Fear Not For I Am With Thee (Isaiah 41:8) “We have nothing to fear but fear itself!” (FDR)

Fear Not For I Am With Thee (Isaiah 41:8)
"We have nothing to fear but fear itself!" (FDR)
Rabbi Gary S. Creditor
October 19, 2001

Last week I began my sermon with the recognition that these are scary times. Tonight I begin these remarks by citing two quotations, one from Isaiah, which appears in next week's haftorah, and the second from FDR:

Fear Not For I Am With Thee

We have nothing to fear but fear itself!

Neither we nor our children are oblivious to the events of these days. We even look at and handle our mail differently, suspiciously. We have lost the feel of "normalcy." Tonight I first want to share with you a Rabbinic teaching about fear from the Talmud, Tractate of Shabbat, 77b. Secondly I wish to share with you two, out of however many, antidotes to fear, which you do not have to buy in the pharmacy, nor require a prescription. I hope that both components of this sermon will contribute to sustaining and strengthening us.

From the Talmud:

Our Rabbis taught: there are five instances of fear cast by the weak over the strong: the fear of the mafgiah – a small animal/gnat/plague over the lion; the fear of the mosquito upon the elephant; the fear of the spider upon the scorpion; the fear of the swallow upon the eagle; the fear of the kilbith – a small fish – over the Leviathan – an immense fish. Rav Judah said in Rab's name: What verse (in the Bible) alludes to these? "That strengthens the despoiled over the strong (Amos 5:9)."

This is a fascinating piece of Rabbinic wisdom, which is so appropriate for us to learn from. While the examples seem strange, each one really reflects our lives today.

The first example is that of a mafgiah, whose definition is uncertain, over a lion. The Biblical commentator Rashi says that it is a small animal with a big voice. When the lion hears it, it is afraid of big beast, which really doesn't exist, and runs away. In the Rabbinic book Otzar HaGaonim it explains that this refers to a fear of the lion that it cannot fulfill its own nature. There is nothing actually threatening the lion. There is no real harm that is portending to happen. It is perhaps an irrational fear, which stops the lion from being itself.

The second example is that of a mosquito over the elephant. In this situation there is something there, but the mosquito can't kill the elephant. It can only drive it meshugah. It can't really harm the elephant, but it can interrupt its life.

The third example is that of a spider over the scorpion. Here, under certain circumstances, the spider really could kill the scorpion. This is a true existential fear that one day the scorpion would no long be able to defend itself.

The fourth example is of the swallow, a small bird, upon the eagle. This is an entirely different fear. It is not that the eagle will die, but rather that somehow it will not be able to soar as high as it used to fly. This is not so much a physical or psychological issue as it is a moral issue, that the smallness of the swallow will inhibit the majestic soaring eagle. In this case, the fear compromises moral character.

The fifth and last example is that of a kilbith over the Leviathan, the mystical fish of the Messianic days. Accordingly, at the end of days God will kill this most powerful fish and it will be given to the righteous as food. In this case the mighty Leviathan itself is intimidated by a small fish. With the symbolism of Leviathan, its demise symbolizing a Messianic future, the message hear is that the loss of hope for a better future.

This Rabbinic analysis of fear is so appropriate and instructive to us. The Rabbis implore us to reject all five fears. It is not to say that there is nothing threatening us at all. It is clear that there are some things beyond our immediate control.

What we do control is our response.

We reject the paralysis of the lion who couldn't be true to its own self. We must not kowtow to fear. We must not create mountains upon mountains of fear, which will impede us from living, our children from playing, and our families from celebrating.

We reject the meshugas of the elephant. We will lay claim to our sanity, to calmness and common sense. I learned this while living in Israel during and after the Yom Kippur War, to take things in stride, and never stop moving kadimah, going forward.

We reject the fear that we will not be able to defend ourselves. We will take prudent steps at home and at work. We will enable the civil authorities to do everything necessary to protect our country. We are the strongest nation in the world. The tragedies of September 11 th happened because we had "gain shloffen" we went to sleep. We will be vigilant and secure.

We reject having our moral compass compromised. Most people in this country are good people. Except for the Native Americans, all of our families are immigrants who spoke different languages, looked different and sounded different. There is no denying who were the terrorists of September 11 th but we will not forgo the majesty of this nation for the smallness of the swallow. Especially in these days and especially as exemplars to our children, we will not lose our morality and principles.

What are the true antidotes to fear?

One is HOPE and FAITH. That will be the substance of next week's sermon. Here let me just ask: How was it that Noah built the ark? Because it was logical? Because it was cost effective? He had faith and trust in God that all would be well in the end; maybe not right away, but at least in the end. Noah had hope that the flood would end, that the waters would diminish and he could return to living. He was sustained in his duress with hope and faith. And so must we.

Our Jewish heritage gives us something special that has also helped us persevere, survive and flourish: HUMOUR! We have been able to look difficult situations in the face and surmount them with humor. So here are a few short pieces from the Wisdom of Chelm.

A Treasury of Jewish Folklore, Nathan Ausubel

Page 331 Innocence and Arithmetic

Page 337 Pure Science

Page 338 The Umbrella

Page 338 Excavation in Chelm

Let me conclude with the following. A story is told that during the Holocaust a bottle of schnapps was smuggled in to the ghetto. A group of men were about to pounce on it and devour it forthwith, until one of them stopped the others and said: "What do we say before partaking in a schnapps?" perhaps anticipating the beracha. Instead someone yelled out:"Lechayyim" – "To Life!"

We will live with hope, with faith, lechayyim!

Amen.