METZORA *SHABBAT HAGADOL PESACH 5779
MOSES' ETERNAL FOOTPRINT
April 11, 2019
6 Nissan 5779
At the Burning Bush, God said to a reluctant Moses, "Come therefore, I will send you to Pharaoh and you shall free my people…" (Exodus 3: 21). It wasn't easy but Moses succeeded and led our ancestors out of Egypt and through the parted waters of the Sea of Reeds. Moses is God's designated point man, in the Exodus saga, who spoke to God face-to-face.
Yet, when we gather at our Seder tables to read and discuss the Haggadah, there is but one passing reference to Moses. The text is clear that "the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt, not by the hand of an angel, not by the hand of a surrogate, but by the Holy One (by Himself…)" This pointed omission undoubtedly reflects Judaism's insistence that God was the true liberation force, and Moses was but a mortal.. He was born, he lived, and he died. He enjoyed a blessedly unique life, but he was not a supernatural being.
There is, however, a relevant and significant message in the Haggadah's retelling of the Exodus. Moses was challenged and inspired by God to combat the injustice and immorality of slavery. He epitomizes all who sense God's charge to confront and resist the ubiquitous forces of evil that abound in our world. Jewish history and Moses' work did not end at the entrance to the Promised Land. It was carried on by the later prophets who, in their passionate struggle against injustice, carried on Moses' work.
His omission from the Haggadah reminds us that each of us is called upon to engage in God's work. It is the work of mortals to bring about God's hope for a world envisioned by the prophet: "It has been told to thee, O man, what the Lord requires of you: to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly before the Lord your God" (Micah 6: 8).
Moses' omission from the Haggadah sensitizes us that it is the mission of mortals to fulfill, often anonymously, God's vision of a world of justice and mercy. Thus, even if not specifically mentioned by name, let us bask in the satisfaction that, in a limited way, we have enabled humanity to take another small step toward the goal of a world liberated from injustice, oppression, poverty, plague and conflict.
It's a tall order, but may our Haggadah discussion, Seder experience and Pesach celebration recommit us to God's mandate to further Moses' work of tikkun olam, to fashion a moral order where "justice wells up as water and righteousness as a mighty stream" (Amos 5: 24).
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From the Holy City of Jerusalem my best wishes for a Shabbat Shalom u'Mevorach and a joyous celebration of Pesach.
*This Shabbat prior to Pesach is known as Shabbat HaGadol, the Great Sabbath. Its name is derived from the haftara (prophetic selection) that concludes with reference to Elijah the Prophet who will usher in the great and awesome day of the Lord.
TAZRIA | ROSH CHODESH | *SHABBAT HACHODESH 5779
FROM ADAM TO ELIJAH – IT'S THE DIVINE IMAGE
April 4, 2019
28 Adar II 5779
God climaxed the creation by fashioning Adam in His image, and granting him dominion over the earth and all forms of life. Formed in the Divine image and thus blessed with intellect and imagination, Adam and Eve and their descendants were to be God's partner in the ongoing creation (perfecting?) of the world. It is a timeless mandate to harness and develop the natural world.
Yet there is more to God's plan for us. According to a wonderful Midrash, to create the first human, God gathered dust from all corners of the earth. No one person, no society, no nation, could then claim to be the ancestor of all humanity, and thereby entitled to special privileges. As God's partners, we are charged to shape an ordered universe of peace and prosperity for all. It is to be a world order where every descendant of Adam and Eve is treated with dignity. It is to be a world perfected by acts of tikkun olam to alleviate and hopefully to eliminate oppression, hunger and homelessness. Regrettably, throughout history, this divine aspiration has been continually frustrated. Slavery, oppression, unbridled cruelty, hunger and homelessness are ongoing realities.
A prime paradigm of God's plan for humanity is our ancestors' enslavement in Egypt and their subsequent liberation. The Exodus' significance is underscored in the opening of the Ten Commandments, "I am the Lord your God brought you out of the land of Egypt out of the house of bondage."
The Seder is replete with rituals, prayers, and songs, but we pause following our holiday meal to prepare the Cup of Elijah. We invoke God's wrath upon nations who, by dint of their actions and policies, exile God from their midst. In our tradition, Elijah is the forerunner of the Messiah and his "presence" at our Seder challenges us to engage in the effort to make us constantly aware that we are all created in the divine image.
The scenarios now being played out at our Southern border are complicated. We are understandably concerned about the strain placed upon our resources. Yet, the many knocking at our gates are from nations and societies where those in power are deaf to the charge to respect the image of God in every man, woman and child. The poverty, hunger, and oppression that motivated the great European Jewish flow of refugees in the 19th and 20th centuries also motivate those now at our gates.
Shortly, we will gather at our Seder tables to tell and retell the Exodus story and celebrate the blessing of being created in the Divine image. When we open the door to welcome Elijah, will we also be opening the door to focus on the historic mandate to open our hearts and to focus our gaze upon the many who long for, and dream of, lives for themselves and their families that affirm that they, too, are created in the Divine image? Elijah beckons us to dedicate our intellect and imagination to tikkun olam, the acts and deeds that help bring about an ordered and just world.
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From the holy city of Jerusalem my best wishes for a Shabbat Shalom u'Mevorach, a Shabbat of peace and blessing.
Rabbi Arnold M Goodman
*This is fourth in the series of special Shabbatot connecting the beginning of the month of Nisan (observed this Shabbat) to Pesach. The selection read from the second Sefer Torah, Exodus ch. 12:1-20, begins with God's command to recognize the month of Nisan as the "first" of the months of the year and then continues with the instruction to choose the lamb to be offered as the Pesach sacrifice.
