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Parshat Beshalach
2007
Miracle of Miracles
This week's Torah portion begins with the Jewish exodus out of Egypt. Moses leads the people of Israel away from slavery and toward the Promised Land. As the Egyptian chariot army pursues them and they reach an impassable river, miracles from God keep the Egyptians back so Moses can part the waters and the Jews can escape as the Egyptians are drowned. As Moses continued to lead the wandering Jews, they sought food and water, and were provided for by more miracles, such as water from stones and manna on the ground. Finally, the section ends with an attack against the Jews by Amalek, and Moses receives power from God to strengthen the Jewish army and turn the battle in their favor.
This section of the Torah contains elements that allow for both optimism and pessimism as we review it today. It can serve to raise our spirits to see that even as bad as things were for the Jewish slaves in Egypt, they were able to persevere and maintain their Judaism and eventually receive their redemption. As modern Jewish professionals face problems that pale in comparison to these historical troubles, the opportunity to overcome is always present and waiting around the corner for today’s leaders to offer the necessary inspiration.
Just as importantly, it is heartening to see the role of these miracles in our Jewish history. At first glance the miraculous events in the portion seem to be the parting of the Dead Sea, and the other acts by God to help the Jewish people. On further reflection, God is all-powerful, so there is no reason to think that anything He does should be considered a miracle. The greater miracle is that the Jews were willing to trust that God would provide for them and that they would trust Moses to deliver them out of Egypt even in the face of a mighty Egyptian army and a seemingly hostile desert without food or water. It is through the people’s trust in God’s salvation that the true miracle in this portion is revealed.
One area of concern in this section is the doubt exhibited by the Jewish people. Even as they are shown miracle after miracle to lead them out of Egypt and to safety they continuously challenge the laws of Moses and of God. Daily offerings of miraculous manna on the ground do not fully convince them that they are receiving the true word that they should follow. When they learn one day that there is a double portion so that they can take a day of rest, they ignore that instruction and break the Shabbat. If the Jews in Beshalach were not swayed by seeing the acts of God and hearing the explanations from Moses, then it demonstrates how great the challenge can be to communicate effectively and persuasively with a Jewish population that is not seeing manna delivered from the sky.
There is one final way that this passage felt relevant to my work at Hillel. There are many tiny miracles that help make the work that happens today successful. It may not be as dire as a lack of food or water, but there are times when someone forgot to reserve a room, the food for an event wasn’t delivered, or the funding for an important program has fallen through. At moments like that, as challenges mount and success seems impossible, sometimes a seeming miracle will appear and provide a solution to the problem. It is impossible to know the causes behind these interventions - whether it is pure coincidence or whether it is possible that the faith that we hold onto, similar to the faith of the Jews walking out of Egypt that they would not perish from famine or war, is what allows those miracles to occur.
Written by Andy Ratto, Washington University Jewish Community Service Corps Fellow, St. Louis Hillel.
Learn More
For more information on Parshat Beshalach visit www.myjewishlearning.com
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