January 16, 2009

The book of Exodus is not called Exodus. The christian world which named it differently from the Hebrew it seems doesn't understand much of what we're about. We call it "Shmos", names, after the names of the 70 Jews who descended into Egypt and began the long journey into exile. They were the "names" because within all the names of our 12 tribes, each name alludes to redemption. Reuven means that "God saw my affliction", Shimon means that He heard, etc. The book is not about the last few minutes of the movie when we were redeemed. The book is about how our exile began. But no Jewish exile can begin without the seeds of salvation etched upon our very names. We may not know when or how, but we most certainly know nonetheless.

"Pharoh's daughter went down to bathe by the River and her maidens walked along the River. She saw the basked among the reeds and she sent her maidservant and she took it. She opened it and saw him, the boy, and behold! a youth was crying. She took pity and said, "This is a Jewish child." (Shmos 2:5-6). A seemingly strange conclusion; one would have to say she deduced that he was Jewish from his abandonment and the basket. However, a closer look reveals much more. What she saw was a "boy" - yeled means a small boy. But the next word says a "nahr" was crying - a word which connotes an already older, mature youth. Did Moses age in seconds? Our Sages teach us that although he was only an infant, his CRY was that of a mature youth; the difference being that an infant only cries for its selfish needs, while the sign of maturity is the ability to feel the pain of others. The cry was a mature cry. One on behalf of the Jewish people. That's how she knew he was a Jewish child.

When the Jewish people are in pain, it becomes plainly obvious - and all of history proves it (if we choose to ignore that reality today) - that the only people to care for us is us. The greatest attribute of our leader Moshe was his ability to carry the weight of his friend, feel his pain and make it his own. We're obligated to do the same. In my humble opinion, there is no point to any rally or political machination without this most fundamental Jewish requirement.

I'll just share with you two pieces which struck a chord. The first is this short video. The second is a piece I read in Arutz Sheva. Below is the translation.

Good Shabbos.