Prayer for Healing?

This week's d'var comes out a bit early, since we're off away for a couple of days. 

B'shalach

Exodus 13:17-17:16

Précis: And when Pharaoh “had let them go” (b’shalach), the story of the Exodus from Egypt is almost concluded. Carrying with them the bones of Joseph and the “spoils of Egypt,” Moses leads the Israelites by way of the Red (or Reed) Sea. They cross the sea ahead of Pharaoh’s pursuing army, which subsequently drowns in the returning waters. Moses sings his triumphant Song of the Sea, and Miriam’s song of joy follows. The Israelites begin to murmur against Moses and Aaron because of a lack of food and water. God provides heavenly “manna” to eat and provides water as well. The Shabbat is introduced as a day of rest, even before it appears in the Ten Commandments. In their first battle, with Amalek, the Israelites are successful as long as Moses’ hands remain in the air, and with the help of Aaron and Joshua (who support Moses’ arms), they prevail.

Ex. 15:26 "If you will heed the Eternal your God diligently, doing what is upright in God's sight, giving ear to God's commandments and keeping all God's laws, then I will not bring upon you any of the diseases that I brought upon the Egyptians, for I the Eternal am your healer"

 All of us experience illness in ourselves, among family members, and among our friends. The recitation of the “misheberach” prayer in many congregations (often using Debbie Friedman’s haunting melody) is, for many, a deeply moving part of the Shabbat morning service. But do we really believe in a God who heals us? Lucy H. F. Dinner states (10 Minutes of Torah 1/20/12) , “Jews have been seeking answers to this question for millennia.” She notes that this verse is found immediately after verses in which the Israelites complain about bitter water (Ex.15:23−4). How does this context help us understand the concept of God as healer? Ibn Ezra has suggested that the verse is “a promise.” Just as God healed the bitter water, he can heal you. On the other hand, Nachmanides views the verse as warning, that we will escape the plagues of life only if we follow God’s path.

Personally, I am at a loss intellectually to come to grips with the concept of God as a healer, or of the efficacy of prayers seeking a restoration of health. I can accept the idea that personal prayer can help restore oneself to health, since we know that one’s attitude towards many illnesses plays at least some part in the healing process. I have very little “faith” that my prayers on behalf of another have any real impact on that person’s recovery. 

I  admit that on an emotional level, I am moved by the misheberach prayer recited for others, even if my rational mind tells me that the prayer will not really help that individual get better. And, when one prays for another’s health, one is reminded of the need to be kind, to comfort, and to help sustain that person by actions.

Labor and Leisure

Bo

Exodus 10:1-13:16

Précis: God sends the 8^th and 9^th plagues, locusts and darkness and alerts Moses that the 10^th and final plague will follow. God instructs Moses on the institution of the Passover. Then, the final plague, the death of all of the first born, is wrecked on Egypt. The Israelites, accompanied by the “mixed multitudes,” leave Egypt, carrying with them the “spoils of Egypt” given to them by the Egyptians. The parasha ends with another recitation of the laws regarding Passover.

Ex. 12:11: “This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it quickly.”

            Rabbi Joshua Heller, writing in the JTS Chancellor’s weekly d’var torah (1/31/04) notes that the evening before Passover, which we read about in this week’s parasha, reveals a very interesting insight about labor and leisure. On the night of the seder, even the poorest reclines as he eats, a sign of wealth and leisure. But we also eat Matzah, the “bread of affliction,” a sign of poverty if ever there was one!

            In this verse the Israelites are commanded to feast while a holocaust against the first born of Egypt is in process. The Hebrew word translated as “quickly”  (“b'hipazon”) can also mean “in distress” or even in a panicked haste. This is a case of severely mixed signals: feasting during a time of death, living luxuriously but fearfully.

            This tension between labor and leisure remains an issue of great importance in our modern world. The United States may be the most powerful and richest nation in human history, but it increasingly appears that we attain our leisure only through hipazon. While we may finish everything at the leisurely seder, for many of us during the rest of the year dinner is all too often eating leftovers instead of a family dinner.

            We live in a time of economic uncertainty. The effort to support a family a generation or two ago now requires the labor or two (or more!) wage earners. In addition, as Rabbi Heller notes, a key characteristic of a slave (eved) is that he is always available for the work of his master. How true this is for so many of us today, who are summoned by email and text messages on a 24/7 basis by their employers. And finally, college graduates are today burdened with huge debt, with expectations of lower earnings and perhaps a lower standard of living than their parents.

            One message of the seder’s dichotomy is that  while we may be surrounded by signs of physical comfort, we can still be enslaved. As Rabbi Heller concludes, “Slavery is living one's life in hipazon, in a hurry, in concern, even though one might be living well, surrounded by the financial spoils of Egypt.”

            How we can live lives with less uncertainty and with more confidence should be an important issue to consider in the months leading up to our own seders.