"Yitro" (Shabbes 20 Shvat, 5769)

All right, so I’ve just gotta say something about the parshah for this week. Why? Cuz it’s special and cool and because I didn’t have a chance to actually speak about it this year (ya know, d’var torah style), I’m gonna at least write down what I would have said. And who knows, maybe next year I’ll get to actually say it! :) So here we go!!!!

***
Our parshah, “Yitro”, opens with the return of Moses’ father in law, Jethro (Yitro), who has heard of the wonders that G-d has performed for the Israelites by taking them out of Egypt. He advises Moses to appoint judges and magistrates to help him in his task of governing the people, and Moses decides to act on Jethro’s advice. Next, we find ourselves outside of Mount Sinai, where G-d proclaims that the Israelites are to be a “kingdom of priests” and a “holy nation”. Then, seven weeks after the Exodus, Mount Sinai is the place to be as G-d (the divine) descends and Moshe (the human) ascends to meet Him. G-d then gives the 10 commandments to the entire Israelite community, who are overcome by the power of such intimate human-divine communication and beg Moses to serve as a buffer between them and G-d while the Torah is revealed.

So that’s the basic summary of it all, and now let’s examine the parshah a bit more closely, shall we? If we consider Jethro’s advice to Moses, not only is it sound advice (and from a non-Israelite, no less!), but it also reflects on an important theme in the Torah: the division of human power and the acknowledgment of the unique contributions that can be made by various individuals. What do I mean by this? Well, as we’ve seen throughout human history, too much power in the hands of one individual is not a good thing. It’s overwhelming for the person themselves, and it also opens the door for such power to be abused. Thus, sharing the responsibility for judging and governing the people is better for Moses and for the community at large.

I believe that this is the same reason why we don’t just have a Moshe, but also an Aharon. While Moshe is the powerful, strong leader of the Israelites, Aharon is the more compassionate one, a better speaker and wordsmith, and an advisor and leader in his own right. Both men serve to complement each other and share in the division of power and responsibility, just as G-d has desired. And even in the time of the Judges and the Kings of Israel and Judah, we have the prophets and kohanim to counteract the quite formidable power wielded by these strong political leaders.

Finally, I would like to talk about the great significance of the Israelites’ response to G-d’s declaration that we are to be a “kingdom of priests” and a “holy nation”. Upon hearing about the covenant and G-d’s wishes for us, we could have said “Sure, all that G-d says, we hear it and we’ll remember it, for sure...” and then the next day, we run for our lives! But what do words really mean? For example, I can say anything I want to, whether I truly believe it or care about it or not, but words are only empty words unless I act upon them. In that way, even if I truly do believe something and speak beautiful words about it, those words are little more than pretty sound if I do not back them up with my own actions. And so we see that the Israelites’ response “All that G-d has spoken, we shall do” is all the more significant. “Do” is the key word here, to actually put beliefs into action and thus change the world through our actions, as G-d has wished. Even if it takes a few blatantly wrong actions (think golden…) for us to get the hang of truly acting on what we say :) Shabbat Shalom & Shavua tov!!!