A Jew's Super Sunday | Rabbi Joey Haber

So it's Super Bowl Sunday. The whole country is different on Super Bowl Sunday. There's a lot of excitement. There's so much enthusiasm. People are pumped up. The Chiefs, the Eagles. They’re getting ready where they're going to watch the game, where they're going to go. The wings, the drinks, the friends, the vibe. It's like a holiday. But I want to tell you a thought for a frum Jew on this day. You know, in frumkeit there are a lot of levels, which means there are some people who learn Torah all day. There are other people who learn Torah, not all day, but every morning and every night. There are other people who learn just every night. There are other people who learn maybe two times a week. But every frum Jew knows there's a line, and there's some learning, a certain amount that has to happen. I think when it comes to what our eyes see, there's a line, too. And there are some people who don't even know what the Super Bowl is. They don't know the difference between a quarterback and a goalie, and they're living their life Al Taharat Hakodesh. And then there are other people who are watching the Super Bowl. Whether it’s right or wrong is not my point. But I think all of us have to have a line. And my question for you is this - What's your line? Maybe half-time doesn't fit for you? Maybe half-time, where there's all kinds of singing and chaos on the stage, maybe even though, I know, you're a little bit part of Americana, maybe that is too far? We're frum Jews. We're great people. I want to tell you a little story to try to crystallize this idea. Years ago, there used to be the kings of France, were all named King Louis. So this one was King Louis XV, a few hundred years ago he lived. He was famous. His wife was Marie Antoinette. There was a rebellion. And both Louis and his wife were both taken to the guillotine to be killed. Now, the rebels had a problem. He had a little son. He was about eight or nine years old. To leave him alive is dangerous, because he one day is going to want to be king. But to kill him, you can't kill an eight year old kid! And then they came up with a solution. They said, “We're going to take this little kid “and we're going to put him on an island, “and we going to give him everything he could want - “every indulgence, every food, every drink, every temptation, “every distraction, every game, everything that the kid could want. “And he'll be so obsessed “he'll be unfit to be a king.” They did this. They left him there for six months. Six months later, the rebels came back, and they see Louis hadn't touched a thing. And they said to him, “Louis, “you had everything, everything a kid could want. “Why didn’t you touch it?” And listen to his answer, because this answer is powerful, and every single Jew needs to have this line embedded in his mind. He says, “I can't do what you ask, “because I was born to be a king.” Every Jew has to ask themselves that question. Where is that line? Yes, I understand, the Super Bowl! You got the quarterbacks, you have brothers playing each other. I understand being excited about the whole thing. But there's a point, I think, where all of us say, “This is not for me. “I can't do what you ask, because I was born to be a king. “I was born for royalty! “I was born to live differently.” And I know it's hard to turn it off in the middle, because there's an energy in the house and there's screaming, and there's yelling and excitement. And now all of a sudden it’s going to be quiet. So, I don't know. Maybe daven Maariv, maybe have someone say a Dvar Torah over, or maybe this is way too religious for you and just transition to ESPN. I don't know the answer, but even if we're part of Americana and we're in American culture, to some degree, at some point, we need to know where to hold back. And do you know what the Shomer Emunim says? That when a person is able to turn away when they're pulled, all of a sudden, it’s an incredible Zechut, and you can ask Hashem for everything. So it's Super Bowl Sunday. There's a tremendous amount of hype. Ask yourself a question - Where does my royalty draw the line? And at what point do I say, you know what? At least when it comes to half-time, I can't do what you ask, because Pepsi can want us to see whatever they want us to see, but I am different, because I was born to be a king!