Ancient Guidance for Today’s Challenges
President Trump has now been indicted four times, twice in federal court and twice in state courts. This unprecedented occurrence will occupy the news for some time. The divisions among Americans will grow. The controversies will simmer. And so, I am thinking not about these events but instead about the Torah’s words.
As soon as the Israelites enter the land, they are instructed to build an altar on which to give thanks. They are to acknowledge their history of wandering. “My father was a wandering Aramean.” (Deuteronomy 26) And then they are to give voice to the land’s bounty. “I now bring the first fruits of the soil which You, Adonai, have given me.”
The first task is to recall our history and then to give thanks. We acknowledge God’s beneficence.
The second is to build a reminder to the laws that will govern our lives.
We are instructed as follows: “As soon as you have crossed the Jordan into the land that Adonai your God is giving you, you shall set up large stones. Coat them with plaster and inscribe upon them all the words of this Torah.” (Deuteronomy 27)
I have difficulty imagining stones large enough to contain all the Torah’s words, but the intention seems clear. Don’t ever forget the laws. Let them be inscribed before your eyes. The Torah makes its philosophy crystal clear. It is these laws which enable you to live on the land.
Even the king is subject to these laws. When God acquiesces to the people’s demand for a king, God exacts one condition. The ruler must not only be bound by these laws but have these always before him. “When the king is seated on his royal throne, he shall have a copy of this Torah written for him... Let it remain with him and let him read in it all his life, so that he may learn to revere Adonai his God, to observe faithfully every word of this Torah as well as these laws.” (Deuteronomy 17)
Remember the laws. Everyone is beholden to the law.
Never forget your history. Recall you were once homeless wanderers. Now you are blessed to have a home.
Always give thanks. Everything begins with gratitude.
The words of Torah offer solace.
The Torah continues to offer guidance.