"Moses spoke thus to the children of Israel, but they did not heed Moses, because of [their] shortness of breath[1] and hard servitude." (Exodus 6:9) Parshat Va'era opens with the prophecy of the redemption of the people of Israel from Egyptian slavery. The Holy One of Blessing hears the cries of the Israelites, promising to bring the people out of exile, to save them from the hands of their enemies, and to secure a new future for the people, a future of freedom.
However, when Moses presents this prophecy to the people, they neither raise their hopes nor incline their ears to listen. The Mechilta wonders how it is possible to remain indifferent to the prophecy of freedom and redemption: "Can a person hear good news and not be happy? [...] Their master wants to grant them their freedom, and they are not happy?" (Mechilta, Shemot 12:6)
What prevents the children of Israel from accepting Moses' prophecy? What is that shortness of spirit that closes their hearts to all hope? In response to these questions, the Mechilta explains that thick cords bind the children of Israel and prevent their ability to go free: "They found it hard to separate themselves from idolatry."
The children of Israel are unable to hear about the exodus from Egypt because they are not only enslaved to the ministers and officers of Egypt; they are also enslaved to the gods of Egypt. Despite the harshness of the servitude, the Israelites choose to stop up their hearts and ears against any change, because change would mean a disruption of deeply rooted beliefs about the way the world is organised.
When Moses comes before the children of Israel, they refrain from choosing freedom because they are still bound by the chains and errors of the past. This teaches us that sometimes the path to freedom may be clearly marked and open, yet we might still prefer not to take it, we still might choose bondage over liberty. Shortness of spirit is a profoundly human phenomenon; in times of upset and fear, we tend to cling to the familiar and avoid anything new. When we do this, we are behaving with shortness of spirit.
In order to be redeemed, we must dare to overcome this shortness of spirit, those idols that hold us back. A person cannot break free from bondage unless their spirit is ready to go with them.
Faced with this shortness of spirit, Moses does not fall silent; he does not retreat from his mission. Moses continues to take action to bring the children of Israel to freedom. He keeps speaking to the people, despite their shortness of spirit, despite the hard servitude. Moses speaks beyond the slavery, offering the people another prospect – freedom.
The fundamental premise underlying Moses' actions is that freedom will prevail over servitude; the idols of the past cannot forever suppress the hope for a different future. This premise was valid four thousand years ago and is still valid today.
The value of freedom lies in the heart of human rights activism. Every person has the right to freedom, and every person has the responsibility to ensure that this right can come to fruition. As human rights activists we take this responsibility seriously, but it cannot be all we do. We must also confront 'shortness of spirit', and the establishment that chooses to sacrifice freedom in order to preserve itself. We must acknowledge that sometimes the path to freedom is clearly marked and open, but the public refuses to take it. It is precisely in such situations that we must offer breadth of spirit, paint a different picture, a different way forward.
Raising a voice for human rights means choosing freedom over any form of servitude and helping all those around us to find freedom with us. May such a voice be heard around us now, aiding us all to act always from hope and breadth of spirit.
Translation: Rabbi Ma'ayan Turner
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------David Goodman is the rabbi of Kehilat Moreshet Avraham in Jerusalem, along with his wife, Rabbi Amirit Rosen. David is a member of the board of Rabbis for Human Rights.
[1] Translated variously as “shortness of breath/wind” “anguish of spirit” “crushed spirits” etc
However, when Moses presents this prophecy to the people, they neither raise their hopes nor incline their ears to listen. The Mechilta wonders how it is possible to remain indifferent to the prophecy of freedom and redemption: "Can a person hear good news and not be happy? [...] Their master wants to grant them their freedom, and they are not happy?" (Mechilta, Shemot 12:6)
What prevents the children of Israel from accepting Moses' prophecy? What is that shortness of spirit that closes their hearts to all hope? In response to these questions, the Mechilta explains that thick cords bind the children of Israel and prevent their ability to go free: "They found it hard to separate themselves from idolatry."
The children of Israel are unable to hear about the exodus from Egypt because they are not only enslaved to the ministers and officers of Egypt; they are also enslaved to the gods of Egypt. Despite the harshness of the servitude, the Israelites choose to stop up their hearts and ears against any change, because change would mean a disruption of deeply rooted beliefs about the way the world is organised.
When Moses comes before the children of Israel, they refrain from choosing freedom because they are still bound by the chains and errors of the past. This teaches us that sometimes the path to freedom may be clearly marked and open, yet we might still prefer not to take it, we still might choose bondage over liberty. Shortness of spirit is a profoundly human phenomenon; in times of upset and fear, we tend to cling to the familiar and avoid anything new. When we do this, we are behaving with shortness of spirit.
In order to be redeemed, we must dare to overcome this shortness of spirit, those idols that hold us back. A person cannot break free from bondage unless their spirit is ready to go with them.
Faced with this shortness of spirit, Moses does not fall silent; he does not retreat from his mission. Moses continues to take action to bring the children of Israel to freedom. He keeps speaking to the people, despite their shortness of spirit, despite the hard servitude. Moses speaks beyond the slavery, offering the people another prospect – freedom.
The fundamental premise underlying Moses' actions is that freedom will prevail over servitude; the idols of the past cannot forever suppress the hope for a different future. This premise was valid four thousand years ago and is still valid today.
The value of freedom lies in the heart of human rights activism. Every person has the right to freedom, and every person has the responsibility to ensure that this right can come to fruition. As human rights activists we take this responsibility seriously, but it cannot be all we do. We must also confront 'shortness of spirit', and the establishment that chooses to sacrifice freedom in order to preserve itself. We must acknowledge that sometimes the path to freedom is clearly marked and open, but the public refuses to take it. It is precisely in such situations that we must offer breadth of spirit, paint a different picture, a different way forward.
Raising a voice for human rights means choosing freedom over any form of servitude and helping all those around us to find freedom with us. May such a voice be heard around us now, aiding us all to act always from hope and breadth of spirit.
Translation: Rabbi Ma'ayan Turner
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------David Goodman is the rabbi of Kehilat Moreshet Avraham in Jerusalem, along with his wife, Rabbi Amirit Rosen. David is a member of the board of Rabbis for Human Rights.
[1] Translated variously as “shortness of breath/wind” “anguish of spirit” “crushed spirits” etc