Rabbi Heller's Blog

Parashat Mattot (the first half of this week’s double portion) takes up the action as the Israelites, after almost 40 years in the desert, are just weeks from entering the Promised Land, and taking on a process of conquest that would span another seven years. It records an uncomfortable exchange between Moses and the tribes of Reuven and Gad. These tribes wanted to settle on the land that they had already conquered, rather than entering Canaan itself. This dialogue has some important implications for the relations between Jews living in the land of Israel today, and those living in the Diaspora, at this critical time.

The tribes of Reuven and Gad had a logical reason for their request-- they owned large herds, more suitable for the tablelands of Transjordan and the Golan heights than for Canaan. Moses responded with dramatic criticism of these Israelites, accusing them of being disloyal to God and their brethren and sowing cowardice and dissent. In Moses’ eyes, by not entering the land, they put the entire nation at risk.

Reuven and Gad were not shaken by Moses’; criticism. They were known for their bravery in battle. Indeed, one explanation as to how they had so much cattle was that they were among the most aggressive in fighting the enemy as the Israelites passed through that area, and therefore ended up with more cattle as spoils of war!

They responded in the contrary-- their loyalty was unwavering. They were already heavily involved in the defense of the nation in their own way. They furthermore promised that they would serve “double duty.” As the Israelites entered the promised land these two tribes would be the vanguard, helping with the conquest, even though they had already conquered the lands where they would live. Furthermore, they would leave behind their own children and cattle in order to go and fight for the people, but asked that Moses recognize the sacrifices they would make in doing so. Moses accepted their response, and encouraged half of the tribe of Menasheh to join them.

Before October 7, Jews in Israel and the Diaspora had some of the same questions of connection and loyalty. Some factions in Israeli government sought to denigrate and undermine the legitimacy of Judaism as practiced in the Diaspora, and even many staunchly Zionist American Jews were not reserved in their criticism of some Israeli governmental plans and policies.

At this moment, those concerns are set aside. Israel is in the midst of a multi-front war. Hundreds have lost their lives.  Reserve units are stretched to their limits, tens of thousands of citizens are forced into refugee status to get out of range of Hizbollah missiles, and everyone is waiting nervously to see whether Iran will escalate its attacks.

Our community today are like the warriors of  those two and a half tribes, with our attention and resources divided. Jews in the Diaspora have an important role in supporting Israel-- we can serve as advocates and educators. We can provide financial and moral support. There are young people from our community who are literally emulating the two and half tribes, heading to Israel to serve as lone soldiers.

At the same time, metaphorically speaking, we also have our own families and flocks here who need protection. Jews throughout the diaspora, from Pittsburgh to Paris, Toronto to Tunisia, are facing violence, vandalism and intimidation, even as we face divisions within our own communities. Closer to home, many of our B’nai Torah students are returning to campuses where they do not know what types of intimidation they may be facing. In a few weeks, I’m going up to my alma mater to serve as an alumni marshal at an event that I fear will be disrupted by anti-Israel and antisemitic protests.

As we have passed 300 days since October 7^th, the future remains cloudy. My hope is that there will be an October 8^th, when we can stand down and focus on tending to our own flocks. When that time comes--I hope-- our cousins in Israel will remember the moments when Jews around the world truly needed each other.