d’var torah
Leading a Different Kind of Life
Rabbi Geri Newburge
I Parshat Naso
n the famous tale “If Not Higher,”
Yiddish writer I. L. Peretz weaves the
tale of a Litvak (a Jewish person who
is stereotyped as overly cerebral and
extremely rational and represents a
contrarian perspective to the Chasidim)
who becomes curious as to where the
local Chasidic, and highly esteemed,
rabbi goes every year on the days
leading up to Rosh Hashanah.

Rumor has it that he ascends to
heaven to beg God to forgive the sins
of the villagers, but the man does not
believe this. He secretly follows the
rabbi home one day and hides under
his bed in order to see what he does
next and where he goes.

second from the book of Numbers, and
the longest of all the portions. It shares
the curious case of the nazir, a person of
any gender who voluntarily takes a vow
to lead a different kind of life, with explicit
rules not to drink wine, cut one’s hair or
come into close contact with the dead.

It is likely the last of these qualifica-
tions does not require too much persua-
sion, but in all cases the nazir follows a
prescribed practice for a period of time,
just as the rabbi did, in order to gain a
greater sense of purpose or to enhance
their sense of holiness.

There are several cases of nazirites
in our texts that seem to elevate them
to a lofty place. The most famous is
Samson, who possessed superhuman
strength due to his uncut hair, and
whose story in the book of Judges is
told in the weekly haftarah accompa-
is no evidence of any nazirites past
the Middle Ages, I think the sages are
inviting us to think about the questions:
What kind of person are you? What kind
of person do you want to be?
We — the Jewish people — are out of
the ordinary, just a very small fraction
of the population, though it is relatively
easy to not be Jewish in America
(despite the recent spike in antisem-
itism). Yet this does not mean we are
exempt from considering something
“wonderfully different” as a community
or an individual.

If we take the paradigm of the nazir
as a person who commits oneself to
sacred deeds or efforts, we can volun-
tarily bring greater meaning and inten-
tion to our lives. What little changes
— even if seemingly insignificant — can
we each make in our lives?
While a nazirite vow is no longer
permitted, sometimes we need a
moment to remember what is import-
ant in life, and to take action to help
ourselves reach “even higher.” ■
Rabbi Geri Newburge is the senior
rabbi at Main Line Reform Temple in
Wynnewood. The Board of Rabbis
of Greater Philadelphia is proud to
provide diverse perspectives on Torah
commentary for the Jewish Exponent.

The opinions expressed in this column
are the author’s own and do not
necessarily reflect the view of the
Board of Rabbis.

If we take the paradigm of the nazir as a
person who commits oneself to sacred deeds
or efforts, we can voluntarily bring greater
meaning and intention to our lives.

Early in the morning, the rabbi rises,
disguises himself as a woodcutter and
ventures into the forest to chop wood.

He delivers it to a poor widow, even
lighting the fire for her. When he sees
what the rabbi is doing, the Litvak
recognizes just how special the rabbi is,
and whenever he overhears the rumor
about the rabbi ascending to heaven,
the man nods and says, “If not higher.”
Though the rabbi was a well-re-
spected leader, his community couldn’t
help but wonder where he disappeared
to and especially at such an important
time of year. As we come to learn, this
particular rabbi took upon himself an
extra responsibility. Perhaps he was
just a very sympathetic and caring man,
or perhaps he wished to elevate his
life by performing a certain deed or
mitzvah. This week’s parsha is Naso, the
nying Naso. The Jewish perspective on
the nazir varies, with extensive discus-
sion and specifics of the nazirite vow,
the laws regulating the individual and
her/his commitment, and the ritual to
conclude the nazirite period found in
the Talmudic tractate Nazir.

The medieval commentator Sforno
suggests the nazir vows “to separate
himself from all the pleasures in order
to devote himself exclusively to the
service of the Eternal, to study Torah
and practice walking in the Eternal’s
ways.” Other commentators suggest
that what the nazir commits to is simply
“not ordinary,” but my favorite reflec-
tion comes from Rabbeinu Bachya,
who proclaims that the nazirite is doing
something “wonderfully different.”
It’s hard to know exactly what
“wonderfully different” means, but it
sounds incredibly enticing. Since there
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