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19
Orchard of Delights # Shoftim
#
by attributing it solely to our own talents and efforts, or by thanking ££Torah and Democracy
£Torah and DemocracyTorah and Democracy
God for blessing us with the wisdom and abilities to achieve our goals.
The secret of happiness lies in nullifying the ego’s natural tendency
to lay claim to all the credit; instead we must learn to rejoice in the
blessings that God gives us. For in truth, when the ego is given free A question that has inspired much debate, especially within the
reign it knows no limit to the glory it feels is its due, and because of Jewish religious world, is how compatible democracy and the modern
this it is in essence never satisfied. nation state are with the Torah’s vision of governance and Divinely
revealed law. This is certainly not the venue for addressing the issue
The commandment of taking the first fruits to the Temple contains in all its complexity; however, it is interesting to note that a number
a beautiful allusion teaching us how to achieve a joyous frame of democracy’s fundamental pillars are rooted in this portion. When
of mind. In the verse, “and you shall put it [the first fruits] in a and under what circumstances democracy suits the Torah’s vision of
basket,” the Hebrew word used for basket is “tene.” This word has a an ideal society will have to be discussed elsewhere.
numerical value of sixty. Since by the rules of gematria (Kabbalistic
numerology), the number “one” may be added to the sum to represent Democracy in action was envisioned by the founding fathers of the
the entire word, we find an allusion to the Jewish law dictating that United States of America to be based on a separation of powers between
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if one substance is accidentally mixed with another one, it becomes the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. Each
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null and void if the ratio between them is 60:1. was to have strict checks and balances in order to prevent any one
branch of government from completely dominating national life.
The “basket” equaling sixty represents a person’s ability to nullify Each branch was designed to have especially broad powers in certain
his or her own lust for honor by bringing the first fruits to God. This areas and less in others, all with the intention of creating a creative
notion is also hinted at by the fact that the Hebrew word for “I” dynamic and equilibrium in governance. These checks and balances
(ani) has the numerical value of sixty-one. These same Hebrew were enshrined in the law of the land, and, in fact, law and justice
letters when interchanged spell the Hebrew word for “nothingness” were meant to be the foundations of democracy.
(ayin). Thus, the one (1) who puts his first fruits in a basket (60) is in
effect nullifying his ego (ani in a ratio of 1:60) and reaching the level As is well-known, the founders of the United States were heavily
of selflessness (ayin), the secret of true joy. influenced by the Bible. The very notion of a society founded on
law and justice stems from the proclamation at the beginning of our
portion that judges and officers should be present throughout the land
in order to judge the people righteously. This proclamation reaches
its inspiring climax with the words: “Justice [only] justice shall you
pursue that you shall live and inherit the land which God, your God
gives you” (Deuteronomy 16:20). One of the greatest contributions
Torah has made to humankind is the notion of a society founded on
the principles of law and justice. The global influence of this notion
should not be underestimated.
The very notion of governmental checks and balances also finds
an echo in this portion as the Torah mentions the main centers of
power within the Torah’s judicial and governmental branches: the

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