Parashat Ki Tisa: What Can We Learn from Parashat Ki Tisa About Israel’s Current War?

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Parashat Ki Tisa
What Can We Learn from Parashat Ki Tisa About Israel’s Current War?

What Does it Mean that Jews are Called “A Stiff-Necked People”?
This week, in Kuzari class, we discussed proof for the authenticity of the Torah. I asked my students to imagine the possibility that Moshe came to his people and told them that 500 years ago everyone in the world spoke only one language – the language of Ever. In one day – when they built the Tower of Babylon – the whole of humanity became separated into different peoples, each one with his own individual language. In the same breath, Moshe spoke in detail about the relationship of each nation with its forefather, whether Shem, Cham, or Yafet. Would the people, known for being stiff-necked, critical, and skeptical, accept such revolutionary claims about human history if they had never heard of them before? I have personally experienced this difference between Jews and gentiles. For example, when a Jew from a secular home decides to embrace a Torah-observant lifestyle, they often encounter strong resistance from family members. Arguments like “Why would G-d care about all these nitty-gritty details of observance?” or “Why are you regressing to a medieval lifestyle?”  have been hurled at many a good ba’al teshuva (newcomer to Judaism) by his or her family. In contrast, I recently interviewed a potential conversion student whose parents, though atheists with no Jewish background, were willing to support her conversion in Israel with a $500 monthly stipend. Even after funding her college education, they wanted to continue supporting her, despite their disagreement with her religious choice. The following day, when I taught Rambam on Character Development, Nutrition, and Health, we discussed how the same trait can be either a gift or a detriment depending on how it is employed. This concept also applies to the notorious Jewish stiff-necked character trait explicitly addressed in Parashat Ki Tisa.

Does Being a Stiff-necked People Justify Divine Withdrawal or Divine Attachment?
Whereas stiff-neckedness is typically seen as a stubborn flaw, the Eish Kodesh offers a different perspective. Following the sin of the Golden Calf, Hashem tells Moshe that He will remove His Shechinah (Divine Presence) from accompanying the Israelites:

ספר שמות פרק לג פסוק ג אֶל אֶרֶץ זָבַת חָלָב וּדְבָשׁ כִּי לֹא אֶעֱלֶה בְּקִרְבְּךָ כִּי עַם קְשֵׁה עֹרֶף אַתָּה פֶּן אֲכֶלְךָ בַּדָּרֶךְ:

“[Go ascend] to a land flowing with milk and honey, for I will not go up in your midst, because you are a stiff-necked people, lest I destroy you on the way” (Shemot 33:3).

Due to their disobedience and stiff-necked worship of the Golden calf, Hashem intends to punish them by withdrawing His Presence from them on their journey to the Promised Land. However, Moshe later uses this same trait as a justification for Hashem’s continued presence: “Let Hashem go in our midst, for they are a stiff-necked people” (Shemot 34:9). How can the same trait justify both divine withdrawal and divine attachment? Hashem declares that because they are stiff-necked, He will not go with them, yet Moshe argues that precisely because they are stiff-necked, they deserve His presence! The answer is that קְשֵׁה עֹרֶף /ke’shei oref – ‘stiff-necked’ can be one of the greatest virtues. Someone who lacks this trait is fickle – easily swayed in different directions. At one moment, he may wish to serve Hashem, and the next moment, he might abandon that commitment. Such a person cannot withstand tests of faith. By contrast, a stiff-necked person – stubborn and strong-willed – is resolute and dependable. Once he makes a firm decision to serve Hashem, we can trust that he remains steadfast when facing trials. Therefore, Moshe Rabbeinu argued that being stiff-necked makes the Israelites worthy of Hashem Himself dwelling among them. However, stubbornness can be destructive when misused. If directed toward negativity – stubbornly clinging to bad behaviors and corrupt character traits – becomes a liability (Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira, Piaseczner Rebbe, Sefer Eish Kodesh, Parashat Noach).

