STAM
TORAH
PARSHAS
KI SISA/PARA 5777
“DON’T PANIC”
One day a Jewish fellow walked into Starbucks to
find his friend perusing an Arab newspaper. “Moishe, what’s this? Have you lost
your mind? Why in the world are you reading an Arab newspaper?” Moishe put down
the paper and replied, “I used to read the Jewish newspapers but the news was
always so glum and morose. Jews are being persecuted, Israel is vulnerable and
in danger of attack, Jews are fighting against Jews, and the assimilation rate
is rising. So I decided to switch to the Arab newspapers. Now I read about how
the Jews own all the banks, Jews control the media, Jews are rich and powerful,
Israel
Klal Yisroel stood at Sinai and accepted the Torah in a state of supreme
purity and complete unity. Every Jew reached a level of prophecy and witnessed
an unparalleled revelation of G-d. Then Moshe ascended Sinai for forty days so
G-d could teach him the laws and details of the Torah.
When the forty days had ended, Klal Yisroel thought Moshe would not
return, and they panicked. The result was catastrophic; they created a golden
calf and committed an egregious sin[1].
How did they reach such a low
level? It began with a miscalculation. The people thought Moshe was supposed to
return that day. When six hours passed and he had still not returned, they
began to become skeptical of his return. They knew that Moshe was very precise
- to him midnight was
exactly midnight and midday was precisely midday . They immediately began to
panic. If Moshe was really gone, G-d forbid, what would become of the Jewish
people? Who would lead them into Israel
The Satan did not succeed in
totally convincing the Jewish people that he died, for the people only said "we
do not know what became of him"; there was no mention that he died. They
did, however, allow their imagination to overpower their intellect. They were
terribly frightened. If they would have been completely logical they would have
reasoned that G-d would not abandon his people, even if Moshe did not return;
perhaps Aharon would take over. The problem was that the people followed what
their eyes saw, not what logic dictated.
Rabbi Chaim Shmuelevitz zt’l
pointed out that in the Hoshanos recited on Hoshana Rabba we beseech G-d to
save, "the ground from accursedness ... the soul from panic." In that
paragraph, we ask G-d to save the granary from "gazam" - a type of
locust, and the crop from "arbeh" - another type of locust, for they
are destructive forces.
By the same token the soul must
be saved from panic, for panic can destroy the soul. This is precisely what
happened in the desert. The people panicked. They were so frightened that they
were not able to think logically. Their panic led to decisions made in haste[2].
The lesson to be learned from
their sin is that one must not allow himself to be immediately overwhelmed by what
his eyes see. Our imagination can at times paint terrible pictures, but we must
realize that in the end it is only our imagination.
Why did the Jews panic so much
when they thought Moshe would not return?
We must bear in mind that
despite the fact that the nation had just accepted the Torah at Sinai, a mere
year earlier they were still lowly slaves in a brutal exile.
Servitude does not only destroy
one’s physical sense of freedom, it destroys the slaves mental and
psychological sense of self as well. A slave becomes completely dependent on
his masters. There are no bills to pay or decisions to make about which school
to send his children to. The slave forfeits his identity to his master and
knows nothing other than the directions imposed upon him.
When the Jews marched forth
from Egypt
So, when they thought Moshe
would not return they feared that they would be unable to lead their families
and live up to their lofty potentials without an intermediary to guide them.
This mindset was an integral
part of the sin of the Golden Calf. It wasn’t only what they did; it was also
the feeling of turmoil and fear which caused their actions. They were held
accountable for allowing their emotions to overwhelm them because they did
not sufficiently believe in themselves!
With this in mind, we can
understand why the Torah repeats the importance of safeguarding Shabbos prior
to its narrative of the sin of the Golden Calf. When Shabbos is observed properly
it helps instill within a person a sense of serenity and inner-peace. It is a
day of connection when we remind ourselves of our priorities. On Shabbos, we have
the ability to contemplate life and our place in it in a manner that we cannot achieve
during the other six days, which are more chaotic and fast-paced.
When one observes Shabbos
properly he is protected from sins such as the Golden Calf.
Rabbi Avigdor Nebenzhal shlita
explained that in a certain sense the Purim story served as rectification for
the sin of the Golden Calf. In contrast to other enemies of Israel, at the time
of Purim there was a tremendous upheaval that came about without warning.
For example, when Nebuchadnezzar
approached with his armies from the North heading towards Jerusalem, the
prophet Jeremiah warned the nation repeatedly of the impeding doom that would
befall them if they did not repent. Although the false prophets claimed
Jerusalem would not fall, when the enemy surrounded the city the people could
not say they had not been forewarned.
The Jewish people in Shushan on
the other hand, could not have imagined that a decree would be passed slating
them for annihilation. It was simply unfathomable. The Jewish people had a good
relationship with their neighbors. They had gone to the king’s feast together
and celebrated in unison. Then, suddenly, without warning, an order was passed
"to destroy, to slay, and to exterminate all the Jews, from young to old,
children, and women[4]".
If the Jewish people would have
despaired at that point we could not have blamed them. There indeed seemed to
be no hope. However, at that point the Jews displayed uncanny determination and
resolve; they did not despair and they did not panic. They did not send a
delegation to try and convince Achashveirosh or Haman to rescind the decree.
Their only response was to gather together and implore G-d for mercy.
