A 17-year old gorilla named Harambe was killed in a zoo in Cincinnati because it was felt that he posed a danger to a little boy. The boy had climbed over a pretty short wall and fallen a considerable distance into the area where the gorilla lived.
The mother of the boy, who had lost sight of him temporarily after he said "I want to swim with the gorilla," was quite scared as you might imagine when she saw the gorilla scooping the child up and carrying him a bit. It's all on video which you can watch, if you haven't seen it yet. The mother called 911 and the zoo officials made a quick decision to shoot the animal dead.
Reactions ran the gamut. People said the mother was at fault for not supervising her child more carefully. People said the zoo was at fault for not having a high enough barrier or that they were at fault for deciding to kill the animal, rather than stun the animal.
On Wednesday, one of our sons texted his brother and me that they would try to use the story of the gorilla to help me write my sermon. What followed was a brief back and forth of collaboration and I present the fruits of that collaboration as tribute to Harambe, a magnificent animal whose name means "pulling together" in Swahili.
The incident at the Cincinnati zoo suggested to us that people are quick to place blame for specific situations, but not so willing to step back and ask the larger questions about what allows such situations to happen.
Sure, the wall could have been higher, and apparently the zoo will increase the height of the wall. Sure, the parents could have been watching more closely. Though as someone who has supervised multiple children aged four and younger simultaneously I for one am not so quick to judge.
Slowly, in the aftermath of the incident, journalists and animal conservationists and others are asking and re-asking larger and harder questions like, should we be keeping wild animals in captivity altogether? For our own amusement and edification, we capture animals, removing them from their natural habitat, and we bring them to a place that is unnatural for them no matter how hard we try to simulate a natural environment.
There are larger, harder questions about wildlife conservation that have stimulated extensive conversation and advocacy over the years and this incident reinforces the need for confronting such questions.
It would be a shame if this incident resulted in nothing more than a blame-fest. As Dan Van Coppenole, the man who named Harambe, indicated:
"If Harambe's message can reach even more people over the coming weeks and months, then perhaps more can be done to ensure that one day, we won't have to resort to raising these great creatures in captivity to help ensure the species' survival." (CNN.com, 6/1)
Folks – there are even larger, even harder questions to be asked that have to do with the way we relate to our planet. But I’m going to move on.
It’s easier to blame for specific outcomes than to confront the larger questions.
An Israeli soldier shoots and kills a Palestinian terrorist and people cast blame on both sides. The Palestinian was a terrorist, it’s defensible that the soldier shot him, you hear from one perspective. He had already been neutralized, the soldier should not have shot him, you hear from another perspective.
An Israeli general comments that he’s seeing attitudes on the part of Israeli Jews toward those of other faiths that are reminiscent of attitudes toward Jews in Germany in the 20s and 30s. Again – blame on both sides. Blaming him for the analogy he used; blaming the prime minister for criticizing him.
How about a careful, sustained analysis of the larger questions? How does a nation maintain its identity as Jewish and democratic? How does it deal with the very real terrorist threat that it faces within and without, in the context of the larger trends toward Islamic radicalism in the Middle East, Europe and elsewhere and at the same time confront the need for cooperation and coexistence among people of good will of all faiths within Israel?
There are institutions – large and small – in Israel that are confronting these difficult, larger questions. It’s natural, and often entirely appropriate, to place blame for specific incidents. Accountability and justice are part and parcel of civil society. But not to the exclusion of questioning the larger dynamics that are the backdrop for all of the smaller incidents.
I’ve referred from time to time to a book called The Family Crucible that was written in 1988 by a renown family therapist. This will not come as a surprise to you: Family members blame each other for things from time to time.
The author of the book, Carl Whitaker, used his extensive background as a family therapist to share some basic observations. One point he makes consistently is that when a family comes to see a therapist, they will identify one person in the family, usually a child, that is “the problem.” And they will turn to the therapist to help solve that child’s problem so that they family can get on with their lives.
And, low and behold, a talented therapist helps the family to discover that it’s not just little Timmy who’s "the problem." That in fact, there are dynamics within the family that go back generations on both sides that create an unhealthy atmosphere and need to be addressed.
The Torah is filled with blame – brothers and sisters who lash out at one another, situations that inspire a flood of blaming. Some of the blame is legit, some is mis-placed.
The Torah reading for this morning gives a larger context by raising larger questions. What does it mean to adopt a divine vision of a just society? What is the difference between heeding God’s vision and ignoring it? אם בחוקתי תלכו im b'khukotai teileikhu "If you follow My instructions" refers to a larger framework of cosmic expectation.
The emergence of a nation out of the sons of Jacob that go down to Egypt begins a process of transcending mutual blame in favor of responsibility.
Centuries later we benefit from taking the larger view which requires transcending the dopamine hits we get from the latest arrival into our news feeds.
The situation in the Cincinnati zoo is about more than a gorilla, a child and that child's parents.
Most challenging situations that occur in Israel, or any place for that matter, are the result of larger dynamics at play.
The family that thinks everything will be fine “if only we can solve little Timmy's problem” is in for a rude awakening but also, potentially, a helpful eye-opening.
Considering all of this I invoke the name “Harambe.” With thoughts of one of God’s truly magnificent creatures, let’s pull together. Let’s pull ideas and context together by looking at the larger picture. Let’s pull our resources together. Beyond blaming for each situation, let’s have the foresight and courage to look beyond and within at what’s really going on.
Originally shared at Temple Israel of Great Neck on June 4, 2016
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