By Rabbi Jonathan Kraus, .
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Shabbat "Ki Tisa"
February 25-26, 2000/20 Adar I, 5760
Exodus 30:11-34:35
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"The LORD spoke to Moses: 'See, I have singled out by name Bezalel
son of
Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have endowed him with
a divine
spirit of skill, ability, and knowledge in every kind of craft... (Exodus
31:1-2)." The Talmud comments on these verses: "When a
good leader is
available, the Holy One personally proclaims his identity, as is said,
'The
LORD spoke to Moses saying: "See I have called by name Bezalel...."'*
During this season of primaries and elections, one might wish for such
direct, Divine guidance about the best choice of a leader. However,
unlike
Moses, we are left to discern for ourselves who it is that God has
blessed
with the gifts most necessary for leadership. And this process
of
discernment becomes even more complicated with the constant media barrage
that seeks to define our perceptions of the candidates and win our
votes.
Personally, I don't know which candidate God wants to become our next
President. I doubt that God has called any of the candidates
directly by
name (had God done so, surely, we'd have seen the endorsement on t.v.
by
now!). In fact, I'm not sure God cares about the particular results
of
American elections (any more than God cares about the particular outcome
of
football games or the Grammy awards). I do believe that God cares
about
the existence of justice and compassion in our society. I believe
that God
cares about how we treat each other. And I also believe that
most human
beings respond to a calling that we discover in ourselves in the course
of
a lifetime.
So, what is the calling to which these candidates are responding?
If these
candidates are like most of us, a confusing array of voices (not all
of
them good or healthy) beckons them. To which voice are they responding?
Further, with what gifts have the candidates been endowed and which
of
those gifts are truly valuable for good leadership? These are
complex and
difficult questions. They are also urgent questions if God is
somehow
proclaiming the identity and availability of a good leader in our midst
and
we want to struggle to recognize that call.
Perhaps, that's why God first commands Moses, "See" and only then explains
what Moses is to look for in Bezalel. To paraphrase the philosophical
puzzle: "If a wonderful leader is placed in our midst and no-one
recognizes him, can he get elected?" God says to Moses, I've
placed this
gifted person among you but you still have to recognize his potential.
You
still have to look and judge and choose. So do we.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Jonathan Kraus
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NEXT WEEK:
Parashat "Va'yakhel" (Shekalim)
Exodus 35:1-40:38 (Ex. 30:11-16)
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*Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Berachot, page 55a; quoted in THE BOOK
OF
LEGENDS, eds., Hayim Nahman Bialik and Yehoshua Ravnitzky, (New York:
Schocken Books, 1992), pg. 724, #20.