Whenever I return home from work or
when I return home from having been at shul all day on Shabbat; there is always
a moment of trepidation. Will I walk into a tidy and neat home or will I walk
into a chaotic mess. Sometimes my
children will casually warn me not to go into their rooms and that they will
clean their rooms in a little while. I
know there is a mess in their room. I just don’t know how big of a mess. I go upstairs to my room, and on the way, since
I can’t help myself; I peek into their room. What I see is unbelievable,
impossible and mind boggling. It’s not just a mess. I know what a mess is; a “mess” would already suggest
a state of tidiness. No, this is NOT a mess; this is as if Hurricane Katrina
blew through. Their rooms look like the Delta House from the movie “Animal
House”. From deep inside my gut I can
feel my frustration growing. I mean they actually have to work hard to get
their bedrooms this disgusting. I yell their names and tell them to get
upstairs right away and start cleaning up.
There are no excuses, nor explanations that can pacify my
frustration. I wonder how their
description could have been so inaccurate, as I realize that my frustration has
more to do with that inaccuracy as opposed to the actual mess in their room.
This week
we read from Parsha Ki Tissa. A census of the population is taken by collecting
a half shekel for each person. God then
designates two men, Betzalel ben Uri from the tribe of Judah and Ahaliav ben
Achisamach from the tribe of Dan to be the Master Builder and Designer to begin
the construction of the Mishkan. God re-iterates the commandment of the Shabbat
and reminds Moshe that anyone who violates it will be put to death and his/her
soul will be cut off from the people.
Bnai Yisroel commits the sin of the Eigel
Zahav (Golden Calf): they built and
then worshipped an idol. God wants to wipe out the people but Moshe urges God
to reconsider. Moshe then descends the mountain and becomes just as upset as
God, and he throws down the Shnei Luchot
HaBrit – the Two Tablets of the Covenant. After a day or two when
calm has been restored, Moshe re-ascends the mountain in order to pray for
national forgiveness. Moshe then has an opportunity to experience another
personal revelation even more powerful than the Burning Bush; Moshe has the
opportunity to witness God’s passing before him. Dictated by God, Moshe chisels
the Aseret Diberot into two new
Tablets. He then goes back down the mountain. This time he descends with light
and glory of God emanating from him.
Among the
less than appealing qualities that Moshe Rabeinu possessed was his temper. Nowhere
was Moshe’s temper more on display than the moment he actually saw Bnai
Yisroel’s behavior around the Egel Zahav (Golden Calf). VaYehi
Ka’Asher Karav El HaMaChaneh - And it
came to pass as he approached the camp VaYar
et HaEigel Um’Cholot, and saw the calf and dancing, VaYiChar Af Moshe VaYashleich MiYaDav et
HaLuChot that Moshe’s anger burned
and he hurled the tablets from his hands VaYashbeir Otam Tachat HaHar –and
shattered them at the foot of the mountain. (32:19). The reality was that
HaShem already told Moshe that Bnai Yisroel Asu Lahem Eigel MaSeicha – had already build for themselves a
molten calf, VaYishtachavu Lo – and they bowed to; VaYizbechu Lo – and they made
sacrifices to it. (32:7-8). So if Moshe had already been told about Bnai
Yisroel’s deplorable behavior, why did Moshe throw the Aseret Dibrot and
shattered them upon the ground? There must have been a discrepancy between what
Hashem told Moshe and the reality that Moshe saw upon his descent from the
mountain. Rav Ovadia Sforno, the great Italian Renaissance commentator explains
that the glaring difference was the fact that Moshe saw Bnai Yisroel
dancing. “He saw that they were reveling
in their iniquity…It was this that aroused Moses’ anger and made him despair of
being able to remedy matters and spur them to repent and become worthy of the
tablets. “ It was not the making of the Golden Calf that led to Moshe’s anger,
Hashem already told Moshe. Rather he was infuriated at their subsequent conduct,
the dancing, and the absence of any remorse on their part. This led Moshe to
despair and ultimately frustration and anger.
The words
that Moshe heard from HaShem did not prepare him from witnessing the subsequent
attitude. Moshe was told that Bnai Yisroel built a golden calf, and they bowed
to it and made offerings to it. These are factual statements. Seeing them dance
before the Golden Calf offered insight into their attitude. My children tell me
their room is a mess while they are watching television. They don’t run
upstairs to try to fix the situation, rather they continue watching television
or playing on their IPod as if their words and plan to clean it up later are
sufficient. The dancing indicated that
Bnai Yisroel didn’t seem to care about their relationship with God. Rather they
were concerned with revelry of the moment. For my children, it seemed that they
didn’t care about their environment nor did they care for their own
belongings. No I didn’t have two tablets
to throw upon the ground in order to get their attention. Instead, the threat
of no television, no computer and no IPod was motivation enough.
Peace,
Rav Yitz
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