I hope you all have been working hard studying for regents and finals!
Though you all are receiving this D’var Torah now, this Torah portion
is actually from last week. But better late then never! This Parsha is
called Shlach Lecha, meaning you send. This parsha refers to the time
where Moses sent representatives from the tribe of Israel to the
future land God was to give them. Before they left, Moshe asked them
to pay attention to certain things. He asked them to see if the cities
were fortified, if the people living there were strong or weak, if
there were camps or strongholds, and more. He also asked them to bring
back some of the fruit of the land. The spies went and came back and
brought news. They said the land was indeed flowing with milk and
honey, but there are settlements everywhere and the people are strong,
and they would surely be unable to beat them. The overall feedback was
extremely negative. In the next parsha, God punishes them for it by
making the people of Israel wander in the desert for 40 years.

So, as you are all probably wondering, what does this have to do with
the chazak division? Well, here it is. For a kinnus, all we need is a
temple, some nice congregants, and maybe even a DJ for Saturday night.
Yet what is it that really makes a chazak kinnus so special? The
people, of course! It doesn’t matter the size of the temple, the food
they serve us, or the DJ we have Saturday night, as long as we are
with the people we love. Moshe obviously did not think like this, for
he sent spies to go look at the land anyway. What do you really need
to make a great nation? Great people. Who really cares if Chazak has
the Baha Men come to the kinnus! The people in Chazak form so many
strong friendships, and that is all chazak needs to have an amazing
division. The only time we actually send people to check out the food
is to make sure that it is all kosher! Anyway I think you all get the
moral of the story. It’s not a matter of what kind of food we have, or
the kind of temple we have a kinnus in. The only thing that makes a
chazak kinnus a great kinnus are the people. So I hope you all enjoyed
this D’var Torah! I can’t wait to see you all at encampment and I hope
you all have a great summer!

From, Rachel Samuels
Religious Education Vice President