I'm on my way to New York City to attend the annual dinner of the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA), where former President Donald Trump will receive an award honoring his contributions to Israel and the Jewish people.
It's a long-overdue award, delayed by the left-wing bias of the institutional Jewish leadership and -- let's be frank -- by some of the controversial things Trump has said and done. But it's well-deserved, for reasons you probably know.
The timing of the ceremony is awkward, given the ongoing fights between Trump and everyone else in the Republican Party, notably Ron DeSantis (R). Trump is on the verge of announcing for president, but sinking his own chances.
The puzzle facing Republicans is this: the party lost for years until Trump came along, who not only won an election but also governed conservatively and achieved things that once seemed impossible, thanks in part to weak leaders.
Trump attracted new voters to the party. But Trump also alienated voters whose support he needed to remain in power, and now he risks alienating even GOP voters. It's unclear whether the GOP can win with him -- or without him.
The approach his opponents have taken for years has been to try to bully him out of politics -- especially by ganging up on him, as News Corp.'s various properties did this week. And now there seems to be an alternative in DeSantis.
The trouble is that some of these people are the same bunch who guided the party to defeat in the past -- and many of them are corrupt or incompetent. Even the detestable "Lincoln Project" is now claiming to back DeSantis.
Perhaps the right way to do this is to thank Trump for his service. Give him his due, and acknowledge his success, as well as the fears and hopes of those he brought into the party. It's the high ground, and the only way to succeed.
This is the portion that all journalists should love: the Torah tells the story of the 12 spies, only two of whom tell the truth when the other ten shade it in a negative away (perhaps to suit a political agenda that is opposed to Moses).
It's not that the ten "lying" spies misconstrue the facts about the Land of Israel; rather, they interject their opinions that the land is impossible to conquer, which strikes unnecessary terror into the hearts of the people.
We have many examples of such fake news today -- from the Iranian propaganda outlets spreading false claims that they are winning the war, to California politicians spreading false horror stories about ICE raids in L.A.
The people realize, too late, that they have been fooled, and once they are condemned to die in the desert, they try to rush into Israel -- only to be defeated by the inhabitants, as the spies predicted that they would be.
But as consolation, God gives the people new commandments -- focused on things they must ...
This week's portion discusses the procedure for lighting the menorah, the holy seven-branched lamp, in the Tabernacle (and later the Temple). It also describes an episode where the people crave meat, and God punishes them by giving it to them in excess. We also read the story of Miriam, Moses's sister, who is punished with the spiritual skin blemish of tzara'at for speaking about her brother, thus violating the prohibition against lashon hara (evil tongue).
I heard a fantastic sermon this week about the lighting of the menorah: that while only the priests were qualified to clean and purify the menorah, anyone could light it. A reminder that each of us can inspire others along the way.
This week we study the vow of the Nazirite; a reminder that sometimes trying to be too holy is excessive, and the best we can do is to be the best that we are.
https://www.chabad.org/parshah/torahreading_cdo/aid/2495720/p/complete/jewish/Naso-Torah-Reading.htm
