B’shalach, Exodus 13:17–17:16, Shabbat Shirah
When Miracles Are Not Enough
The transformation into a sacred people occurs not through miracles but rather through steady education, discipline and communal reinforcement.
By Rabbi Bradley Artson
Surely, this Torah reading contains some of the most
dramatic and well-known scenes in all of written literature. The liberation of
the Israelite slaves by God, the pursuit of the fleeing Hebrews by Pharaoh and
his army, the splitting of the Red Sea, with Israel crossing safely beyond and
Pharaoh's forces drowning in the waters--these scenes indelibly shaped the
consciousness of the Jewish people throughout our tumultuous history. We are who
we are precisely because we recall our origins as a slave people, because so
much of Jewish practice is designed to remind us that we owe our freedom to a
God of love and justice.
Cornerstone of Jewish Existence?
The story of the liberation from Egypt is the cornerstone of Jewish existence. Or is it? Read the parashah again, and you will find that what is most striking is not the miracles--wondrous as they may be. What is particularly noteworthy is how quickly the Israelite slaves forget about their extraordinary redemption.
Barely did they cross to freedom, when the people complained to Moses and to God. They complained about a lack of water, they complained about a lack of food, and they complained simply about no longer being surrounded by familiar--if hostile--Egypt.
In the words of Midrash Sh'mot Rabbah, "Have you forgotten all the miracles which God performed for you?" Miracles seem to be an ineffective way of inculcating a consciousness of God. In fact, the entire Bible can be read as a book about the consistent inability of God to teach the Jews to be grateful.
First, God tries an idyllic garden. That doesn't work; Adam and Eve disobey anyway. Then God sends a flood. That fails also; people continue to act violently. God then enslaves the Jews, sends a liberator, and redeems them from Egypt. After ten miraculous plagues and a split sea, the Jews still act truculently.
God gives a Torah of instructions--the Jews ignore it. God sends prophets of insight--the Jews rebel against them. The Bible seems to indicate that miracles don't work. People marvel at them while they are in process, and then forget about them the moment they finish.
Cornerstone of Jewish Existence?
The story of the liberation from Egypt is the cornerstone of Jewish existence. Or is it? Read the parashah again, and you will find that what is most striking is not the miracles--wondrous as they may be. What is particularly noteworthy is how quickly the Israelite slaves forget about their extraordinary redemption.
Barely did they cross to freedom, when the people complained to Moses and to God. They complained about a lack of water, they complained about a lack of food, and they complained simply about no longer being surrounded by familiar--if hostile--Egypt.
In the words of Midrash Sh'mot Rabbah, "Have you forgotten all the miracles which God performed for you?" Miracles seem to be an ineffective way of inculcating a consciousness of God. In fact, the entire Bible can be read as a book about the consistent inability of God to teach the Jews to be grateful.
First, God tries an idyllic garden. That doesn't work; Adam and Eve disobey anyway. Then God sends a flood. That fails also; people continue to act violently. God then enslaves the Jews, sends a liberator, and redeems them from Egypt. After ten miraculous plagues and a split sea, the Jews still act truculently.
God gives a Torah of instructions--the Jews ignore it. God sends prophets of insight--the Jews rebel against them. The Bible seems to indicate that miracles don't work. People marvel at them while they are in process, and then forget about them the moment they finish.
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