This week's reading records the tragic case of the spies -- the 12 who were sent to scout the Land of Israel, of whom 10 gave a pessimistic report and only two said the land could be conquered as promised.
The Talmud makes an interesting observation about the Spies, noting that they began their evil report by praising the Land of Israel. The lesson: for slander to succeed, it must begin with flattery.
The sin of the spies leads to a devastating punishment: 40 years of wandering in the desert, until the slave generation, with a few exceptions, dies out. God despairs of slaves becoming truly free.
There's a valuable insight in that -- and we see, from postcolonial history, that it takes a generation (or two) for liberated societies to begin to overthrow the corrupt parties that won independence.
To live and govern as free men and women, you have to be able to leave behind the past, and stop seeing yourself as a victim, and be accountable to yourself. Self-victimization leads to wandering.
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
