Standing up to the noise

This week’s Torah reading, Parshas Shoftim, offers guidance for the Jewish people and the nation of Israel when they need to go to war. The verse teaches that before the people go out to battle, the kohen, the priest of God, gets up before the soldiers and reminds them to fear no one, and to remember always where their might in battle derives from: It comes from their trust in Hashem, who accompanies them wherever they go.

The Mishnah, the ancient collection of Tannaitic teachings, elaborates on the words of the kohen as follows: “Let not your heart faint; fear not, nor be alarmed, and do not be terrified of them.” (Deuteronomy 20:3)

“Let not your heart faint” due to the neighing of horses and the sharpening of the enemy’s swords. “Fear not” due to the clanging of shields and the noise of their boots. “Nor be alarmed” by the sound of trumpets. “Do not be terrified” due to the sound of shouts. “For Hashem your God is He that goes with you.”

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Don’t become scared by the deafening noises of your antagonists, by the clanging of the shields and the sounds of the shouting. Remember that the quiet presence of God, who accompanies you, can accomplish more for you than all the noise your opponents make in seeking to prevail against you.

Today in Israel, our heroic Jewish soldiers are fighting for the defense of our land. They must keep in mind always the guidance offered by this week’s Torah reading, in the most literal sense.

But even for us here, thousands of miles away in the United States, these ideas have meaning, too. We, too, must not be cowed by the sound of the shouts. Even as those shouts are getting ever more deafening — and at times, even spill over from opposing Israel’s right to defend itself to opposing the Jews.

We, too, must not allow ourselves to be deafened by the noise, to be swayed or deterred from living proudly by our own Jewish ideals.

Antisemitism has taken on so many forms throughout history, and over the centuries we Jews have learned to never allow ourselves to be defined by others’ perception of us. We’ve learned to search within ourselves and within our Torah traditions to understand who we are and what we stand for. We have had to do this so many times before, and today, too, we can and must build on our heritage to be strong in understanding
who we are and what our mission is, and to stand firm in the face of all the noise. PJC

Rabbi Levi Langer is the dean of the Kollel Jewish Learning Center. This column is a service of the Vaad Harabonim of Greater Pittsburgh.