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Parshat Shelach
2007
Journeying into the Promised Land
Our students spend about four years of their lives at the university. This time is spent in a variety of ways including studying and socializing, but most importantly, exploring who they are and who they want to become. For many, these years are filled with fear, doubt and much self-reflection. It is during this time that we, as Hillel professionals, get to interact with and learn with them. This week’s Torah portion of Shelach can help us understand what our students are going through and the fear they may feel.
In Shelach, Moses instructs 12 spies, one from each of Israel’s tribes, to investigate the land that they have been promised. These 12 spies travel throughout the land of Israel for 40 days and return with very negative feedback: “We looked like grasshoppers to ourselves, and so we must have looked to them” (Numbers 13:33). The report is filled with fear and a complete lack of faith in God and themselves. The people of Israel respond to this report with amplified fear. God punishes the spies, excluding Joshua and Caleb, with plague and ultimately punishes the Jewish people to 40 years of wandering in the desert. Only with Moses’ persuasion are the lives of our ancestors spared by God, and instead they will never be allowed to walk in the land of milk and honey.
Our students are being asked to enter into a land that they know nothing about- “the real world.” This ominous idea generates excitement as well as fear. There is so much unknown. The Jewish people faced a similar scenario. They were asked to have blind faith in God that their future was possible. When the spies came back they generated doubt and fear within the people, so the automatic response was to want what was familiar and comfortable – Egypt. “Why is the Lord taking us to that land to fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be carried off! It would be better for us to go back to Egypt” (Numbers 14:3). As horrible as life was in Egypt it was something they understood, something that they knew they could handle. It is human nature to fear the unknown, even if what is known is torturous. While we, along with our students, face fears in our lives, it is important that we have the strength to have faith in ourselves, as lofty as our goals may be.
Instead of returning to Egypt or entering Canaan, the Jewish people were sentenced to 40 years of wandering as punishment for their doubt in God. The desert signifies a safe intermediary space for the Jews after they have left Egypt and are waiting eagerly to be welcomed into the land of Israel. Our students are in a similar and unique environment as they participate in a traditional college experience. They have left their childhood homes behind but most are not completely independent or self sufficient as they partake in college life. For the next four years, they must wander and explore their own identities in the supportive and dynamic university environment.
Shelach Lecha literally means, “send for yourself.” God has given the land of Canaan to the Israelites and God knows that it is a good land but the people must go and see it for themselves. Our students need to use this time to listen and learn about themselves to understand their true strengths, values and identities. We, as Hillel professionals, are fortunate enough to be able to assist them as they take part in their very important personal journeys. We must be aware of the fears and inadequacies that they may feel and be able to support and challenge them to better understand themselves. As a result, when they are ready to enter their Promised Land, they will positively influence the communities they live and work within.
Submitted by Rachel Pinsker, Campus Director at the University of Denver and Shoshana Zeldner, Senior JCSC Fellow at the University of Denver
Learn More
To read additional commentaries and essays on Parshat Shelach go to www.MyJewishLearning.com
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