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Drash
for Shabbat Ki Tavo This coming spring we will begin celebrating the centennial of Temple Emanu-El. We will be rejoicing over 100 years of this congregation’s existence. But is just rejoicing enough to make the centennial year meaningful? Perhaps this week’s parasha can provide some insight. In parashat Ki Tavo, Moses is addressing the assembled Israelites, poised to enter the Promised Land after 40 years in the desert. He is moving towards the conclusion of his long third oration. The parasha is best known for its listing of blessings and curses. The listing of aberrant behaviors to be cursed is bad enough but the curses or punishments for those who transgress are numerous, frightful and depressing. Rather than wallow in the degradation of the curses, I prefer to focus on the first part of the parasha with its theme - the retelling or reminding us of our history. When the Israelites settle in Eretz Yisrael, they are instructed to bring the first fruits of their harvest to the priests and recite the prayer that contains: "My father was a fugitive Aramean. He went down to Egypt with meager numbers and sojourned there, and there became a great and populous nation." Recognize this passage? Each year at Pesach we read it from the Haggadah as we remember how God delivered us from Egyptian slavery. Similarly we recall the Exodus from Egypt at the other festivals. Martin Buber comments that this declaration links Jews to their historical experience and to the responsibilities of carrying out the commandments. The ritual of bringing the first fruits to the Temple and reciting the declaration is an act of identification with one’s ancestors and the belief that the first fruits and the liberation from Egypt were brought about by God’s will. It is this personal connection with an historical experience that creates a feeling that one is part of a people and leads to an obligation to follow the mitzvot. Our Temple Emanu-El forefathers and foremothers came to the Arizona Territory over 100 years ago and, in a territory devoid of synagogues, gave of their time, energy and money to form a holy congregation. We give thanks for their efforts and celebrate their successful founding of the first synagogue in Arizona. But, as we learn in Ki Tavo, just giving thanks and celebrating is not enough. We need to identify with our temple ancestors and their devotion to this congregation and make our own commitment to Temple Emanu-El as we begin the next 100 years. Shabbat Shalom.
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