Two verses from our Torah portion stood out to me this week... or really just on Friday, as I sat down to write my blog. Parashat Emor lists all the main religious holidays we are meant to observe. The primary three festivals being Sukkot, Pesach, and Shavuot. The text states: “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of the LORD, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.’” (Lev. 23:2) Later on, these holidays came to be known as Regalim, from the root “Regel,” meaning “foot.” They are occasions to walk, on foot, to my holy sites, i.e. to make pilgrimage. On the face of it, a wonderful commandment: “Come together with one another! It’s a big party and EVERYONE is invited!! Celebrate before Adonai; come and rejoice together with the Lord.” Unfortunately, at the moment, we are all a bit agoraphobic, because of the pandemic. Imagining gathering en masse feels unsafe and risky. Furthermore, a terrible tragedy in Israel, that just happened today, has further emphasized the potential hazards of enormous gatherings of thousands upon thousands of people.
Today is Lag Ba-Omer, which is generally not considered a major holiday on the Jewish calendar. We count 49 days from Passover to Shavuot, and this is the 33rd day. But among some Orthodox groups, there are mystical, spiritual connotations to this day, beyond what most Israelis associate with Lag Ba-Omer, which are bonfires and weddings. In northern Israel, near the grave of an ancient rabbi, Shimon bar Yochai, tens of thousands of Orthodox Jews gathered. Devastatingly, a stampede broke out, and more than 40 people were killed in the pandemonium. Reading this terrible story, I found myself contemplating a second verse from our reading. It is actually just three verses earlier in the text, Leviticus 22:32, and it reads: “You shall not profane My holy Name, that I may be sanctified in the midst of the people Israel - I, the Lord, who has sanctified you.”
It is a peculiar verse, because it somehow seems to be juxtaposing the concepts of sanctifying and profaning; suggesting perhaps that the line between the two is blurry... and sometimes quite thin. In addition, this verse is understood as emphasizing “in the midst of the people Israel,” meaning that we should come together to praise the Divine. Not surprisingly, the first verse I quoted above comes right after this. We should elevate our praise of God, and not detract from it, and ideally we should do this together in communal spaces. But again, there is a risk here. Coming together does not automatically mean that God will be praised. Sadly, many of the worst stampedes in recent history have taken place at religious gatherings, whether for Muslims, Hindus, or Jews. So again, it IS true that we should come together to celebrate our religious faith and our strong sense of community and togetherness... but this too needs to be done with care, consideration, responsibility, and safety.
This is certainly true right now during the pandemic. At Ohev Shalom, we are constantly trying to figure out how we can come back together, in-person, to celebrate God’s sacred occasions AND do so in the midst of the Israelite people. And we absolutely cannot WAIT to do so! But in our eagerness to be with one another, and to express our Jewish faith in our communal home, we must be careful and vigilant not to endanger ourselves or one another. Even when our efforts and intentions are good, we may inadvertently put people at risk, and - in a sense - thereby profane the holy Name of God. It is particularly sad to me to hear that stampedes have often happened at religious gatherings. The intention is most certainly a good one, and it is always meant to be a ‘sacred occasion’ and a time of holiness and joy. But we cannot be blind to the fragility of human life, or the inherent risks in creating enormous gatherings with throngs and throngs of people. Hopefully, we can all learn from these devastating news stories. We can and should absolutely strive to be together, to celebrate and to practice our faith, but we can’t do so at the risk of causing injury or even death.
May the families of those who lost loved ones be comforted among those who mourn for Zion and Jerusalem.
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