Parshat Shmot Sermon - 5780/2020
Rabbi Avi Billet
In 2014, Rabbi Elimelech Goldberg was featured in a CNN piece for being one of their top 10 heroes. This past Spring I had the opportunity to meet Rabbi Goldberg, who is the founder of an organization called “Kids Kicking Cancer,” which teaches martial arts techniques to children with cancer to help them deal with the pain of their illness and treatments.
Rabbi Goldberg wrote a book of lessons learned from the children he works with, entitled “A perfect God created an imperfect world perfectly.” It’s a line that he used a few times in the talk he gave at the conference. But it says a lot about how Rabbi Goldberg has come to terms with a devastating illness, one that took his own daughter’s life at a very young age, and with the overall – I’ll just call it “imperfection” – that is the hallmark of what has become a defining element of his life’s work: bringing inspiration – what we might call “perfection” – from a circumstance that seems to be anything but that .
To be honest I didn’t think much about that line, and I have not had the chance to read the book yet. But another reason that phrase came to mind was because of two things that happened this week. The first came in my preparation for the parsha class Wednesday night, and the second happened at the Mishmar event hosted by the Men’s Club on Thursday night.
I’ll share with you a little of the process of each.
Many of us have a problem when we study Chumash. Since we’ve seen it before, we come at it with our own biases and pre-conceived concepts and interpretations. And while some of us might revere a particular commentary, it is quite clear that some of the early and medieval commentators, who certainly had a high level of respect for the trailblazers of Chumash commentary, they also had no qualms about disagreeing with things earlier scholars had written, whether on a pshat level, on a level that prefers less “drash” and “midrash,” or simply because they felt an explanation was insufficient, incomplete, or did not adequately address what they perceived as a much bigger problem in the text or in the Torah’s narrative.
An easy example of this is Rashi’s explanation of what I like to call the Mysterious “Hotel Incident” in which someone’s death was sought and Tziporah circumcised her son to end the problem. Rashi claims it was Moshe who almost died. Rabbenu Bachaye disagrees because he believes Moshe was not even present in the hotel. The Gemara in Nedarim even raises two possibilities – that either Moshe’s or his son’s death was sought. Haksav V’hakabbalah raised the possibility that Moshe sought his own death because he was overwhelmed, much like we’ll see Moshe do later in the Torah, much like we see of Yirmiyahu and Yonah also wanting to die rather than continue their respective prophetic missions.
What really troubled me, though, in preparing for the class Wednesday night, was how the Netziv looked at events as they unfolded and noted that most of God’s original plans seemed to have been scrapped or changed on account of how the humans in the story reacted to their assigned missions. Recall there isn’t a script! There is God’s plan. What some of us might call the not understandable “Master Plan.” [This is how our method of studying Chumash is to our detriment, because we don’t even consider this kind of perspective.]
Just to give a few examples of what happened and what was supposed to happen – mostly based on the encounter at the Burning Bush. Which, by the way, in the narrative seems to take a few minutes. But the rabbis tell us it spanned a week!
God tells Moshe who He (God) is, and He tells Moshe his (Moshe’s) job. Now, it’s easy for me to say, because I know the story. But if God is writing the script, what should happen? Moshe should say, “Got it!” and he should go to Egypt.
But that doesn’t happen! Moshe claims he is unworthy, מִ֣י אָנֹ֔כִי כִּ֥י אֵלֵ֖ךְ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֑ה וְכִ֥י אוֹצִ֛יא אֶת־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל מִמִּצְרָֽיִם. And instead of jumping, Moshe argues with God!! And he plays Devil’s Advocate – listing all the things that could go wrong WITH GOD’S PLAN. The people will need proof that I spoke to you. They’ll ask for God’s NAME. So God gives him a name, and he gives him a script of what to tell everyone, about Avraham, Yitzhcak and Yaakov, and to gather the elders. God even says וְשָׁמְע֖וּ לְקֹלֶ֑ךָ they (could be the people, could be the elders) will listen to you, and you’ll go to Pharaoh asking for a 3-day journey to worship God. Hashem even says “I know Pharoah will not let you go.” So there will be plagues, etc. Should be done - right?
Not so fast.
Moshe says, “They’re not going to believe me. They will not listen to me.”
WHAT? Moshe. You are challenging GOD?! GOD just told you what’s going to happen. How dare you be skeptical, untrusting?
God plays along, giving him 3 signs, and even saying “If they don’t listen or believe the 1st, they’ll believe the 2nd. And if not the 1st and 2nd, they’ll believe the 3rd.”
That should settle it. Right?
“God, I am not a man of words.”
Still, with the objections? OK. Fine. I’ll give you the words. I AM GOD. It’ll be fine. Go. I’ll be with you.
