“RABBI’S MUSINGS (& AMUSINGS)”
Erev Shabbos
Kodesh parshas Ki Savo
20 Elul 5782/September
16, 2022
Avos perek 3-4
ROYAL SILENCE
On Thursday, September 8, 2022, Queen
Elizabeth died at the age of 96. She was Queen for more than 70 years, making
her the longest-reigning monarch in British history. She began her reign when
Winston Churchill was still prime minister and Dwight Eisenhower was the US
president.
One newspaper described her as “an
enduring presence, one who remained determinedly committed to the hallmark
aloofness, formality and pageantry of the monarchy.”
There have been increasing opinions
that perhaps Britain would be better off without the monarchy. It is basically
all formality, as the royal family wields virtually no real power in the government.
But virtually everyone agreed that during the lifetime of Queen Elizabeth, the
monarchy would continue.
Incredibly, she was respected by all
sides of the political spectrum and leaders throughout the world. She weathered
many internal familial storms and challenges that rocked Britain over the
decades, always maintaining her grace and dignity.
What was the queen’s secret to the
national, and even global, respect and admiration she commanded?
One of the keys to her success was
her ability to maintain an aura of neutrality and transcend politics by
remaining silent. In an age of constant opinions, social media rants and
political broadcasting, the Queen kept her personal views and opinions to
herself. The public never knew where she stood on political matters.
During the contentious vote over
Brexit, whether Britain should or shouldn’t leave the European Union, a
newspaper published a front-page article with the headline, “Queen backs
Brexit”. The following day Buckingham Palace released a statement that “the
Queen remains politically neutral as she has for 63 years… the referendum is a
matter for the British people to decide.”
It’s not hard to imagine that the
Queen had an opinion on the matter. Yet she remained stoic and silent and would
not divulge her personal feelings.
In that sense, Queen Elizabeth
personified the timeless wisdom stated by Shmuel Hakattan in Pirkei Avos
(4:19): “All my days I grew up among the sages, and I did not find anything
better for the body than silence.” Interestingly, he doesn’t say that he found
nothing better for the soul/spirit than silence, but for the body.
On a far more profound and
challenging level, the ability to maintain an aura of silence was one of the
components of the greatness of Queen Esther. King Achashveirosh was given over
to ostentatiousness, glamour and pomp. When he met Esther, he was taken by her
reservedness, modesty and humility. Her royal silence was a key factor in
bringing about the Purim miracle.
When I was pursuing my social work
degree in Fordham University a few decades ago, I generally adopted a policy of
silence. The mental health field was and is extremely liberal-minded, sometimes
shockingly so. Many of the viewpoints espoused in the classrooms were openly
anti-Torah values.
Perhaps it was also shyness but
generally I was more reserved and hesitant about offering my opinions and
viewpoints. It was interesting to me that my professors would often tell me, or
comment on my papers, that they wanted to hear my voice. I assume because I
wore a yarmulka and my tzitzis were visible, they particularly wanted to know
my thoughts about matters being discussed. But I’m quite sure that if I began
being more vocal, they would no longer be so interested in hearing what I had
to say.
It’s one of the great ironies of
life: Keep quiet and people want to hear what you have to say. Open your mouth
and suddenly nobody is interested anymore.
Shabbos Kodesh is a day of royalty.
We refer to the Shabbos Malkah – the Shabbos Queen.
One of the laws of Shabbos is “that
your speech on Shabbos not be like your speech during the week” (Shabbos 113b).
On Shabbos we don’t speak about business or plan for the week. We seek to live
in the present and focus on our values and priorities. The royalty of shabbos
demands greater restraint in our conduct as well as our speech. Royalty entails
knowing when to voice one’s opinion and knowing when silence is a better path.
We, the Torah nation, are true
royalty. An important component of our monarchy is the ability to be able to
restrain ourselves and remain silent.
As we prepare to present ourselves
before the ultimate King on Rosh Hashanah, it behooves us to embrace our own
majesty and royalty.
Shabbat Shalom & Good Shabbos,
R’ Dani and Chani Staum