Why is Emigrating to Israel Called: “Making Aliyah”?

Parashat Ki Tisa is most often associated with Moshe’s fervent intercession for the Jewish people for the sin of the Golden Calf.  Yet, interwoven within the Parasha are powerful messages about the holiness of Eretz Yisrael and its role in the divine covenant, as a conduit for spiritual elevation. The unique bond between the Land of Israel and the Jewish people reveals how Eretz Yisrael is not just a physical inheritance but a reflection of divine reality. When a Jew emigrates to the land of Israel, it’s called to make ‘Aliyah.’ Literally, to ascend. The source for this expression may be found in Parasha Ki Tisa:

ספר שמות פרק לג פסוק א

עֲלֵה מִזֶּה אַתָּה וְהָעָם אֲשֶׁר הֶעֱלִיתָ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם אֶל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי לְאַבְרָהָם לְיִצְחָק וּלְיַעֲקֹב לֵאמֹר לְזַרְעֲךָ אֶתְּנֶנָּה:

“Go, ascend from here, you and the people you have brought up from the land of Egypt, to the land that I swore to Avraham, Yitzchak, and Ya’acov, saying: ‘I will give it to your descendants’” (Shemot 33:1). 

Rashi, citing Babylonian Talmud, Zevarim 54b) notes that the land of Israel is higher than all [other] lands. That is why it says, ‘ascend.’ This concept of ascending to the Land of Israel is not limited to typography. Rather, it alludes to the spiritual heights that can be attained in the Land of Israel. The Torah is replete with references to how the Land of Israel is intrinsically connected to the Shechinah, the Divine Presence. See for example, “You shall not defile the land where you reside, in which I dwell, for I am the Hashem Who dwells among the children of Israel (Bamidbar 35:34). Eretz Yisrael’s very identity is as a dwelling place for Hashem’s Presence. Thus, the absence of the Shechinah would not simply mean a lessened experience – it would undermine the very essence of the land. “…This is why Eretz Yisrael is called אֶרֶץ הַחַיִּים – the Land of the living. One who emigrates to Israel is called an עוֹלֶה/Oleh – ‘one who ascends,’ and one who leaves the Land is called a יוֹרֵד/Yored – ‘one who descends,’ just like hell is called She’ol, the underworld, which involves descent (Maharal of Prague, Be’er HaGola 6:13).

Why Would Sending an Angel to Accompany the Israelites be Catastrophic?

At first glance, Shemot 33:1 - 4 appears to focus on the punishment for the Israelites’ sin,  depriving them of direct divine accompaniment. However, we can also read this passage as a revelation of Eretz Yisrael’s true nature: a land inherently linked with the Shechinah. The very essence of the Holy Land is G-d’s Presence within her. Hashem’s statement, “I will not go up in your midst,” (Shemot 33:3) signified a devastating withdrawal of divine intimacy. The Jewish people mourned not just because of a punishment but because they understood that entering the land without divine closeness would be an empty, incomplete experience. The Bat Ayin expands on this idea, explaining that Eretz Yisrael is the only land where divine revelation is fully manifest in the physical world. Just as Shabbat is the spiritual core (nekudah penimit) of the week, so too is Eretz Yisrael the spiritual core of the world. Within Eretz Yisrael, Jerusalem, the Beit Hamikdash, and the Kodesh HaKodashim radiate holiness throughout the land and beyond (Bat Ayin, Parashat Masei). Thus, the land reflects the Shefa Eloki (divine influx) while this revelation is concealed outside the Land. Moshe protested against Hashem’s decision because an intermediary (an angel) would imply a spiritual distance, which is uncharacteristic of the holy Land. “Eretz Yisrael is beloved, for Hashem chose it. When He created the world, He assigned each land to an angelic minister, but He reserved the Land of Israel for Himself…” (Midrash Tanchuma, Parshat Re’eh 8). There are no angelic intermediaries in the Holy Land. Whereas angels are appointed in charge of Chutz LaAretz (Outside of Israel), in the Land of Israel only Hashem is in charge of Eretz Yisrael.

