Rabbi Claude's Scribbles

Korach: The Seven Commandments                                                                 Rabbi Claude Vecht-Wolf “With some difficulty (for it is not easy for a pig to balance himself on a ladder) Snowball climbed up and set to work, with Squealer a few rungs below him holding the paint-pot. The Commandments were written on the tarred wall in great white letters that could be read thirty yards away. They ran thus:   THE SEVEN COMMANDMENTS 1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy. 2. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend. 3. No animal shall wear clothes. 4. No animal shall sleep in a bed. 5. No animal shall drink alcohol. 6. No animal shall kill any other animal. 7. All animals are equal.” (from Animal Farm by George Orwell, 1945)   The Seven Commandments composed by Napoleon and Snowball (before he was banished) were meant to be set in stone, to usher in the new phase in the animals’ desire to create an equitable and fair society, “

Parshat Shelach Lecha: Symbols I am writing this Drasha a few hours after we learned of the sad passing of Dama Vera Lynn at the venerable age of 103. A BBC website tribute page has described her as 'one of the country's most potent symbols of resilience and hope.' This is a fitting description of Dame Vera because she was a symbol of how one person can impact the lives of so many. Who can hear "We'll Meet Again" and not think about its deep resonance in the collective memory of anyone who either lived through the Second World War or learned about it in history? The song, like its singer is also a symbol of 'hope over adversity'. A few weeks ago, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Dame Vera said, "Simple acts of bravery and sacrifice still define our nation." And the song for which she will always be remembered was even quoted by Her Majesty the Queen who told this nation in April: "We will be with our friends again, we will be

Beha’alotecha - Hidden Agendas There is an old adage that one can describe Jewish History in three sentences: 1. They tried to kill us. 2. We won. 3. Let's eat. On the face of it, an episode in this week's Parsha seems to suggest our love of food is as ancient as our Nation itself. However, with a little investigation, this is not as straightforward as it may appear in the Torah. Numbers 11 (4) The rabble that was among them felt a gluttonous craving; and then the Israelites wept and said, “Who will feed us meat?  (5) We remember the fish that we used to eat for free in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. (6) Now our life is parched. There is nothing at all! We have nothing to anticipate but the manna!   במדבר י ״ א : ד ׳- ו ׳ (ד) וְהָֽאסַפְסֻף֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּקִרְבּ֔וֹ הִתְאַוּ֖וּ תַּאֲוָ֑ה וַיָּשֻׁ֣בוּ וַיִּבְכּ֗וּ גַּ֚ם בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ מִ֥י יַאֲכִלֵ֖נוּ בָּשָֽׂר׃