A couple of weeks ago we organized a Shabbat dinner in honor of the ten severely wounded IDF soldiers who were visiting as part of our Belev Echad program. It was a highly elegant affair with 500 people in attendance. Needless to say, the seating arrangements were no easy feat! It took hours upon hours to assign everybody to the right table, with the right companions.
At the dinner, my friend Jack* approached me and said, “Rabbi, I need to talk to you…” Noticing his tone of voice and the look in his eye, I knew immediately he was unhappy about something. Unfortunately, he was more than unhappy, he was livid.
“I’m fuming mad, Rabbi!” he exploded.
“Why? What’s going on?” I asked.
“When I made my reservation for the dinner I specifically requested to sit with my friend Carol*. Now here I am and not only is Carol not at my table, she’s on the other side of the room and I’m mad!” he explained.
"Jack,” I said, “I’m so sorry, this was truly a mistake. But I’m certain our friendship is so deep that despite this mistake we still love each other.”
In this week’s Torah portion we read about Datan and Aviram, two people who made Moses’ life a misery. They were the ones who, back in Egypt, told Pharaoh that Moses had killed a man, forcing him to flee the land. Then in the desert, at every opportunity Datan and Aviram undermined and defied him, and they were instrumental in the mass revolt—led by Korach—that we read about this week. Finally, G-d had enough of their rabble rousing ways and announces His plan to destroy these people. One would think Moses would be relieved, even elated, but no! He begs them to repent and mend their ways instead. Ultimately, they refuse and the earth swallows them alive.
Moses demonstrated the true meaning of ahavat yisrael—love for one’s fellow Jew. Datan and Aviram caused him nothing but heartache, and when they were finally going to be taken off his hands, he went out of his way to beg them to mend their ways.
This week marks the 19th yahrtzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. The Rebbe exemplified the mitzvah of ahavat yisrael and taught us—his followers—to do the same. To love one’s fellow Jew whole heartedly, this is the basis of the entire Torah.
Let's embrace this theme and live our lives with the utmost love and respect for each other!