Eretz Yisrael as the Conduit of Redemption

ספר שמות פרק לד פסוק י

וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי כֹּרֵת בְּרִית נֶגֶד כָּל עַמְּךָ… הִנְנִי גֹרֵשׁ מִפָּנֶיךָ אֶת הָאֱמֹרִי וְהַכְּנַעֲנִי וְהַחִתִּי וְהַפְּרִזִּי וְהַחִוִּי וְהַיְבוּסִי:

“Behold, I will form a covenant in the presence of all your people… For I will drive out before you the Emorite, the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite” (Shemot 34:10-11).

This promise is not just about physical conquest – it reflects a metaphysical process. According to Lurianic Kabbalah, Yisrael is the epicenter of tikkun olam (cosmic rectification). The process of elevating divine sparks begins in the Holy Land (See Arizal, Sha’ar Hamitzvot, Parashat Re’eh). The tikkun (rectification) of the world begins in the Holy Land. The expulsion of the seven nations occupying the land is not merely a military event but a necessary step in preparing the land to be a vessel for divine light. Rav Tzvi Yehuda Kook emphasized that every war for the land is a phase in Israel’s redemption. Moshe’s plea for divine presence reminds us that Eretz Yisrael is far more than a physical inheritance – it is the very place where heaven and earth can meet. As we navigate our own journey toward spiritual fulfillment, we look to the Land of Israel as a guiding light, a reminder that our highest purpose is to bring divine consciousness into the world.

Parashat Beshalach: What Can We Learn from the Manna About Bringing About Redemption?

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Parashat Beshalach
What Can We Learn from the Manna About Bringing About Redemption?

What is Our Main Mission that is Amplified During the Month of Shevat?

The main mission of the Jewish people is to rectify the downfall of the first couple, Adam and Chava. The final redemption can only occur when we have completed this calling and become worthy of returning to the spiritual existence in the Garden of Eden, before the fall.  The first step is to rectify our problematic relationship with food which has plagued us ever since eating from the Tree of Knowledge. As we enter the month of Shevat, our work on rectifying eating from the Tree of Knowledge intensifies, with its corresponding challenges. In my experience as soon as we arrive at the month of Shevat, it becomes much more difficult to eat mindfully. I believe that this is because when the rectification is vital for holiness and redemption the sitra atra (opposing forces) muster all their strength to do everything in their power to prevent this rectification. Therefore, holy people from Avraham to King David faced numerous obstacles and enemies. This also explains why throughout the ages “…not only one arose and tried to destroy us, rather in every generation they try to destroy us” (The Pesach Hagaddah). The midrash explains why Avraham is called “the Ivri” (From the other side) because “The entire world is on one side, but he is on the other side” (Midrash Bereishit Rabbah 42:8). This sadly pertains no less to the Jewish people today, for we are also called “Ivrim.” “Returning to our topic about rectified eating, the lust to quickly mumble the blessings and stuff our faces is the “enemy” of holy eating that I often encounter during the month of Shevat. This is because the tikun (rectification) of the Shevat is precisely לְעִיטָה/Le’itah – ‘Eating’ or literally ‘pouring into me,’ for this is the word used by Esav when he expressed the epitome of unholy eating in his desire for “the red, red lentil soup,” exclaiming הַלְעִיטֵנִי/haliteini… (Bereishit 25:30).  Rashi explains, “I will open my mouth, and [you] pour very much into it.” So, during Shevat, more than ever we need to mobilize our self-discipline and strength against the ‘enemies’ of holy eating to focus on the words of the blessings before and after eating, recognizing deeply that Hashem is the source of the food and pleasure we ingest while chewing mindfully and curbing our appetites to eat only the food that is healthy and beneficial for us, as well as only the needed amounts.

