Thursday, January 13, 2022

Parshat BeShalach - Helping Each Other

 בס"ד

When I was in yeshiva the rabbi told a popular metaphoric story. He asked  rhetorically what is the difference between heaven and hell? He answered in hell the people were seated around a table filled with tasty food which they could only eat with a spoon. However the spoons were very long and it was impossible to bring the food to the mouth. Consequently they were very sad. In heaven they were at the same party but the people were feeding each other with the very long spoons. As a result they were all very happy.


When the children of Israel left Egypt and its slavery they found themselves being persued by the chariots of Pharaoh and blocked by the Red Sea. At that point they said to Moses, “Was it for a lack of graves in Egypt that you brought us to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us, taking us out of Egypt?” (Exodus 14:11). The words of Israel were very harsh, nevertheless Moshe gave them a kind answer and HaKadosh Baruch Hu performed a miracle. The Red Sea split so Israel could pass through in safety and, when Egypt followed, it returned to its natural course, drowning them.


Once in the desert the nation found itself without water. Because of this the nation started grumbling against Moshe. Again the response from heaven was basically kind and water became available. Rashi comments that they should have enquired of Moshe using pleasant language saying, “Ask that we should be shown mercy and that water should be given to us”. 


Two and a half months later the people grumbled against Moshe again because they were dissatisfied with the food. G-d sent them manna from heaven but this time they were chided about their behavior. At this point though a general pattern of behavior can be discerned. 


Sometime later in the book of Numbers the people complained about Hashem and Moshe saying, ““Why did you make us leave Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread and no water, and we have come to loathe this miserable food”, (Numbers 21:4-5). In fact the manna was fine, the people simply had become restive. This time though the response was stern and G-d sent snakes to bite the people. To their credit they recognized their mistake and apologized so Moshe prayed for them. The snakes were taken away and many of them properly healed. 


The point is that in this world people do not automatically get all the things they need or want. However many times things are available on request. Sometimes it's necessary to do without. Other times it requires the work and assistance of others. This can even be a blessing. Often the best results are obtained when people cooperate and help each other. In fact this is one of the blessings said after eating,        בּוֹרֵא נְפָשׁוֹת. In it we thank G-d for creating many different types of souls as well as the things that they lack. Often this makes for a world where people concentrate on the things they like the most and do better than others. They can even exchange or help with this. Others in turn will reciprocate and help them too when they need it and the world will be a happier place.    


לע"נ  האמא מלכה בת חיים ז"ל נלב"ע טז ניסן תשנ"ח

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