רפואה מן התורה
Healing from the Torah
Parashat Shelach
Numbers 13:1-15:41
By Rabbi Adam Ruditsky
How Many Generations Has it Been?
When he was young, Hayyim of Zanz tries to reform his country. As he gets older, Hayyim sees the impossibility of reform on such a large scale and begins to focus on driving the evil from smaller and smaller areas, until he tries to effect changes only inside his family … and then, after age 50, only inside himself. Not until age fifty, not until after a generation and then some, did Hayyim realize that self-improvement was the only change he could actually control.
In Parashat Shelach we are reminded of that very thing, change takes time and systemic change may need to circumvent an entire generation. We read after the debacle with the spies the following, “And the LORD said unto Moses: 'How long will this people despise Me? and how long will they not believe in Me, for all the signs which I have wrought among them?” (Num. 14:11). How can Israel not believe? Israel witnessed the 10 plagues in Egypt, the parting of the red sea, the fire at Mt Sinai, manna from heaven, not to mention the defeat of Pharaoh’s army with all its might and power, but now they are afraid of some fortified cities and people reported to be like giants? It doesn’t make sense that a people of perseverance all of sudden became so fearful that their past oppression seemed better than their future freedom. In the end I don’t think this was really a problem about belief or fear, I think it was about generational reluctance.
It had been a little over two years after Israel left Egypt and departed Mt Sinai. Just a few days into the journey Moses picks 12 leaders, one from each tribe, who were to scout on the land they would possess that was promised to Israel’s ancestors beforehand. When the spies returned their response was in unison, “We came unto the land you sent us, and surely it flowed with milk and honey; and this (vine of grapes) is the fruit of it” (Number 13:27). Yet that unity quickly disappeared when 10 of the 12 spies said, “However the people that dwell in the land are fierce, and the cities are fortified, and very great; and moreover we saw the children of giants there” (Num. 13:28). Although Joshua and Caleb attempted to recall the past works of God, the people shifted their own fears to the remaining 10 and said, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt or would we had died in this wilderness! And why does the LORD bring us unto this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will be like prey; were it not better for us to return into Egypt?' And they said one to another: 'Let us make a leader, and let us return to Egypt” (Num. 14:2-4). In the narrative God was angry an wanted to wipe Israel out, but Moses successfully interceded on their behalf to stop God’s wrath. In the end, while God relents from the anger, Israel’s punishment is that they would wander for another 38 years from what should have been a short journey; the first of many tragedies we remember on Tisha B’av (see. BT Sanhedrin 104b).
It had been a little over two years after Israel left Egypt and departed Mt Sinai. Just a few days into the journey Moses picks 12 leaders, one from each tribe, who were to scout on the land they would possess that was promised to Israel’s ancestors beforehand. When the spies returned their response was in unison, “We came unto the land you sent us, and surely it flowed with milk and honey; and this (vine of grapes) is the fruit of it” (Number 13:27). Yet that unity quickly disappeared when 10 of the 12 spies said, “However the people that dwell in the land are fierce, and the cities are fortified, and very great; and moreover we saw the children of giants there” (Num. 13:28). Although Joshua and Caleb attempted to recall the past works of God, the people shifted their own fears to the remaining 10 and said, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt or would we had died in this wilderness! And why does the LORD bring us unto this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will be like prey; were it not better for us to return into Egypt?' And they said one to another: 'Let us make a leader, and let us return to Egypt” (Num. 14:2-4). In the narrative God was angry an wanted to wipe Israel out, but Moses successfully interceded on their behalf to stop God’s wrath. In the end, while God relents from the anger, Israel’s punishment is that they would wander for another 38 years from what should have been a short journey; the first of many tragedies we remember on Tisha B’av (see. BT Sanhedrin 104b).
The 12 leaders that Moses picked were identified as “all who lead from them,” that is each tribe. These were leaders, chosen leaders who were wise and could stand up to challenges, yet now 10 of the 12 lead the people in rebellion. This might be a free people but here we see signs that beg the question, were they ready to embrace freedom? Maimonides connects this problem with when they first left Egypt “God did not lead them by the way of the Philistine country though it was shorter [because of the fear] that they might encounter hardships too great for their present strength” (Guide for the Perplexed, III:32). Rabbi Jonathan Sacks writes “yet despite the detour, what God feared came to past.” Two plus years later the people cannot handle it and want to go back. We read in Numbers 14:18, words that are similar to what we find in Exodus 34:6, that Moses reminds this God who wanted to destroy the people that the true God is supposed to be ארך אפים ורב חסד, “slow to anger, abundant in kindness” That God who wanted to destroy the people in anger and lack of patience represents the gods of Egypt who needed to be appeased out of fear and servitude. The words we find in Torah reflect a people traumatized by their past and only Joshua and Caleb could see a better tomorrow in that moment.