Transforming Earthly Food into Manna from Heaven

During the month of Shevat, we read the Torah portion of Parashat Beshalach, most often during the week of Tu b’Shevat. This Torah portion is connected with the tikun and energy of Shevat through its description of the manna – the spiritual food from heaven. Manna, like the fruits of Paradise, was supernal light in physical form that contained no waste and was, therefore, absorbed completely into the body.  It included no mixture of Evil, since only Goodness descends from Heaven (Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin Ruach Chayim on Pirkei Avot, Chapter 3). When we express our recognition that the entire whole world belongs to G-d through our blessings before and after eating, we can transform Earth into Heaven; resembling the World to Come where neither food nor drink exist, and only righteous people enjoy the Divine splendor.  In this world, spiritual food is covered in a physical garment, yet the blessing reveals its inner essence.  By accessing the spiritual life force of food, it will taste whatever flavor we desire, as it states about the spiritual manna that they tasted the flavor of all types of food in the manna (Babylonian Talmud, Yoma 75a). This is in contrast to the personification of physical desire – the snake, who is nourished by physicality and “everything he eats will taste like the dust of the ground” (Bereishit 3:14).  By blessing Hashem for our food, we free ourselves from the curse of the snake and enjoy the Divine life force within the food.  This helps us understand why “The Torah was only given to the generation who ate manna” (Yalkut Shimoni, Chapter 15, allusion 258).  In every generation, the Torah is given to those who purify the food from the snake bite and transform it into manna. Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi, one of the richest men who ever lived, never took any pleasure from this world.  Although he had a table of kings, his awareness of G-d as the source of all his abundance turned his worldly pleasure into Divine pleasure, transforming earthly food into manna from Heaven.  Because Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi elevated his food into manna, he was given the ability to compile the Mishna (The main body of the Oral Torah).

How do we Extract Divine Sparks from Human-Produced Food?

The 15^th of Shevat bespeaks the praise of the Land of Israel, for on this day the strength of the soil of the Land is renewed. The land of Israel is praised for its fruits and therefore on Tu b’Shevat, we praise Hashem for the delicious fruits He makes grow in our Land of Israel. By blessing the fruits during the Tu b’Shevat Seder we can raise up our relationship with food and transform our eating into the words of Torah. According to Pri Tzaddik, each fruit includes a part of both the Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life – its antidote. It is the way we partake in the fruits that determines whether we are going to continue the sin of Adam and Chava by eating the Fruit of Knowledge or whether we will be able to relate to the fruits the way of a Tzaddik and then take each bite from the Tree of Life. Although the manna was heavenly food connected to the Tree of Life, and we may long for the time when we were fed directly by the hand of Hashem, it was not ideal.  Looking back at our days in the desert reminds us of the true Source of our sustenance, yet the goal is to come to the Land of Israel and work its soil. Our mission is to transform the Earth into Heaven by extracting divine sparks from human-produced food. This way we demonstrate how to serve G-d and reveal Him from within the material – from the very soil of the Land of Israel. Although growing our own food wherever we live is important, nothing compares to what grows in the Holy Land, upon which Hashem’s light shines directly. This is why the Torah emphasizes that Hashem fed us Manna until we could eat from the crop of the Land of Israel, to ensure that the transition from the holy food of heaven to the holy food of the land.

Why did the Israelites Eat Manna Only Until They Entered the Land of Israel?

ספר שמות פרק טז פסוק לה

וּבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אָכְלוּ אֶת הַמָּן אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה עַד בֹּאָם אֶל אֶרֶץ נוֹשָׁבֶת אֶת הַמָּן אָכְלוּ עַד בֹּאָם אֶל קְצֵה אֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן:

“The children of Israel ate the manna for forty years until they came to an inhabited land. They ate the manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan” (Shemot 16:35).

