During my days in the active rabbinate, I would devote a reasonable amount of time each week to preparing my Shabbos sermon and various shiurim. Delivering a sermon is not the same as giving a shiur or saying a short dvar Torah. Traditional sermons, which these days seem to have fallen out of favor, were devoted to relevant topical issues as seen through the lens of Torah. There were times when I thought I had prepared a pretty decent sermon, but on erev Shabbos, some major event would take place which required me to pivot quickly to address the topic that was on the minds of my congregants. That’s what happened with this article. I had originally prepared something focused on family issues and dilemmas, but when Donald Trump was indicted, I felt it required me to pivot. Hopefully, what I’ve written will be relevant to some of my readers.

Over 100 years ago, in 1919, something seemingly impossible happened: The World Series was “fixed.” The Chicago White Sox were playing the Cincinnati Reds. Chicago was heavily favored to win until professional gamblers approached eight White Sox players and offered them bribes. Those players helped Cincinnati to win the Series. The Cincinnati win meant a lot of money for the gambling syndicate. Eventually, the story of the fix leaked out, and a grand jury was convened. The eight players were banned from baseball for life. Among the many tragic details was that Joe Jackson (known as Shoeless Joe) was, at that time, the greatest player ever. He had grown up in grinding poverty, was illiterate, and worked in a mill from the age of six. Had his career not been cut short, he may have become more well known and celebrated than Babe Ruth. Joe admitted the fix to the grand jury. After testifying, Shoeless Joe was leaving the courthouse when a little kid, with tears in his eyes, yelled out, “Say it ain’t so!” Tragically, it was so!

During the course of my career I’ve pretty much heard and seen it all. From the sublime and holy to the ridiculous and insane.

I am reminded of a conversation I had with the late great Rabbi Herman (Naftali) Neuberger, zt”l, in the wee hours of a summer morning 26 years ago in his humble first-floor apartment on Yeshiva Lane. I had just told Rabbi Neuberger that it was almost impossible for me to process all of the amazing things that he had achieved, in so many areas, during his lifetime. Without missing a beat, he half smilingly said, “The greatest accomplishment is when you can stop bad things from happening; those achievements are the most important and the least known.” An incredibly profound statement, which I took to heart and have tried, whenever possible, to emulate.

?Now, three years after a new plague first appeared, we are learning that Covid is most likely a man-made problem that was created in the (partially) U.S.-funded Wuhan Lab in China. Covid spawned an industry of “experts” touting various precautions, treatments, suggested remedies, and vaccines. As time goes on, we are realizing that certain of these precautions, treatments, and remedies are ineffective, and in some cases dangerous – and that certain treatments and remedies that might have been effective were blacklisted. We are also asking ourselves who really is an expert?

?In ancient times – whether it was Abraham defeating the five kings, the conquest of Jericho led by Joshua, or the victories of King David, and later the Maccabees – Jews were warriors. At the conclusion of the Purim story, we learn that Jews took up arms to defend themselves and defeat their enemies. Unfortunately, after many centuries of exile, most often in hostile environments, Jews learned to keep their heads down and maintain a low profile.

When I was in college, we were required to read the literary classic 1984, by George Orwell. If you are not familiar with Orwell’s stunning work, here’s a summary: A country called Oceania is governed by the all-controlling Party, which has brainwashed the population into unthinking obedience to its leader, Big Brother. The Party has created a propagandistic language known as Newspeak, which is designed to limit free thought while promoting Party doctrine. The Party maintains control through the Thought Police and is continuously snooping on its citizens. People who dare to think differently are carefully monitored and eventually arrested on bogus charges, and then sent to special “rehabilitation” facilities, until they submit to corrected thought.