A hard-of-hearing people
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Rabbi Gustavo Surazski
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It's true that Moses had severe speech difficulties, but there was an additional problem in Egypt. The real problem wasn't that Moses couldn't speak well. The real problem was that that the people of Israel didn't want to listen.
To leave Egypt??
The G-d of our fathers?
Who are you, Moses?
Moses was right. Those slaves were never convinced that it was preferable to be free men in a desert than to be the slaves of the pharaoh in the most important empire in the world. Already at the beginning of their journey in the desert , the first feelings of regret appeared, because at times there are people who see freedom as a real threat.
Some time ago I read about a new immigrant from the former Soviet Union who wanted to buy a pair of shoes in Natanya. She was very confused. She entered a store where there were twenty different kinds of shoes. What should she do? In the Soviet Union it had been easier. When she wanted to buy shoes, she bought the only model that was available.
To become a free person is a serious challenge. It break's a person's routine. It changes one's life completely. Moses began to understand that his brethren would have preferred to remain stuck in the past with the illusion of the fleshpots, rather than face the challenges that accompanied freedom.
There is a story about Rabbi Nahum of Chernobyl who once came to an inn and decided to spend the night there. When it was time for the evening prayer, maariv, the landlord, a simple Jew, saw the Rabbi praying with great concentration and reverence.
The Jew, who scarcely knew how to read, asked him, "Rabbi, what are you doing?"
"I am praying that with the help of God we will soon see the end of our exile, that the Messiah will come soon in our time and we will all be able to go to the Holy Land, the land of Israel."
The landlord was in shock. He went upstairs and told his wife.
"My dear, do you know that the Rabbi who arrived today just prayed for the end of our exile? Soon the Mashiach will come and take us all to the Holy Land, the land of Israel."
"The end of exile?! The Mashiach? The land of Israel?" said his wife. "Have you thought what we will do with our cows if the Mashiach comes tomorrow? And what will we do with the horses? And what about our inn?"
Again the man was in shock. He went downstairs to Rabbi Nahum and asked him, "Tell me…If the Mashiach comes and we go to the land of Israel, what will we do with our cows? And what will we do with the horses? And what about our inn?"
"Is that what you're worried about?" asked Rabbi Nahum. "Tell me: when the Cossacks come and chase you down the streets of the shtetl, do you like it? Don't you understand what I'm telling you? When the Mashaich comes, there will be no more Cossacks. We will all go to the land of Israel."
Again the landlord went upstairs and told his wife, "My dear, Rabbi Nahum is right. When the Mashiach comes, that's it! No more Cossacks! We will all go to the land of Israel!"
His wife looked at him and said, "I understand. But you go downstairs and tell this Rabbi Nahum that tomorrow too he can pray for the coming of the Mashiach, but ask him to tell the Mashiach to take the Cossacks with him to the Holy Land and leave us here in the shtetl with the cows, the horses and the inn."
Not everyone sees the coming redemption as a blessing.
The real problem was not that Moses couldn't speak well. The real problem was that the people of Israel didn't want to hear him.
It's true that Moses had severe speech difficulties, but there was an additional problem in Egypt. The real problem wasn't that Moses couldn't speak well. The real problem was that that the people of Israel didn't want to listen.
To leave Egypt??
The G-d of our fathers?
Who are you, Moses?
Moses was right. Those slaves were never convinced that it was preferable to be free men in a desert than to be the slaves of the pharaoh in the most important empire in the world. Already at the beginning of their journey in the desert , the first feelings of regret appeared, because at times there are people who see freedom as a real threat.
Some time ago I read about a new immigrant from the former Soviet Union who wanted to buy a pair of shoes in Natanya. She was very confused. She entered a store where there were twenty different kinds of shoes. What should she do? In the Soviet Union it had been easier. When she wanted to buy shoes, she bought the only model that was available.
To become a free person is a serious challenge. It break's a person's routine. It changes one's life completely. Moses began to understand that his brethren would have preferred to remain stuck in the past with the illusion of the fleshpots, rather than face the challenges that accompanied freedom.
There is a story about Rabbi Nahum of Chernobyl who once came to an inn and decided to spend the night there. When it was time for the evening prayer, maariv, the landlord, a simple Jew, saw the Rabbi praying with great concentration and reverence.
The Jew, who scarcely knew how to read, asked him, "Rabbi, what are you doing?"
"I am praying that with the help of God we will soon see the end of our exile, that the Messiah will come soon in our time and we will all be able to go to the Holy Land, the land of Israel."
The landlord was in shock. He went upstairs and told his wife.
"My dear, do you know that the Rabbi who arrived today just prayed for the end of our exile? Soon the Mashiach will come and take us all to the Holy Land, the land of Israel."
"The end of exile?! The Mashiach? The land of Israel?" said his wife. "Have you thought what we will do with our cows if the Mashiach comes tomorrow? And what will we do with the horses? And what about our inn?"
Again the man was in shock. He went downstairs to Rabbi Nahum and asked him, "Tell me…If the Mashiach comes and we go to the land of Israel, what will we do with our cows? And what will we do with the horses? And what about our inn?"
"Is that what you're worried about?" asked Rabbi Nahum. "Tell me: when the Cossacks come and chase you down the streets of the shtetl, do you like it? Don't you understand what I'm telling you? When the Mashaich comes, there will be no more Cossacks. We will all go to the land of Israel."
Again the landlord went upstairs and told his wife, "My dear, Rabbi Nahum is right. When the Mashiach comes, that's it! No more Cossacks! We will all go to the land of Israel!"
His wife looked at him and said, "I understand. But you go downstairs and tell this Rabbi Nahum that tomorrow too he can pray for the coming of the Mashiach, but ask him to tell the Mashiach to take the Cossacks with him to the Holy Land and leave us here in the shtetl with the cows, the horses and the inn."
Not everyone sees the coming redemption as a blessing.
The real problem was not that Moses couldn't speak well. The real problem was that the people of Israel didn't want to hear him.
