Navigation Systems

Rabbi Joel Fleekop

Saturday, August 11, 2007

Mapquest, Yahoo, and Google Maps. When I first moved to the Bay Area these websites were indispensable. Whether I needed to find a congregant’s home or make my way to the nearest Costco these sites were my guide, telling me exactly where to go. Giving distances so precise they are measured by the 10th of a mile.

I still rely on these wonderful sites to find my way around. And more than 90% of the time they are an absolute blessing, a miracle. But, as I trust you know, every so often, whether by assuming a street goes through that doesn’t, or mislabeling an exit, or telling you to take a highway west, when it only goes north and south, they lead you astray.

On those rare occasions, the maps in the glove compartment, combined with a sense of direction are usually enough to find where we have to go. But by then we have already wasted so much time going in the wrong direction. If only there was a way of knowing when our chosen navigation system was going to lead us off track.

But I guess we shouldn’t complain. The technologies and guides available to us are so much better than they were just a few years ago, let alone in generations past. Our back up system, the detailed road map, would have been beyond the imagination of the ancient Israelites. To get to where they were going, both physically and spiritually, they relied on prophets.

This is the role that Moses plays. During the Israelite’s journey through the wilderness he leads them from stop to stop. Now he wasn’t exactly the best navigator. He took 40 years to complete a journey that should have taken less that a year. But ultimately he gets them there.

More important than his spatial navigation, Moses leads them on a spiritual journey. The passage isn’t easy and they take almost as many steps backwards as they do forwards. But throughout, Moses is there to guide them as they struggle to leave behind the idolatrous practices of Egypt and embrace the monotheism of Judaism.

In this week’s Torah portion, the Israelite’s physical travels are about to come an end. Anticipating this, Moses gives them a number of laws to live by, laws to ensure they will remain on the correct path in their spiritual journey after entering the Promised Land. As Jake mentioned, these include the rules for kashrut and how to treat slaves.

In addition to the laws, Moses, who knows his personal journey will end on the East Bank of the Jordan, also warns them to be weary of false prophets, false spiritual navigation systems if you will.

In Deuteronomy 13:2-4 he tells them “if there appears among you a prophet or a dream-diviner and he gives you a sign or a portent saying, “Let us follow and worship another god” – that you do not know – even if the sign or prediction that he made comes true, do not heed the words of the prophet or that dream-diviner.”

Moses’ warning against false prophets is echoed throughout Jewish tradition, most famously by the prophet Jeremiah. But, the rabbi’s wonder, why does Moses warning specifically mention prophets who can produce magic signs or predict the future?

In response to this question, the Biur explains that it is human nature to be impressed by outward acts and appearances. Through charisma and mystical abilities, a charlatan might be able to convince people that he is a true prophet. Thus it was necessary for Moses to remind the Israelites that such tricks are only a façade; that they need to pay attention to the underlying message.

The great commentator Abravanel builds on this line of thinking. He teaches, “truth does not stand or fall by outward manifestations of success or otherwise, but by its own inner essence. Truth does not depend on majorities, miracles or success for its confirmation.”

Today those who would like to guide us through life don’t wear sack cloths and perform slight of hand, rather they were suits and the magic they perform is with their words. They aren’t prophets, they are politicians. Nevertheless, Abravanel’s teaching about truth and Moses’ warning about false leaders are still germane.

In this election cycle, which while almost 2 years long -- seems to unravel in 15 and 30 second sound bites, most of what we get to see is just the surface level. And it is easy to be wooed by talking points. But as we learn in this week’s Torah portion, it is our responsibility to learn more. Before selecting a leader, a guide for our country, we need to know where the candidates stand on issues and what makes them stand up people.

The election of a president is important, but so too is the choice of role models we interact with everyday. Whether it is a charming classmate or successful co-worker, there are people that we look up to. Often they seem to have it all and so we try to learn from them, to discover the secret to their success. But before we begin following in their footsteps, we need to look beyond the surface and discover who they truly are underneath. Do they treat people the way you’d like to be treated? Do they live according to the values you cherish? If the answer is no, then no matter how successful they appear to be, they are likely to guide you down the wrong path.

Much of life is spent trying to get from one place to the next, both physically and spiritually. Along the way we all need the help of navigation systems, be they a website, a street map, a politician, or a friend. In choosing the guides for our journeys, may we have the ability to see beyond packaging and facades, and the wisdom to focus on content and character. May we follow the advice Moses offered the Israelites and in so doing be blessed to both reach our destinations and to learn from our journeys.