Moshe should feel at ease. Right? וַיֹּ֖אמֶר בִּ֣י אֲדֹנָ֑י שְֽׁלַֽח־נָ֖א בְּיַד־תִּשְׁלָֽח Send someone else.
God gets ANGRY at Moshe. Tells him Aharon will be there to help him. And the conversation ends.
On his way to Egypt, God reminds him about the use of his staff, and that Pharaoh will not be letting them go right away. Then we have the hotel incident.
Rav Shimshon Rafael Hirsch shares the following insight, noting the view that it was Moshe’s death that almost took place. Pay careful attention, because he says something that is very difficult to fathom. “The Torah here informs us that God preferred to let Moshe die rather than allow him to continue along his journey and carry out his assigned mission in Egypt with an uncircumcised son. No man – not even Moses – is indispensable to God." Can any of us imagine a Torah without Moshe?
In Parshat Eikev, RSRH similarly noted, “Am Yisrael's mission and destiny do not depend on any single individual, and thus God was prepared to kill Moshe for neglecting his son's circumcision, and bring about Israel's redemption through another leader.”
But what about MOSHE being MOSHE? How could GOD deviate from His PERFECT SCRIPT?
O yes. About that perfect script.
Moshe arrives in Egypt – with Aharon. They gather the elders. Aharon speaks to the people. He (or Moshe – it’s not clear) show the people the signs. וַֽיַּאֲמֵ֖ן הָעָ֑ם וַֽיִּשְׁמְע֡וּ כִּֽי־פָקַ֨ד יְקֹוָ֜ק אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל. THIS is EXACTLY what GOD said would happen. All of Moshe’s objections were a waste of time.
But then Moshe and Aharon come to Pharaoh. WHERE ARE THE ZEKENIM? There’s a deviation from the script….
Moshe and Aharon say in God’s name, “Send My people so they can celebrate for me.” WHAT? God never said that!
Instead of saying “No,” Pharaoh challenges God’s authority by denying God’s existence. Note, of course that that becomes a game changer. There were supposed to be plagues – we know that. But the goal of the plagues now becomes about having Egypt learn, recognize and know וידעו מצרים כי אני ה'. This too is a change from the original plan.
Part of the plan was that Pharaoh would be stubborn but not make things worse for the Bnei Yisrael. And this is what Moshe complains about at the end of the parsha – why has the plan seemingly changed?
We are familiar with the idea that Pharaoh had free will. I don’t share the view that Hashem doctored Pharaoh’s free will. I once heard Rabbi David Fohrman explain the words that describe the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart to mean that God strengthened Pharaoh’s heart to have the ability to make the decision to free the Bnei Yisrael of his own will, rather than on account of duress from the plagues. It’s easy to cry Uncle and to give in. But to make the choice that Israel should be let free because it’s the right thing to do… that was why Pharaoh’s heart needed encouragement and strength.
So what do we have here? A script – plotted out by God – that changes at every turn on account of the choices of Man. In this case, mostly Moshe and Pharaoh.
Aharon’s role as Moshe’s spokesman, by the way - Aharon hardly filled that role. He certainly did it when talking to the Nation (or the Elders?) at the outset. But for a man who said, “לא איש דברים אנכי” we certainly see Moshe at the end of his life saying אלה הדברים אשר דבר משה אל כל ישראל. He is hardly “not a man of words.”
Rabbi Goldberg called this world “Imperfect” – an Imperfect world created perfectly. I think that is an apt definition – but we need to understand what it means.
So let me share with you what happened at the Mishmar and then we’ll bring this to a close.
S___ gave a shiur to the Men’s Club about the Rambam’s Ani Maamins. And the opening question posed created quite a stir. “I believe with complete faith that the Creator is the בורא ומנהיג. The creator and guide of the world.” The question was, if God determines that a person will live, for example, could another person come along and change that through a murderous act? Will the murder be unsuccessful? Or if it is successful, is the person’s death actually part of God’s plan? As hard as it is for us to understand.
There was an animated conversation, with varying views, shared around the room.
It should be noted that what was not said, is the opposite. If God determines someone should die, could Teshuvah, or an amazing undertaking of Mitzvos and Middos tovos change the person’s destiny from death to continued life and blessing? I can’t imagine anyone here would say “No” to that one. Obviously then, human input can change whatever seems to be God’s Master Plan.
So what of the acts of murderers? What of a terrorist act that kills innocents – whether in Israel, whether targeting Jews, or whether targeting anyone? Must we always say “It was God’s Will and we don’t understand God’s Master Plan?”
Or can we say, there is an element of perfection in the imperfection of creation. There is something to creating humans not as robots, not as machines, not as animals, but as beings with free will, who can make decisions – in some cases for good, and for amazing deeds and acts. And sometimes for bad, for really horrible outcomes. Is it ever appropriate to suggest that all the Kedoshim of the Holocaust were judged for murder, and that God used Hitler ימ"ש as His executioner? Or can we lay the blame for the Holocaust squarely where it belong – on the Nazis ימ"ש?