The truth is that this idea
played an even deeper role vis-à-vis the miracles of Purim. When one analyzes
the events of the Megillah a beautiful tapestry and pattern emerges, with each
part of the story segueing to the next part. Achashveirosh makes a party,
becomes drunk, kills Vashti, Esther becomes Queen, Haman becomes Prime
Minister, is consumed by hubris and then with rage when Mordechai refuses to
bow to him, builds gallows, and eventually ends up being hung on his own
gallows.
There is one part of the story
which does not seem to fit with the whole pattern – what was the point of the
parade? Why was it necessary for Haman to lead Mordechai through the streets of
Shushan? It is a great addendum to the story, but it does not seem at all
necessary for Haman’s ultimate demise.
The gemara relates that Haman
had an incredible power of persuasion. He was extremely eloquent and
influential and in his wily manner was able to convince almost anyone that his
point of view was correct[5]. Even after Haman had been
condemned by the king he should have been able to talk his way out of trouble.
Why did Haman not ‘work his magic’ to bail himself out?
The Chasam Sofer explains that
Haman was destroyed because of ‘behala’ – panic and a lack of equanimity! The
parade was extremely unnerving for Haman, not to mention humiliating. His
disgrace and misery was further compounded by his daughter’s death after she
dumped the contents of the family’s chamber pot on his head. After the party,
Haman returned home with the hope of showering and changing for the second
party. But suddenly the King’s guards stormed in and whisked him away. From
that point on the events continued to move at a maddening pace. Before Haman
could say a word in his own defense he was being led to the gallows he had
built in a state of total defeat and disillusionment.
The irony is that while Haman
was destroyed by behala, the Jewish people were saved because they did not
succumb to behala!
The Jews of Shushan espoused that
intellect must rise above confusion, and one's soul must not be shattered by
panic. However, their repentance was not complete. One of the reasons given for
not reciting Hallel on Purim is that, "We are still servants of
Achashveirosh[6]".
Although the nation overcame the initial feelings of panic and despair, we are
still plagued by such emotions. In that sense, we are still servants to
Achashveirosh.
One of the timeless lessons of
Purim is that we must never allow our faith in G-d to waver. The Parah Adumah
(Red Heifer) which was offered in the Bais Hamikdash, with its ashes sprinkled
upon anyone who had contracted ritual impurity via contact with a dead body, is
the symbol of our subservience to G-d. Our Sages relate that even King Shlomo, the
wisest of men, could not comprehend certain aspects of the laws of the Parah
Adumah.
The Medrash also relates that
the Parah Adumah served as atonement for the sin of the Golden Calf. The sin of
the Golden Calf was rooted in the fact that they acted hastily, upon impulse
and out of panic. Although with the absence of the Bais Hamikdash we can no
longer offer the Parah Adumah, reading about its laws helps instill within us
an inner sense of subservience to G-d. It reminds us that ultimately, we follow
the Torah and its laws simply because G-d commanded us to!
The lesson of the Parah Adumah
is that there is purpose and meaning to everything, even when we cannot
comprehend it. When one is able to foster such feelings within his heart he is
indeed protected from behala and internal turmoil.
The Mishna Berura (47:10) notes
that there are specific points during the daily prayer during which one should
pray for the success and spiritual achievement of his/her children. One of
those places is in the Uva L’tzion prayer following the words, “May He
open our heart to his Torah… so that we do not toil in vain nor give birth for
‘behala’.”
It is no coincidence that
following those words one should pray for his children’s spiritual welfare. If
we want to have children who have a healthy sense of self and have the ability
to learn and grow we have to do our part to ensure that we raise them in an
environment as free from ‘behala’ as possible[7].
Purim has passed and Pesach is
on its way. Parah Adumah seeks to reinforce within us the notion that
redemption is rooted in our ability to not lose ourselves in the behala of
life. World events can be daunting and frightening[8], no less than our own personal
struggles and challenges. Still we must always maintain our perspective and
remember that there is a rhyme and reason to all that occurs.
“Haman is destroyed by behala”
“So that we do not toil in vain
nor give birth for behala”
Rabbi Dani Staum, LMSW
Rabbi, Kehillat New Hempstead
Rebbe/Guidance Counselor – ASHAR
Principal – Ohr Naftoli- New Windsor
[1] It is lunacy to think that after witnessing the
revelation of Sinai the Jews actually worshipped the Golden Calf and believed
it had led them forth from Egypt. Ramban and Kuzari explain that the people did
not lack belief in G-d, rather they feared Moshe - their leader and guide -
would not return. Thus they made the Golden Calf to be their representative of
G-d and to be a place for the Divine Presence to rest. Nevertheless, their actions
were deemed wrong and made them culpable for destruction.
[2] We are not permitted to pass judgment on the generation of
the desert. We can only attempt to understand what happened based on our own
limited capacity to judge.
[3] This fits
in well with the Medrash Tanchuma (Noach) which states that although the Jews
were eager to accept the Written Torah, they were hesitant to accept the Oral
Torah, which entails toil and decision making. Perhaps part of their hesitancy
lay in the fact that they felt inadequate to offer rulings regarding the Oral
Law.
[4] Esther 3:13
[5] Haman was
the original care salesman, real estate agent, and lawyer mixed together.
[6] Megilla 14a
[7] Of course,
there are times and situations beyond our control. But we must do all we can to
ensure that our homes are places of safety and love. Most teachers will attest
to the fact that many (if not most) of their most difficult students live in
“behala-filled homes”, in one sense or another.
[8] especially the manner in which Klal Yisroel is depicted in
the news –often by fellow Jews
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