The manna stopped falling on the 7^th of Adar, when Moshe passed over, (when they came to the settled land) but the manna lasted in their vessels for 40 days until the 16^th of Nissan, when they came to the land of Canaan. Rav Kook explains that the food in the Land of Israel is holy in its inner essence and only physical in its exterior. However, we need to be careful with the food from outside Israel. Only through the yearning for the land of Israel can the food outside of Israel be raised up as well. When we recite Shir Ha’ma’alot (on Shabbat) and Al Naharot Bavel (on weekdays) before Grace after Meals. We express our yearning for redemption through these particular Tehillim in conjunction with blessing Hashem for our sustenance. Expressing our yearning for the land of Israel when concluding our meal comes to refine the food that is not from Israel and make it close to the level of food from the Land of Israel. This is important even for those of us who have the merit to live in the Land of Israel, due to the decrease of holiness caused by the destruction of the Temple, which caused even the food in the Land of Israel to become less heavenly (Rav Kook, Orot Hakodesh part 3, The Holy Way, page. 295). Since I learned this, I have always been careful to recite Shir Hama’alot before Grace after Meals, with the intention to elevate my physical food to resemble the spiritual manna.

Turning Eating from the Tree of Knowledge into Eating from the Tree of Life

Eating from the Tree is rooted in all generations, and it will only be completely corrected when  Mashiach the son of David arrives. Therefore, the manna only descended until they came to the border of the land of Canaan. For it is known the land of Israel is Malchut, which is the attribute of King David and King Shlomo. The king is the source of the abundance of all kinds of delicacies connected to this world. Similarly, Eretz Yisrael was praised with all kinds of delicacies, yet these delicacies embody the spiritual aspect of Eretz Yisrael – the Holy Land. Her fruits are all in holiness, and when we partake in them, they imbue us with the recognition that they derive from the Creator. During all the 42 stations of our forty years of wilderness wandering, the words of Torah were absorbed by the Israelites each station brought us to a higher divine awareness. When we arrived at the forty-second station, even the physical desire for food – the utmost craving – entered into the highest holiness. This alludes to the future rectification when the Creator will reveal the hidden light to us (Rav Tzaddok of Lublin, Sefer Dover Tzeddek, Parashat Acharei Mot Letter 4). Just as the Israelites ate manna as a preparation for entering the land of Israel, in the future during the time of Mashiach we will once again eat the manna of the Face-to-Face unification with Hashem. Then the manna will truly rain down from the Tree of Life! (Heichal Habracha, Parashat Beshalach). May we merit mindful eating in holiness to turn our eating from the Tree of Knowledge into eating from the Tree of Life, so we can speed up the final redemption with the coming of Mashiach!

Parashat Bo: How Does Taking Gold from the Egyptian Exile Bring About Redemption?

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Parashat Bo
How Does Taking Gold from the Egyptian Exile Bring About Redemption?

How Does Filtering the Values from Our Exile Speed Up the Redemption Process?

While I wish to have been born a Sabra, I acknowledge that I brought with me to Israel many important virtues from the land of my birth. Although Avraham was told to leave his country, birthplace, and father’s house behind, I believe he was to extract the good points he had received from there and bring them to the Land of Israel. Apparently, filtering is a great part of my life’s mission. That is to take what you have learned from the general world and sift it through a Torah sifter. For example, cleanliness is a value I take with me from the country of my birth and my parents’ home. Cleanliness is one of the ten virtues mentioned in the Talmud (Avodah Zarah 20b) quoted in the Path of the Upright by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto. It is a mitzvah to clean our home in honor of Shabbat, and when we live in an organized and clean environment, we can work more efficiently in serving Hashem. Where I grew up the Privet hedge was always trimmed to the T, the garbage was never overflowing, and you wouldn’t find even one cigarette stub on the ground. The grass seemed perpetually green and freshly mowed, the flowerbeds were weeded, and the fringes of the carpets were combed. Perhaps you can imagine the rest. The great mindfulness of the details of taking care of things, cleaning up as we go, and keeping our home and environment together is a birthright that I bring with me from Europe to the Middle Eastern melting pot of muddled cultures. However, when orderliness and cleanliness (or anything else) become a value for its own sake, it misses the mark. If a mother is so obsessed with tidying the mess that she will yell mercilessly at her kids; and is too preoccupied with spotlessness to spend quality time with them, then cleanliness becomes a detriment to the Torah way of life. Therefore, I have filtered the aspiration to maintain the kind of impeccable home I grew up in. I have perhaps preserved about 70-80% to allow other more internal values to override the endeavor for cleanliness when needed. Based on my experience and the Torah I have learned, the main reasons why the Jewish people had to be scattered in exile throughout the four corners of the earth is to redeem the good sparks of truth from all these places and return them to the Holy Land. We are now at the culmination point of this long-winded process. The more sparks of exile we receive, the sooner complete redemption will occur.

