Va-yishlach: How Do We Respond To Calamity?

Full disclosure: I'm going to write about the typhoon in the Philippines this week. Many of you may know, my wife spent a summer in the Philippines just a few years ago, though not on the same island as Tacloban, where Typhoon Haiyan did the most devastating damage. 

Even though it was only one summer, we both now feel a closer connection to this exotic island nation, halfway around the globe. I visited her for a couple of days myself, right at the end of her 10-week stay, and it truly is a beautiful country. But I could also see, even then, how incredibly vulnerable the Philippines is to this kind of disaster; with so many people living in abject poverty in corrugated shacks, and such insufficient infrastructure and order. I want to talk to you about the Philippines, but I'm also aware (obviously) that this blog is called 'Take on Torah.' So what is the connection between our responsibility to help today, and the story of our ancestor, Jacob, that we read about in this week's parashah?

Our Torah portion doesn't speak of weather disasters or major calamities, but it DOES deal with vulnerability and uncertainty; and even, to some extent, with chaos and lack of structure. The first third of our reading (which, for those of us on a triennial cycle, is where we're at this year) primarily focuses on Jacob's encounter with his brother, Esau. 

Last they spoke, twenty years earlier, Esau vowed to kill Jacob, so naturally Jacob is nervous about this rendezvous. There's no police or political authority to which Jacob can turn; he is at the mercy of his brother, who is rapidly approaching with 400 men! Jacob fears the worst, and though he employs three separate strategies to try to avert disaster, ultimately, he knows that he is extremely vulnerable, and that disaster may indeed strike no matter how much he tries to prepare and plan.

First of all, Jacob sends a ludicrous amount of gifts ahead of himself, to try and 'soften' Esau's anger before the actual meeting. Similarly, when we first hear about a calamity like Typhoon Haiyan, we quickly make donations, trying to throw money at the problem. But the system gets clogged up with too much-too quickly. We care deeply for a week or so, 

and then forget entirely about the disaster. Perhaps it would be more helpful and effective to steadily make smaller contributions over a longer period of time? We also risk giving money to the wrong causes or places if we're not careful, and sadly, the aftermath of a horrible disaster is also the time when fake charities pop up to capitalize on other people's misery. Jacob also tries diplomacy, sending messengers ahead to negotiate with Esau and get a read on how upset he really is. And finally, Jacob divides his camp in half, so that if all else fails, and Esau truly is out for blood, at least half of the family will get away unscathed. After all other attempts are made, we all still need a Plan B for worst-case scenarios.

We too need multiple approaches when dealing with an unfathomable calamity like the typhoon in the Philippines. Yes, we should give money, and I've included a few reliable websites for donations below. But we also need to start thinking much more seriously about our relationship with the earth, and how we incorporate sustainability into our daily lives.

This cannot become our new normal, and only responding with money and sympathetic head nods won't make this problem go away. Our Torah portion is called 'Va-yishlach,' meaning 'and he sent.' We need to think about what we send into the world, and what the planet sends back at us when we don't treat it with enough respect. We cannot rid ourselves completely of uncertainty and vulnerability in this world; that is unfortunately always going to be true. But we CAN do our best to create several different strategies for how to improve our situation, and do what's best for people everywhere. We should begin by helping the people of the Philippines (see below), and by praying for their safety and recovery (see below). But then we also need to look more seriously at why these record-breaking storms keep occurring, or, like Jacob, we too will very soon be needing a much more dramatic Plan B.


Resources for donating to typhoon relief in the Philippines:
- AJWS
- Red Cross
- A list of other relief agencies offering help to typhoon victims.


A prayer for the people of the Philippins (by Rabbi Menachem Creditor):

Elohei ha-Ruchot, God of the Winds,
Fixated as we are by incalculable losses in our families, our neighbors, human beings spanning national borders, we are pummeled into shock, barely even able to call out to You.

We are, as ever, called to share bread with the hungry, to take those who suffer into our homes, to clothe the naked, to not ignore our sisters and brothers. Many more of our brothers and sisters are hungry, homeless, cold, and vulnerable today than were just a few days ago, and we need Your Help.

God, be with us as we utilize every network at our disposal to support each other.  Be with First Responders engaged in the work of rescue as they cradle lives new and old, sheltering our souls and bodies from the storm.  Be with us and be with them, God.

Be with those awaiting news from loved ones, reeling from fire, water and wind that have crippled cities, decimated villages, and taken lives. Be with all of us, God.

Be with us God, comfort us, and support us as we rebuild that which has been lost.

May all this be Your will.

Amen.


Photos in this blog post:
1. Image courtesy of Rabbi Gerber. From an island resort off the coast of Mindanao, and the city of Davao.
2. Image courtesy of Rabbi Gerber. View of corrugated shacks from the window of a taxi.
3. Image courtesy of Rabbi Gerber. View of the beach from our hotel.
4. Image courtesy of Rabbi Gerber. Standing next to a giant sculpture of an eagle, inside a Davao city park.