Parashat B’shalah
Singing On The
Way
Despite the fear
and exhaustion of journeying from a dark, narrow place, we must remember to
accompany our arrivals with song and joy.
By Deborah Joselow
The following article is reprinted with permission from
the UJA-Federation of New York.
This week's Torah
portion is B'shalah. From the Hebrew root meaning "to send," the name
of the portion reflects Pharaoh's decree that the Israelite people may finally
leave the land of Egypt.
For over 400 years,
our ancestors were physically and spiritually enslaved. Their release was not
only cause for joy but, more importantly, the basis of a mandate that continues
to inform all of Jewish life and activity. Then and now, freedom for every one
of God's children is our constant and ultimate pursuit.
In the cycle of
reading the Torah, the dream of freedom was first realized in last week's
parasha. In Parashat Bo, we read of the actual exodus from Egypt--the basis for
the Passover story--and many of the Passover rituals are first recorded. All of
this was undertaken in preparation for the moment that finally arrives in
B'shalah when the dream is actualized, when the Jews have finally and
conclusively escaped Egypt.
This transition from
hope to reality is important--it is a stage that, in our own lives, is often
neglected or denied. The gritty territory between "leaving" and
"arriving" lacks both the passion of pursuit and the satisfaction of
completion. Yet, in truth, this "in-between" stage is the terrain
where we spend much of our time.
B'shalah takes us to
the shore of the Sea of Reeds where the Israelites, led by Moses, erupt in
song. This historic moment will be reenacted in synagogues throughout the
world. When the "Song at the Sea" is read, the entire congregation
will rise. The tune will not be the usual chant but one reserved for this
particular spectacular occasion. Even the Torah scroll reflects the miracle of
the crossing: The words of the song are written in a staggered layout on the
parchment--parted like waves--as a scribal tribute to the event.
The Israelites sang
at the shores of the sea, but their view was more the color of blood than the
color of roses. The sea through which they miraculously passed had, after all,
consumed the entire Egyptian army. To commemorate this loss, on Passover we
empty our own cups by ten small drops. It is difficult to imagine having the
capacity to break out into song while viewing carnage of this magnitude.
Like the Torah
portion it accompanies, this week's Haftarah, taken from the Book of
Judges, also contains a song. This one, the Song of Deborah, was written
several hundred years after the events detailed in B'shalah and was sung at the
conclusion of a fierce military campaign.
The message
contained in these two texts could not be any more simple. For any of us who
have ever journeyed out of a narrow and dark place, we know that when we
recognize our arrival to other side, it is most often accompanied by tears of
relief and exhaustion. If we are to learn anything from our portion, we must
also remember to sing.
The Song at the Sea begins with the Hebrew words "az
ya-shir." Written in the future tense, the phrase can be understood as
saying, "thus one will sing." It is a fitting epilogue to an awesome
moment, and it is a charge to all of us who continue to pursue freedom in all
of its forms. The song that the Israelites sang is as much our inheritance as
the cause of freedom. This path we travel is not without blood and sweat, but
we are also obligated to fill it with the sounds of joy.
