In this week’s Torah portion, Bechukotai, there is a long list of punishments that would occur when the Israelites broke their covenant with God. They are positively frightening, ranging from war and pestilence to plague and famine. We would lose our children, our land, and all that we held dear. But, out of all the possible calamities, one stands out as potentially the scariest: “When I break your staff of bread, ten women shall bake your bread in a single oven; they shall dole out your bread by weight, and though you eat, you shall not be satisfied” (Leviticus 26:26).
I am reminded of the Stephen King 1984 classic “Thinner,” penned under his pseudonym Richard Bachman. In it, a morbidly obese and arrogant lawyer named Billy Halleck is distracted while driving and hits and kills an elderly Romani woman. While he receives no legal recourse for his actions, he is cursed with never gaining weight no matter how much he eats. This idea that the basic functions of the human body could be corrupted, terrified me even as a teenager when I first read the book.
To me this affliction perfectly describes what happens when we allow hatred to enter our hearts, especially after an event such as the one we just experienced in Buffalo. Our anger against the assailant, against the world is palpable and it is justified. Yet, no matter who we seek to punish, it will never be enough. The only antidote is love. By coming together, honoring the memory of the deceased, and working toward a better world, we achieve our greatest form of revenge. As the Buffalo Bills players who visited the site proclaimed: “Choose Love.” In doing so we not only make the world better, but we release ourselves from the curse of eating and never being satisfied. May the memories of all who died, be for a blessing.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Alex