Shabbat Parshat Netzavim/VaYeilech– September 3/4

It will be that when all these things come upon you – the blessing and the curse that I have presented before you – then you will take it to your heart among all the nations where the Lord your God has dispersed you. And you will return unto the Lord your God, and listen to His voice, according to everything that I command you today, you and your children…
                                                                                                    Deuteronomy 30:1,2

Rabbi Noah Weinberg of blessed memory, had often related the challenges he faced when he first began doing outreach to unaffiliated Jews. He was a traveling salesman and met so many Jews who were proud of their heritage but knew so little about it. He felt compelled to remedy the situation. He started in the 1950’s when the orthodox community was small and fragile and the trend was anything but coming back to traditional Judaism.  One needs to appreciate the atmosphere of the time when Torah-observant Judaism was nothing more than a fringe group among the larger Jewish population. His friends and relatives bluntly told him that he was nuts and wasting his time. Non-religious Jews were not interested in keeping Shabbat, kosher or learning Torah. He thanked them for their input and proceeded with his goals anyway.

He moved from the US to Israel and founded a number of smaller organizations which floundered and flopped. He then started Yeshiva Shema Yisrael, which continues to this day. After that, he created Ohr Samayach, which today is a major force in educating Jews with little or no background about Judaism.

Still not content with his ultimate goals, he then began Aish HaTorah with five students in a cramped apartment in the Old City of Jerusalem in 1974. When he used to tell those five guys, “We are going to change the world!” they would turn around to see whom Rabbi Weinberg was talking to; maybe someone important and powerful had walked in. But no, he was talking to those five guys. Since that time Rabbi Weinberg’s Aish HaTorah has grown to more than 25 branches throughout the world, owns the most land opposite the Western Wall where we have our world Center, has the most successful Jewish content website with close to 3 million visits each month, and has literally changed the lives of tens of thousands of people all over the world.

Many years ago, after some initial success, these same folks who dissuaded Rabbi Weinberg came back and asked him, “How did you do it? The great rabbis of old would be so proud if they brought three or four people back to their Father in Heaven that they would have it written on their tombstones. You have brought back thousands! Noah, How’d you do it?!” So he told them, “If you go to a construction site, you will see that great slabs of concrete are being moved from one place to another. The crane carries the huge wall of concrete and the foreman on the ground stands next to it to ensure it is placed in the exact spot it is meant to go. The fool without eyes in his head says, ‘Look how strong that guy is, he is lifting thousands of pounds of concrete!’ But anyone with a brain who bothers to look closer sees that the crane does all the work. The foreman merely puts his hands in the right place at the right time.”

Quoting the above section from this week’s Torah portion, Rabbi Weinberg points out that the Almighty promised that, when all is said and done, we will return to Him. We will listen to His voice and come back, no matter how far away we may be. If the Almighty promises something, then it has to come true. If it says it in the Torah, then it is going to happen - the Jews will return to Judaism.

So there we have it - God will do all the heavy labor on this job site. The only thing that remains to be seen is what role you wish to play in the drama of putting the pieces together. The final chapter has been foretold, now we each must make the choice to be a part of it. All you have to do is make the choice to put your hands in the right place at the right time.

Called the man a fool, stripped him of his pride
Everyone was laughing up until the day he died
Although the wound went deep
Still he's calling us out of our sleep
My friends, we're not alone
He waits in silence to lead us all home

-Supertramp