How do We Redeem the Sparks Entrapped Within All Reality?

There are seventy aspects (literally faces) of the Torah (Midrash Bamidbar Rabbah 13:15), each correspond to the good points of one of the seventy nations. When it states that “The people of Israel were exiled amongst the nations only so that converts might be added to them” (Babylonian Talmud, Pesachim 87b), it refers to more than actual converts. On the simple level, this dictum does refer to the many non-Jews – who, through coming in contact with the Jewish people dispersed in various exiles – have been inspired to convert to Judaism. However, according to the inner dimensions of the Torah, the Talmud also refers to the sparks of holiness contained within the physical creation. They too can be considered different types of soul-sparks that are transformed and elevated through our exiles: As the Arizal teaches, every object, force, and phenomenon in existence has a spark of Divine holiness within it that constitutes its spiritual essence and soul (See for example Sefer Etz Chayim 26, Chapter 1 42, Sefer Halikutim Chapter 36). Just as we can only stay alive as long as our soul is infused within our body, without the Divine spark keeping anything in the physical world alive nothing would be able to exist. Yet not everything in existence is in line with the Torah or beneficial to the world. This is because the Divine spark is encased in a coarse husk concealing its light. To reveal the light, we must extract the sparks from their captivity. So how do you redeem the sparks entrapped within all reality? When we employ an item or even a certain mode of operation in the service of Hashem, we crack open its material shell, revealing and actualizing its Divine essence. Hashem dispersed us across the face of earth, so that we may come in contact with the sparks of holiness that await redemption. We all have our personal scattered sparks that are slivers of our greater selves. Only when we have redeemed all the sparks specifically related to our souls can we reach our completion.  This explains why people may be guided to move from place to place, job to job, coming across various people and possessions. While it may seem random, it is by Divine Supervision to allow us to light upon things intimately connected with our soul mission (Based on the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Meaningfullife.com). Now in the new month of Shevat, we are especially called upon to elevate the sparks in food by infusing our before and after-bracha with mindful intention.

What Does Elevating Sparks Have to Do with Parashat Bo?  

ספר שמות פרק יא פסוק א וַיֹּאמֶר הַשֵׁם אֶל משֶׁה עוֹד נֶגַע אֶחָד אָבִיא עַל פַּרְעֹה וְעַל מִצְרַיִם אַחֲרֵי כֵן יְשַׁלַּח אֶתְכֶם מִזֶּה כְּשַׁלְּחוֹ כָּלָה גָּרֵשׁ יְגָרֵשׁ אֶתְכֶם מִזֶּה: (ב) דַּבֶּר נָא בְּאָזְנֵי הָעָם וְיִשְׁאֲלוּ אִישׁ מֵאֵת רֵעֵהוּ וְאִשָּׁה מֵאֵת רְעוּתָהּ כְּלֵי כֶסֶף וּכְלֵי זָהָב:

“Then G-d said to Moshe, One more plague shall I bring upon Pharaoh and Egypt - thereafter he shall banish you from here; when he lets you go he will banish you completely from here. Speak then, please, in the ears of the people, and let each person ask of his neighbor, and each woman of her neighbor, vessels of silver and vessels of gold” (Shemot 11:1-2)

