Election Day is
around the corner, so I’m here to tell you exactly how to vote. Surely, without me, you wouldn’t know what to
do, and now I’m going to tell you.
And the parshah
couldn’t be a better one for dealing with this topic, starting as it does with
Abraham in discussion for services from the existing authorities, the
Hittites. But what is it that Abraham
asks for? What is it he wants?
T’nu li achuzat kever imachem, v’ekb’ra meti
milfanai – “Grant me an estate for a burial site with you, that I may bury
my dead from before me.”
What is Abraham
interested in? In ensuring that he will
be able to fulfill the practices and beliefs of Judaism properly – that is what
he needs.
And my friends,
that is what we need to consider, that is my first instruction on what you need
to do on Election Day:
You need to get
up and come to minyan. All Jews are
required to pray daily. Afterwards, eat
a kosher breakfast because, a) you should keep kosher and b) one doesn’t eat
before praying. Throughout the day,
conduct yourself in an upright and respectful manner, be sure to pray minchah and maariv, and without stealing time from your employer by going at a
non-approved time – vote, because dina
malchuta dina, the law of the land is the law.
My second
comment then, is for all those issues and candidates on which you might vote, the
Jewish issue for all of them is to
remember, hevu z’hirin barashut – “be
weary of those in authority.” This
campaign cycle stands out for the extreme partisanship we have
experienced. As Jews, whatever your
political party, you as a Jew should be better than that. You should be thoughtful, you should be
sifting through the hyperbole. You
should be aware that neither party fully aligns with Jewish causes on all
issues, and so you need to pick and choose carefully.
Heed me well and
do these things this Election Day.
