This past Sunday a letter was circulated in my little rabbi world. The authors of the letter were looking for more rabbis to sign on to their letter titled, Orthodox Rabbis Endorse Kamala Harris. It cited Trump’s values and character as reasons to disqualify him from office. It did not take long for a new letter to start circulating, called, you guessed it, Orthodox Rabbis Endorse Donald Trump. It cited Trump’s impressive track-record supporting Israel as the reason Jews should vote for him.
And then… a third letter circulated! Oh, rabbis…
This message, which was the most popular, suggested that rabbis should not get involved in politics whatsoever.
I signed on to none of them. Not the rabbis against Trump, not the rabbis for Trump, and not the rabbis who said rabbis should not weigh in on politics.
Let’s begin with the group that argues that Rabbis should not get involved in anything partisan. Of course, there are legalities. I am not allowed to tell you who you should vote for from this little perch. But if we met on the street and you asked me who I am voting for, or even who you should vote for, I am allowed to share my views. There is also a question of strategy – is it wise for the Jewish community to publicly endorse one party if the other party will likely be in power in the next few years? But the most fundamental question is this – should we use the Torah to influence our political views, or should Judaism remain apolitical?
I know this will be quite off-putting to some of you, but to me, suggesting that Judaism should stay out of the public and political arena is comical. Prophets, from Moshe onward, were constantly advocating for political change. The Torah’s legal system directs behavior not only in the privacy of one’s home but in the public sphere as well. Avraham takes down four superpowers, Moshe stands up to the injustices of Egypt, and every prophet’s main role was to criticize the immoral policies of the ruling king. Of course, Judaism is meant to be a vehicle for political change.
The oft-quoted “Render unto Ceaser the things that are Caesar’s, and to G-d the things that are G-d’s,” is found in the books of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Yeshaya and Yonah would laugh at such a sentiment. Does anyone really believe that the Torah has nothing to say about the weighty topics that this and every election revolves around? Really??
You might be wondering, if the Torah does indeed have what to say about public matters, what does the Torah say about who we should have voted for? Why did I not sign on to either one of those letters – Rabbis for Trump or Rabbis for Harris?
You may accuse me of being afraid to offend people in the shul, and I am sure that blind spot is at play, but trust me, by the time I am done this morning, I will have offended everyone here…
Let me share with you an old poem by John Godfrey Saxby.
It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
The First approached the Elephant,
And happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
G-d bless me! but the Elephant
Is very like a wall!
The Second, feeling of the tusk,
Cried, Ho! what have we here
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me tis mighty clear
This wonder of an Elephant
Is very like a spear!
The Third approached the animal,
And happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up and spake:
I see quoth he, the Elephant
Is very like a snake!
The Fourth reached out his eager hand,
And felt about the knee.
What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain quoth he,
Tis clear enough the Elephant
Is very like a tree!
The next one grabs the elephant’s ear, the next one grabs its tail. You get the point. And this is how it ends:
And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!
And I know what you’re thinking, I can’t believe Rabbi Motzen spoke about an elephant and not a donkey!!
In all seriousness, are we not all blind to some degree? Is it not incredibly hard to see the entire picture with all its vast complexity?
The Gemara tells us that in ancient Jewish history, to be elected to the Sanhedrin, Judaism’s equivalent to the Supreme Court, you had to suggest 50 reasons why something the Torah lists as impure, tamei, is actually tahor, pure. What that means, explains the Maharal, is that the highest level of intelligence, the prerequisite for sitting on the highest court in Israel, is the ability to not see things in black and white, to recognize that even if in the final analysis something is impure, something is wrong, something is evil, but nothing is absolute. There are 50 pure features in something that is ultimately impure.
To those saying, of course, Trump is better for Israel and for the Jewish People, I ask you, are you familiar with Bret Stephens, a proud Jew, a staunch conservative, someone who believes that Israel’s strength is needed for the wellbeing of the planet, who nonetheless, begrudgingly voted for Harris?
To all those saying, of course, we cannot vote for Trump because of his character and temperament, I ask you, are you familiar with the millions of Never Trumpers who changed their tune and begrudgingly voted for him?
As you know, I am Canadian, and I do not vote. But if I was not so lazy and took care of the paperwork, and finally became an American citizen, I know who I would have voted for.
But can I understand the individual who shares virtually the same Jewish values as I do and who chose to vote for someone else? Yes. Yes, I do. To take one complicated topic – abortion. The Halachic position does not fall neatly into either party’s ideology.
And that’s why I would not have signed on to the Rabbis for Trump or the Rabbis for Kamala. Because I cannot in good faith tell you that voting for this candidate is mandated by the Torah.
Last and most important point – Reena, our Bat Mitzvah girl, is multi-talented. She is bright and athletic; apparently, she’s a great goalie. She is musical and has the most easy-going personality. You’re just an awesome person. But Reena’s favorite talent is her artistry. At Kiddush, you’ll see one of her many paintings; it’s excellent.
Reena, I have a question for you – when you’re drawing, you know what you are trying to create, right? But if I were watching you sketch, would I necessarily know? No, not at all. If anyone here has ever played Pictionary, you know how long it takes to recognize what is being drawn.
There are people in this room who woke up Wednesday morning elated; Trump is going to be amazing for the economy and for the Jewish People. And there are people in this room who woke up Wednesday morning despondent; what will be with our civil liberties and human rights?
Sometimes when we are so stuck in the moment, we forget that there is Someone up there painting this picture. Before making a covenant with Avraham, G-d asks him for one thing – Heyeh tamim, which Rashi translates as, “Walk with G-d wholeheartedly. Put your hope in Him. Do not attempt to investigate the future.”
Anyone with the most rudimentary knowledge of history knows that presidents who were expected to do X, did Y, who was supposed to be bad for Israel, were good for Israel, who was supposed to kill the economy, enabled it to flourish. Heyeh tamim, “Do not attempt to investigate the future.”
G-d is throwing splotches of black paint here and brilliant reds there. He is erasing and redrawing. He is sharpening and smudging. When watching the Artist of artists painting, do we really have the hubris to say we know what this picture will look like?
Of course, we have to do our part. Of course, we have to ensure that it is our Torah values that influence our every decision, including political decisions. But to be overjoyed because (quote) “these next four years will be amazing?” Or to fall into despondency? Whether it’s over the elections or even over the horrendous news coming from Amsterdam? Yiush?! Giving up hope?!
Hold on. He’s not done drawing just yet.
We have no idea what comes next on the canvas of world history. And so we pray, and we trust, and we march forward.
And as we cautiously do so, we try to appreciate the colors that don’t always speak to us, and when we do so, we start to realize how all the colors, all those differing opinions, are not clashing, but bringing out the best in one another, and creating a brilliant mosaic.
Reena, keep painting your beautiful pictures, and may we all merit to see the day when the final painting will be unveiled.