Torah This Week
Welcome to Torah This Week, where you will find thoughts and reflections by CLAL faculty and associates on the Torah portion of the week.
PARASHAT MISHPATIM
(Exodus 21:1 - 24:18)
The first law enumerated in this parsha deals with the treatment of Hebrew slaves, presupposing that slavery will exist among the Israelites. How could a people newly freed from slavery, fully aware of its horrors, contemplate creating a society in which they would enslave each other? How could God, proclaimed at Mount Sinai as the one "who brought you out of the Land of Egypt, the house of bondage" (Exodus 20:2), condone slavery? Have the Israelites learned nothing from their experience in Egypt?
This law is one of many illustrating the compromises required when transforming a people's mentality and lifestyle. The Torah could have set guidelines for a utopian society, but the Israelites could never have realized them. The Torah recognizes human limitations and sets goals accordingly. Becoming a holy people is a gradual process. Unreasonable demands lead to great disappointments.
The Torah admits that Israelite society will be imperfect. All Israelites will serve God, but some will serve humans as well. At the same time, slavery will be restricted; the degradation experienced in Egypt will be avoided. In Egypt, enslavement was lifelong. Now, it would be restricted to six years. In Egypt, children were torn from their parents. Now, family bonds would be recognized and honored. In Egypt, slaves were given no respite. Now, slaves and masters together would rest on Shabbat.
We are partners with God in repairing the world. Often, the challenges facing us seem insurmountable. We are overwhelmed by the suffering around us. We doubt our ability to effect change. The Torah reminds us that we cannot transform the world overnight; even God cannot work such a transformation. We must be content with gradual change, with improving the world step by step. These small steps are achievable, and each one, however small, brings us closer to our goal.
(Dvora Weisberg)
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