There's something funny about camels, at least biblically.
Isaac and Rebecca's meet-cute, after a very drawn-out courtship/negotiation by Abraham's representative, happens when Rebecca arrives to meet Isaac. Isaac is out walking in the evening, and sees camels approaching. Rebecca sees Isaac, and the Torah says, vatipol me'al ha-gamal--literally, she fell from on top of the camel.
The commentators of course imagine her being more graceful--she gently slipped down from sitting side-saddle.
But a good physical comedian could have fun with this.
(The other funny camel thing is based on Psalm 13:6: Ashira l'Adonai ki gamal alai, translated as "I will sing to God who has been good to me." But the joke is: "What do you say if a camel falls on you? Ashira l'Adonai ki gamal alai. Gamal can mean "has been good," but it can also mean "camel," so that sentence could read "I will sing to God because a camel is on me!" I heard this many years ago back in NJ, from Rabbi Isaac Furman, z'l)
Back to Rebecca. Do we want or need to see her as completely graceful? And why must a person falling from a camel be comedy? Can't it be real and painful and embarassing?
I wonder if what drew Isaac to love Rebecca was perhaps her falling off a camel in a real, human way, and not pretending that she intended to, or that it didn't hurt. I wonder if maybe he loved her reallness, her honesty.
Can we appreciate people even when they fumble and fall? Can we appreciate organizations and institutions when they slip, or slip up, despite their best efforts? How do we want to be seen when we fall off our metaphorical camels? Do we want to have the pressure of pretending that we did it on purpose, that it didn't hurt? Or do we want to be able to maybe curse, be annoyed we messed up our pants, and be told it's ok, because we all fall off camels sometimes?
Candle lighting tonight is at 4:25pm.
We'll have Kabbalat Shabbat and ma'ariv tonight at 6pm--join Karen Kern, Will Soll and me for a musical welcome to Shabbat.
At about 7:15pm we'll have dinner for everyone who RSVP'd.
At about 8:15pm, STAAM, Wash U's Jewish a cappella group will perform--all are welcome, even if you didn't come for dinner.
Tomorrow morning we'll begin at 9am. Cyndee Levy will be leading Torah Talk at about 10:10am, and Karen Kern will lead Tot Shabbat at 10:45am. Darien and Steve Arnstein are sponsoring kiddush in honor of their anniversary. Mazal tov and thank you!
Shabbat ends at 5:25pm.
If you're looking for something about Israel to listen to, check out Rabbi Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi's podcast this week, where they talk about both the very precarious situation of the remaining hostages, as well as the larger politics in Israel, which are differently chaotic than the recent past.
Things are calming down as we get towards the end of 2025. I'll be away for Thanksgiving next weekend.
May the one who makes peace in the heavens make peace over us, and over all Israel, and over all who dwell in the world.
Shabbat shalom, and see you in shul,
Rabbi Noah Arnow
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MISSION: Create a welcoming community that embraces Torah, meaningful worship, lifelong learning, music, Israel, and tikkun olam, guided by the tenets of Conservative Judaism.
Phone: 314-727-1747