The scouts were sent to spy out the land but they could not move past the trauma of Egypt. They could not be a part of a new world where they would have to embrace changes and challenges that were anything but easy. The words of Torah reflect a people stuck in a dialog with gods who ruled them in furry and not a God of love and patience. In the narrative Moses reminds God to be “slow to anger, abundant in kindness,” but I say this was more about what the people needed to hear. It was the people who saw God as heavy handed, a God who wanted to destroy them because they were not able to be a free and liberated generation yet, but that doesn’t make sense. The fact is that the people did it to themselves with the infighting and lack of love. This was a rebellion that resulted in a generation having to wander in the wilderness for a trip that should have been weeks at best. Israel made their choice in the wilderness to stay in the past and it cost them. What would have happened if all 12 of those spies were emancipated into Israel’s future, how might have their world differed? Why do I think this describes these people? Easy, look around you, what do you see today? This is a divided country where anger, hate, sadness, and apathy ripple through society right now. Liberals and Conservatives from the top down attack others unabashedly in Washington and beyond while friends use platforms like Facebook and Twitter to do the same. Since May 25th, this country has seen protests and riots, policy changes and dismantling of entire police departments as well as acts of kindness, peaceful gatherings and people wanting to love each other. But in many ways it was a step backwards as well.
Just like with Hayyim of Zanz a generation went by before he got it. Today we see that it has been 52 years since MLK was killed, but does this generation get it? The truth is that although good and solid change has been made a revelation regarding true social equality for a community that has not been fully emancipated has not yet been realized. You know maybe the generation since MLK just cannot do it and a new generation has to take up the cause? So yes, there has been advancements, but what do you say about the little black kid who feels he needs to hide from passing by police cars while shooting baskets in the front yard ? Has it been enough for Jews who get killed just because they are Jewish? Is it fair to people of Asian descent who get attacked verbally or physically for a virus they did not cause but get like everyone else? What might things look like if we handled human equality differently? How many more generations have to die before some people can be free?
Shabbat Shalom
The scouts were sent to spy out the land but they could not move past the trauma of Egypt. They could not be a part of a new world where they would have to embrace changes and challenges that were anything but easy. The words of Torah reflect a people stuck in a dialog with gods who ruled them in furry and not a God of love and patience. In the narrative Moses reminds God to be “slow to anger, abundant in kindness,” but I say this was more about what the people needed to hear. It was the people who saw God as heavy handed, a God who wanted to destroy them because they were not able to be a free and liberated generation yet, but that doesn’t make sense. The fact is that the people did it to themselves with the infighting and lack of love. This was a rebellion that resulted in a generation having to wander in the wilderness for a trip that should have been weeks at best. Israel made their choice in the wilderness to stay in the past and it cost them. What would have happened if all 12 of those spies were emancipated into Israel’s future, how might have their world differed? Why do I think this describes these people? Easy, look around you, what do you see today? This is a divided country where anger, hate, sadness, and apathy ripple through society right now. Liberals and Conservatives from the top down attack others unabashedly in Washington and beyond while friends use platforms like Facebook and Twitter to do the same. Since May 25th, this country has seen protests and riots, policy changes and dismantling of entire police departments as well as acts of kindness, peaceful gatherings and people wanting to love each other. But in many ways it was a step backwards as well.
Just like with Hayyim of Zanz a generation went by before he got it. Today we see that it has been 52 years since MLK was killed, but does this generation get it? The truth is that although good and solid change has been made a revelation regarding true social equality for a community that has not been fully emancipated has not yet been realized. You know maybe the generation since MLK just cannot do it and a new generation has to take up the cause? So yes, there has been advancements, but what do you say about the little black kid who feels he needs to hide from passing by police cars while shooting baskets in the front yard ? Has it been enough for Jews who get killed just because they are Jewish? Is it fair to people of Asian descent who get attacked verbally or physically for a virus they did not cause but get like everyone else? What might things look like if we handled human equality differently? How many more generations have to die before some people can be free?
Shabbat Shalom
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