דוד המלך said – and we say this in Tachanun – נפלה נא ביד ה' וביד רחמיו וביד אדם אל אפלה. David said that in the context of a punishment that was supposed to come his way for an unauthorized census he carried out towards the end of Shmuel II. God gave him options – years of famine, months of failed battles, or 3 days of plague. And David chose the latter option – 3 days of plague, relying on the fact that God could stop whenever He wants and be merciful. But put man in charge of carrying out God’s mission, and Man could do unspeakable crimes.
Every year new stories of the Nazis come out. The extent of their cruelty and depravity continues to shock, over 70 years after WWII ended. Pharaoh – whose destiny was to be the address where Avraham’s descendants were exiled – took the level of slavery he was fated to enslave with to levels far beyond what he needed to do to achieve the required outcomes. Which is why the splitting of the Sea happened. The original plan – as spoken at the Burning Bush and at the Bris Bein Habsarim, was for the nation to be punished in their land and to allow Bnei Yisrael to leave with wealth. Plagues – yes! But to wipe out the Egyptian army? Not part of the original plan.
People make choices, and even God’s plan could change.
But what about what we all know – the davening from Yom Kippur? On RH and YK it is decided who will live and who will die. Who in their time and who not in their time.
What does that even mean? We certainly don’t know what everyone’s pre-destined time is, so how could we ever look back in hindsight and say who passed away too young, at the right time, or, how do we know a person didn’t get an extension? Based on a Gemara in Rosh Hashana, the Alshikh on Parshat Nitzavim says that what is determined on the Yamim Noraim is the destiny of the SOUL. Will the SOUL LIVE or will the SOUL DIE? Is the SOUL destined for חיי עולם or is the SOUL destined for גהנם?
כן תעביר ותספור ותמנה ותפקד נפש כל חי. NEFESH. It’s not about whether we will live or die. Some people have a fundamental theological problem with a healthy person being cut down by a gun or in a car accident. With a baby לא עלינו dying.
On the other hand, we somehow understand or at least accept illness – some people succumb to it, and some defy ALL the odds, and ALL the medical textbooks.
And so the Alshikh suggests that what is slated on YK is where the soul will go should the person die in this year. And even for those fated to גהנם we have a widespread tradition that Kaddish can reverse even the worst of those fates over the course of 11 months. So there’s not much to worry about.
We often wish people should have no more sorrow. But is that even possible? It IS an imperfect world. Professor David Shatz has made a career out of teaching Rabbi Soloveitchik’s thoughts on suffering. Everyone suffers at some point – in between all the happiness and the nachas, people suffer. The only way a person can have no more sorrow is if that person is the next person to die, and dies in an instant without illness, pain or suffering.
It’s an imperfect world. But the world goes on. Day in and day out. And people have wonderful times, and vacations, and dark and difficult times, and setbacks and sorrow. But the sun rises each day, and every day is a new opportunity.
Even Moshe might not have made it to become Moshe Rabbenu had Tziporah not circumcised her son in that moment. It was a setback. A minimal suffering.
But she, like other heroes before her, and after her, took a challenge life threw her way and brought things to an equitable resolution, that certainly in the larger scheme of things, worked out rather nicely.
That God’s plans for Moshe in Egypt don’t follow God’s “perfect” script is just a microcosm of what life is. The reason why the creation is perfect is because the world is imperfect. If everything aligned perfectly all the time, we’d be machines, robots, with no passion, no drive, no highs, no lows, no successes, no failures, no lessons learned, no challenges to face or overcome.
We are not animals – governed by instinct and nature alone. We are not angels – governed by God’s word alone. We have free will. We do influence our choices, and in many ways, our outcomes.
Is there a Master Plan? I imagine there is. And often enough, we don’t understand it. But let us never fall into complacency thinking we have no role in outcomes. Our choices – for good and for bad – have influence. Our tefillot – have influence. Our deeds – both good and bad – play a significant role in how things turn out. Our own demeanor – towards loved ones, friends, and acquaintances, has an impact on the mood we leave a room in when we exit.
Our tafkid, our job in this life, is to focus on what we can do. Mitzvos, Chesed, look out for others, work on our relationship with God, and be kind to the needy and the oppressed.
We may not achieve perfection. But it is through how we work through the challenges of imperfection that we can find the closest thing to perfection in our lifetimes. And that comes when we can look back at what is achieved in life and say “I put in my best effort. I let God carry me the rest of the way.” And as a result, the outcome (which is not always the one we liked or wanted, but is the one God felt is right for us) could not be more perfect.
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