Collective Punishment?

Bo

Ex. 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 a repetition of the laws regarding Passover.

Ex. 11:4-5 “Moses said, ‘Thus says the Lord: Toward midnight I will go forth among the Egyptians, and every first born in the land of Egypt shall die, from the first-born of Pharaoh who sits upon his thrown to the first born of the slave girl who is behind the millstones…’”

     Adina Gerver raises the issue of collective punishment in connection with these verses (MyJewishLearning.com, 1/20/15), noting that they force us to face up to the concept of collective punishment. It was Pharaoh who kept the Israelites enslaved, not all of the entire Egyptian population. As Abraham might have argued (but Moses didn’t!), were there not even 10 “good people” in all of Egypt? This collective punishment seems deeply unjust to us. 

     One may argue, however, that this collective punishment is intended to teach us that we have a collective responsibility to seek justice and to free the oppressed. At a time when immigrants are desperately seeking an escape from horrible warfare, does this not suggest that all free people have a responsibility to help them?

     On the other hand, one can reasonably claim that I am not responsible for the actions of others, nor for the terrible repercussions that arise from someone else’s evil acts. Am I responsible for the barrel bombs in Syria, or the terror in Africa, or the lawlessness of Palestinian attacks on civilians? Am I, or is America, responsible for shouldering the global burden for all that is wrong in the world? Such a role is impossible.

     As we know all too well, Israel today is castigated for its so-called "collective punishment" of Palestinians in the West Bank and in Gaza, when the "innocent civilians" in those territories are subjected to travel limitations, enhanced security requirements, and are harmed during armed conflict. How can that be squared with our understanding of what is right and just?

     The answer for Israel and for America as well is that silence in the face of these atrocities abets future atrocities. Here, we come full circle to this week’s parasha. Where is the outrage of the “good” Egyptians? Their silence damned them all. Where is the outrage of the "good Palestinians" in a society which glorifies suicide bombers? Their silence may not damn them all, but it certainly does not excuse them at all.

     The lesson: to be silent in the face of evil is to be implicated in the evil itself. It is the responsibility of each one of us to speak out and to call for action against injustice, wherever it may be taking place. Our voices may be small, and the effort may seem pointless, but we cannot ignore our responsibility to cry out against the evil we see around us, and take action whenever and wherever we can.

Snakes and Serpents

Va’era

Exodus 6:2 - 9:35

Précis: In this second parasha in the book of Exodus, God reiterates His intention to free the Israelites from bondage and to create a covenant with them. Moses goes back to Pharaoh to seek release of the Israelites. Pharaoh refuses and we see the first seven of the fabled plagues: blood, frogs, fleas, beetles, cattle disease, boils, and hail. Pharaoh relents after each plague begins, deciding to let the people go, but then God “hardens Pharaoh’s heart” and he refuses to allow them to leave.

Ex. 7:8-9 “The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ‘When Pharaoh speaks to you and says, 'Produce your marvel,' you shall say to Aaron, ‘Take your rod and cast it down before Pharaoh.’”

         Yossi Ziffer, in MyJewishlearning.com (1/12/15) makes note of the fact that Moshe and Aaron must convince Pharaoh to let the Israelites go, while at the same time, convince the Israelites to accept them as leaders and messengers from God. How they go about this dual-track process shows how the message to each are different.

            Last week, the process of negotiation with Pharaoh and with the Israelites began, and it continues this week. In both cases, miracles and signs are required. If we look at those miracles, they offer a clue to the different approach Moshe and Aaron takes with Pharaoh and with the Israelites.

            Last week, Moshe tells God that the Israelites will not believe him. God gives Moshe several “signs” (miracles) designed to prove to the Israelites that Moshe is the real thing. Moses is to toss his staff on the ground, where it becomes a snake (in Hebrew, "nachash"); when he reaches for the snake’s tail, it becomes a staff once again.

            This week, Aaron tries the snake miracle before Pharaoh and throws down his staff, which turns into a serpent (tanin). Pharaoh’s servants toss their staffs down, which also turn into serpents. Aaron’s serpent eats those of the Egyptians.

            We see similar miracles with subtle differences. For the Israelites, Moses' staff turns into a snake (nachash), while for the Egyptians, Aaron's staff turns into a serpent (in Hebrew, "tanin"). What does this difference signify?

            For insight, we can review the earliest parts of Genesis, where we find snakes and serpents in the two distinct accounts of creation. The first chapter of Genesis focuses on God as the universal Creator. On the 5^th day, God decides (Gen 1:21) to create living creatures, including  the great taninim (serpents), the forbearer of Aaron’s staff .

            In Genesis Chapter 2, most of the Creation story relates to the creation of man and woman, and their eventual downfall as a result of the snake (nachash), the ancestor of Moses’ staff. So how does this help with our question about the differences between Moshe’s and Aaron’s staffs?

            It may be that the symbols show the different messages Moshe and Aaron were transmitting. To Pharaoh,  who did not recognize God's rule over the world, Aaron uses the imagery of Genesis Chapter 1, where God's as Cosmic Creator is stressed. On the other hand, Moshe focuses on the God of Genesis Chapter 2 who is an intimate, caring God. And even though Adam and Eve were expelled from Eden because of the “nachash” Moshe shows the Israelites that, by his converting it back to a staff, the way is open for the Israelites to return to an intimate, personal relationship with God.

            This comparison of the snake/serpent miracles also shows us the purpose of the Exodus: The Israelites were not merely freed from Egyptian slavery; they were liberated so that they could enter into a close relationship, or covenant, with God at Sinai.

            Sometimes a word or two can make a major difference in our understanding of stories which we have ready many, many times. This is just one such example.