September 4th, 2006 @ 1:01 pm
I always get lost in the double negatives, but shouldn’t it be “I keep forgetting to remember NOT to forget”?
September 4th, 2006 @ 8:34 pm
Mark – Purim would perhaps be a more auspicious (or propitious) time
Ruby – No – your version is simply redundant – mine is my ticket to Nashville – the mitzva is to remember what Amalek did – and to erase their memory – but you have to remember to erase (forget) them!
September 4th, 2006 @ 8:55 pm
So I decide that this Rosh Hashana, I’m going completely off non-Kosher food, not even lunch with the guys while at work. But I think to myself, “Man, I’m really going to miss Chicken Fajitas at Chili’s” (right next to my office.)
The next evening I go up to a meeting for a charity group I’m involved with. I arrive in the area early, and there’s a kosher restaurant nearby, so decide to grab dinner there. On the specials list, Chicken Fajitas.
Nothing just happens!! (and I saved the receipt as a message that I’m definitely on the right path)
September 4th, 2006 @ 11:51 pm
Rabbi Simenowitz,
Sorry for getting literal (the posuk does say “..erase the memory of Amalek, do not forget”) in the presence of your creativity. I certainly can’t hold a candle to your sense of Nashville. My country starts and ends with “Thank G-d Lo Asani Goy”.
Yes, enough of this till Purim (Yom K’Purim? Hmmm…) Let’s get back to Nothing.
September 5th, 2006 @ 6:31 am
It’s like my son’s 6th grade Rebbe always says, there are no Ka-incidences (spelled with a hebrew Kaf). They may seem like it, but everything is planned from the very beginning..
September 5th, 2006 @ 10:46 am
David- chocolate and cookie dough (the cookie dough was great, but the chocolate wasn’t as good.) It was actually my lunch (perhaps eating ice cream for meals is one of those dangers of secular university…)
September 5th, 2006 @ 10:55 am
Rachel:
What, ice cream isn’t part of the food pyrimiad anymore??!!