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December 31, 2004/Tevet 19 5765, Vol. 57, No. 18
The different names of freedom
Torah study
IRWIN WIENER
Parsha Shemot/Exodus 1:1-6:1
Recorded history is filled with amazing feats and stories. The most profound story in the human experience occurred more than 4,000 years ago.
It contains suspense and mystery and sex and intrigue. It contains a religious encounter and transforms the people of Israel and their God from a local happening to a universal pronouncement of humanity's partnership with the divine.
"A new king arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph" (Exodus 1:8). Thus begins the drama that would ultimately result in changing the course of history and that reverberates to this day. This story of freedom has been told numerous times by different people in different places and is retold over and over again because it contains a message of hope: the hope of goodness triumphing over evil, the hope of being able to be expressive in our quest for a meaningful life and the hope of being understood as we search for the light to lead us out of darkness.
Not knowing Joseph is the clarion call of all people consumed with prejudices. Being intolerant of those around us who seem to be different has been used time and again to justify hatred. Worrying about loyalty - as Pharaoh professed to - is how terror is born and flourishes.
These are the ingredients that contributed to this greatest of stories. And as we continue to follow this chapter in our history, we learn firsthand about predilections so grand, which we have seen repeated so often in our lifetime.
Bias in any form is evil. And evil exists where truth and faith are missing. The name itself conjures up horrors that boggle the mind: servitude, death, darkness - the darkness of a closed mind, loss of dignity. On and on, evil can be found in not knowing more about each other, not caring what happens to our neighbor or not appreciating the sanctity of life.
How does evil survive? It flourishes because of complacency, closed eyes and indifference. How will evil be destroyed? Justice is the one thread in the fabric of humanity that will bring light from darkness.
This is what all evildoers prey upon: the weakness of the spirit, the nurturing of despair, the removal of self worth and the feeling of hopelessness.
Intimidation is used to break spirits so that even if we get the urge to fight back, we are too weak to care. The will to live is destroyed, and the need for a quick end consumes us.
But then we see a light at the end of the tunnel. Moses is born, and with his birth is the light of redemption. We are set free from the shackles of slavery and we begin to follow our dream. Whether it is the freedom of slaves or the crumbling of a wall or the yearnings of the oppressed, the message is the same, and Moses is the symbol, the instrument that rallies us to fulfillment. Moses is a name given to a process of encouragement that will break the yoke of degradation.
This chapter in our history brings us the freedom of thought and the freedom from want. These freedoms will ensure that each of us can sit under a fig tree and feel secure.
This chapter in our weekly study of who we are and what God expects of us begins with the names of generations past that followed their destiny. These names help us understand that continuity enables us to reach back and forward. And when the sun sets on our existence, all we have to offer those who follow is our name. And that is why this week's Torah portion is titled Shemot - names. It's not just the names of people, but the different names of freedom.
Dr. Irwin Wiener is the rabbi of the Sun Lakes Jewish Congregation and president of the Jewish Free Loan of Greater Phoenix.
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