Rashi explains that the word נָא/na – ‘please’ always implies a request. G-d requests “Please give them this message, so that the righteous Avraham will not have grounds to claim that I did not keep My promise of “thereafter they will leave with great possessions.’” Yet, for the Israelites leaving Egypt was a great traumatic struggle both physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Amassing gold and silver would deter and delay the Exodus and even endanger them to fall into the fiftieth gate of impurity from which there is no escape. Wouldn’t Avraham Avinu prefer that his descendants escape the iron furnace of Egypt in the quickest, safest way rather than having to be deterred by gathering gold and silver?  The Talmud gives us a clue about the importance of the Children of Israel leaving Egypt with valuables. Rabbi Yossi ben Hanina said, “Why is it written: ‘I will remove his blood from his mouth, and his detestable things from between his teeth. This, too, shall remain to our G-d…’ (Zechariah 9:7). ‘And I shall remove his blood from his mouth’ - this refers to their house of worship of Karia (an Edomite idol); ‘and his abominations from between his teeth’ - this refers to their house of worship of Bamia (another Edomite idol). ‘This too shall remain to our G-d’ - these are the synagogues and study halls of Edom, in which the princes of Yehuda are destined to study Torah publicly” (Babylonian Talmud, Megillah 6a). The understanding of the Talmud is that not only are the princess of Yehuda to study Torah in what used to be temples for idol-worship, but they are also destined to extract the holy sparks even from the idol-worshipping gentiles which “shall remain to G-d.”  In the same vein, Moshe tells Pharaoh “You too shall give sacrifices and burnt offerings into our hands, and we will make them for Hashem our G-d” (Shemot 10:25). We shall take the Pesach sacrifice from that which is good in Egypt (Arizal, Etz Hada’at Tov, Parashat Bo); (Based on Removing the Sparks from Egypt, Harav Yehuda Amital zt"l, Summarized by Rav Yosef Zvi Rimon).

To Take or Not to Take the Gold of the Nations?

ספר שמות פרק יב פסוק לה וּבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל עָשׂוּ כִּדְבַר משֶׁה וַיִּשְׁאֲלוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם כְּלֵי כֶסֶף וּכְלֵי זָהָב וּשְׂמָלֹת:

 “The children of Israel did according to Moshes’ order, and they borrowed from the Egyptians silver objects, golden objects, and garments” (Shemot 12:35).

In the above verse, the children of Israel carried out the word of Moshe (Shemot 11:2), by requesting silver, gold, and garments from the Egyptians. The transfer of a significant portion of Egypt’s wealth to Israel had both material and spiritual importance. Besides being material payment for centuries of slave labor, Israel also had to extract the spiritual sparks of Egyptian culture and civilization. These sparks would be needed later for the Jewish establishment in the Land of Israel. Some of the gold Israel took from Egypt would later be used to construct the Mishkan while some of it would be used for the Golden Calf. It is not simple to sift through outside cultures or values in a way that we only pick the fruit while discarding the peel, which isn’t beneficial for us. The existential question of what gold from exile we bring with us and incorporate into the Land of Israel and what gold we discard remains for each of us to contemplate and determine. We must make deep Emunah the measuring stock of this filtration process for Israel’s national mission (Based on Rav Yehuda Hakohen, The Jewish Press, Bo: Israel’s Internal Transformation). Today, too, especially those of us deriving from the Western culture, some take everything – the good along with the bad – while others carefully refrain from taking anything. The correct balance is to select carefully and take only the good. If we take too much there is the danger of succumbing and becoming absorbed into the non-Jewish culture. Yet if we recoil into utter isolation within ourselves, we lose the Divine opportunity to redeem the sparks and return them to their Divine source in the Land of Israel and thereby bring about the final Geulah (redemption).