Translation by Yehoshua Siskin (yehoshua.siskin@gmail.com)
When will our story end and what, exactly, is it all about?
How can we add hope to our lives as we continue to hear such difficult news of our fallen soldiers, while keenly aware of our enemy’s unfathomable cruelty?
Alas, this is not only a description of our situation today but of what happened in ancient history, as we learn from this week’s Torah portion. The book of Exodus that we are reading now has been our source of inspiration for thousands of years up until — and especially — today.
“God spoke to Moses, and He said to him, ‘I am the Lord. I appeared to Avraham, to Yitzhak, and to Yaakov.’”
This week’s Torah portion, Va’eira, begins with the past. In order to leave Egypt in the future, it is necessary, first of all, to look back. In order to succeed, we need to first understand the power of our amazing story and to recall from whom and from where it began.
After all, the roots of a tree influence the growth of its branches. Therefore, our parasha opens with the ancient prophecy to Avraham, Yitzhak, and Yaakov that their descendants would go down to Egypt for years of enslavement, followed by the promise that they would one day return to the land of Israel.
As in ancient Egypt, and with God’s help, may we soon emerge from the darkness of our present