Shevat 12, 5776/January 22, 2016
Parashat Beshalach chronicles the exodus of the children of Israel from their enslavement in Egypt. For the first time in their lives they are no longer under the thumb of the Egyptians. For the first time in their lives they are free as individuals, unburdened as families, independent as a community, and standing on their own two feet as a nation - the nation of Israel! But liberty brings great challenges and independence requires tremendous responsibility.
It is all new to the children of Israel. They now have to fend for themselves. They need to feed themselves. They need to form a safe encampment when they sleep at night and an orderly and manageable formation for when they travel by day. It will not be easy for them, but fortunately, G-d has taken them under His wing and He will see to it that all their needs are met. But do the children of Israel know this? Are they aware that the G-d who brought them out of Egypt will be theirs forever? Do they know that their well-being is in G-d's most supreme interest?
We take it for granted, being blessed with 4,000 year hindsight. We have read the book and we know that G-d's commitment to Israel is absolute. But the scared, skeptical and weary Israelites, who just yesterday were performing back breaking work for no reward at all, will require a good bit of time, much good Divine will and heavenly patience in order to absorb their new reality and grow spiritually into the people and the nation that G-d has intended for them to be.
In the mean time, they are scared. So when their stomachs rumble and they see no food among their meager supplies, they grow angry. They accuse Moshe and G-d of dragging them into the desert where they will die. They become rebellious when, three days into the wilderness, they have no water to drink. Their anger born of fear is so great thatMoshe fears for his own life, "crying out to HaShem, saying, 'What shall I do for this people? Just a little longer and they will stone me!'" (Exodus 17:4)
But in their distress, the children of Israel quickly arrived at an understanding of the underlying, profound crux of their newly acquired dilemma. Their despair and loss of confidence reached a nadir at Massah and Merivah, where they cried out bitterly for water, and in their pain they asked the question, "Is HaShem in our midst or not?" (ibid 17:7)
Is there a greater question to be asked? Do we not today, even after 4000 years of unbroken evidence that G-d is with us, still ask that very question? Do we not witness a revealed miracle today and question G-d's interest in our fate tomorrow? Israel didn't doubt G-d's existence. His power and presence were magnificently manifest and obvious. They didn't question that He was the G-d of Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov. That was also self evident. But they questioned whether G-d was with them, among them. Were they worthy of G-d , did they deserve His affection? Were they opening up their hearts to HaShem or were they keeping Him from them by being so shackled to their earthly needs of food and drink?
Amalek heard their despair and descended upon Israel, seeking to obliterate the weakened, doubt-riddled and weary nation, and he was but the first of many enemies of G-d who would seek to harm His people.
But G-d also heard Israel's cry, and despite His momentary anger, He must have been greatly pleased by His children's yearning for greater knowledge and intimacy with Him. G-d would soon take Israel to the spiritual heights of the Sinai revelation and make with them an eternal covenant. But the ultimate answer to Israel's question, "Is HaShem in our midst or not?" He would answer in the affirmative when he instructed Moshe, "And they shall make Me a sanctuary and I will dwell in their midst." (ibid 25:8) The existential question posed by Israel would be answered by G-d in the most emphatic and manifest way. Make for Me a place and I will always dwell among you. If you want Me, I am yours! G-d's need to dwell among His people matches His people's need to let Him in. This perfect meeting of the Divine and human heart is the place and time of the Holy Temple,the beating heart for all humanity!
-The Temple Institute
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