Vaera (5785) by Myriam Saitman
I invite you to bring to mind the image of Moses popularized in the western world. What is coming to your mind? The horned, long-haired sculpture by renaissance artist Michelangelo or the bearded, blue-eyed Charlton Heston in the old movie The 10 Commandments? Regardless of the image you conjured up, both shared a common trait. Moses´ representation conveys the strength of a chief able to lead his people out of bondage. He is portrayed with a defined jaw, strong arms and piercing eyes. Both the stone sculpture and the movie resort to these elements to symbolize Moses´ conviction, faith and trust in HaShem.
Nonetheless, the first description we encounter of Moses in Vaera, this week´s parasha, is absolutely different, almost the opposite. When he is commanded to go to Pharaoh and ask him to let the Israelites go, Moses is depicted in a very different way. The main trait that characterizes the man tasked to talk to Pharaoh and convince him to allow the Israelites to leave Egypt is his stutter, a major obstacle in verbal communication. Even though Aaron, his brother, is there as Moses´s support and speaker, the one carrying the burden of the impossible mission is Moses.
How can we understand that the man troubled with the impairment of a stutter is the same man charged with talking to one of the most powerful men of the ancient world and persuade him to let his slaves go? It feels counterintuitive to challenge a person imposing an impairment on them and then command them to do exactly what their challenge prevents them to do. Is God playing a cruel joke on Moses? Or is there an ulterior motive? Our sages teach us that we encounter challenges because we have the tools needed to overcome them. As we know, Moses was able to overcome his stutter, talk to Pharaoh and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. Let´s explore how he did it.
In addition to the challenge, Moses was also blessed with one amazing gift, his faith. It is this faith that allowed him to find in himself and develop the strength to face Pharaoh. How can we understand the idea of faith? The Hebrew word for faith is emunah, defined as an innate conviction and a perception of truth that is not based on reason. The words emunah and amen share the same root word aman, which can be translated as “belief”, “faith”, “trust”. Emunah expresses the faith and trust in something and amen, meaning “may it be so”, expresses our conviction and desire that the world would be as we pray. Our sages link emunah to a profound trust on HaShem, and the idea of God´s love for us relates to the image of a loving parent devoted to their children´s growth and presenting them with the obstacles they are equipped to overcome.
Moses showed us his immense faith in God by facing his challenge and continuing with his duty despite the setbacks. Moses was told that HaShem would harden Pharaoh´s heart and instead of feeling discouraged by the roadblock, his emunah pushed him to persevere. Moses´ actions teach us how to face adversity: instead of choosing to give up, we are encouraged to choose trusting God´s will and keep pushing forward, knowing that at the same time that we were presented with the stumbling blocks, we were blessed with the gifts that arm us with the tools to prevail. Just as the light of a candle shines brighter at night, faith grows stronger when confronting challenges. The image of a frustrated Moses leaving Pharaoh´s palace, discouraged facing the immense task ahead of him is not the same as Michelangelo´s statue, but that frustration contains the seed of the strength that will develop later.
In a world pressed for immediate outcomes, the teaching of emunah gives us the patience to be like a gardener who nurtures the seed hidden in the challenge until it blossoms into the virtues achieved by overcoming the barriers and conquering our true self. May it be so.
Nonetheless, the first description we encounter of Moses in Vaera, this week´s parasha, is absolutely different, almost the opposite. When he is commanded to go to Pharaoh and ask him to let the Israelites go, Moses is depicted in a very different way. The main trait that characterizes the man tasked to talk to Pharaoh and convince him to allow the Israelites to leave Egypt is his stutter, a major obstacle in verbal communication. Even though Aaron, his brother, is there as Moses´s support and speaker, the one carrying the burden of the impossible mission is Moses.
How can we understand that the man troubled with the impairment of a stutter is the same man charged with talking to one of the most powerful men of the ancient world and persuade him to let his slaves go? It feels counterintuitive to challenge a person imposing an impairment on them and then command them to do exactly what their challenge prevents them to do. Is God playing a cruel joke on Moses? Or is there an ulterior motive? Our sages teach us that we encounter challenges because we have the tools needed to overcome them. As we know, Moses was able to overcome his stutter, talk to Pharaoh and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. Let´s explore how he did it.
In addition to the challenge, Moses was also blessed with one amazing gift, his faith. It is this faith that allowed him to find in himself and develop the strength to face Pharaoh. How can we understand the idea of faith? The Hebrew word for faith is emunah, defined as an innate conviction and a perception of truth that is not based on reason. The words emunah and amen share the same root word aman, which can be translated as “belief”, “faith”, “trust”. Emunah expresses the faith and trust in something and amen, meaning “may it be so”, expresses our conviction and desire that the world would be as we pray. Our sages link emunah to a profound trust on HaShem, and the idea of God´s love for us relates to the image of a loving parent devoted to their children´s growth and presenting them with the obstacles they are equipped to overcome.
Moses showed us his immense faith in God by facing his challenge and continuing with his duty despite the setbacks. Moses was told that HaShem would harden Pharaoh´s heart and instead of feeling discouraged by the roadblock, his emunah pushed him to persevere. Moses´ actions teach us how to face adversity: instead of choosing to give up, we are encouraged to choose trusting God´s will and keep pushing forward, knowing that at the same time that we were presented with the stumbling blocks, we were blessed with the gifts that arm us with the tools to prevail. Just as the light of a candle shines brighter at night, faith grows stronger when confronting challenges. The image of a frustrated Moses leaving Pharaoh´s palace, discouraged facing the immense task ahead of him is not the same as Michelangelo´s statue, but that frustration contains the seed of the strength that will develop later.
In a world pressed for immediate outcomes, the teaching of emunah gives us the patience to be like a gardener who nurtures the seed hidden in the challenge until it blossoms into the virtues achieved by overcoming the barriers and conquering our true self. May it be so.