To Capture a Feeling
What would have convinced George Washington to drop everything and go study
Torah in a synagogue in Rhode Island? Would spectacular Jewish victories and
miraculous deliverance from their enemies have inspired him to walk away
from the White House and his palatial estates in Monticello?
In this week's portion, we encounter one of the George Washingtons of the
ancient world - Jethro, prince and high priest of Midian. While ancient
Midian was no world power like Egypt or Babylon, it was quite a prosperous
nation, and Jethro was its master. Still, when Jethro "heard all the Lord
had done for Moses and his people Israel," he left the luxuries and comforts
of Midian and joined the Jewish people in the desert.
What prompted Jethro to give up his royal honors, his power, his estates,
his luxurious lifestyle, his wealth? What had he "heard" that so transformed
him? Our Sages tells us that he heard about the miraculous splitting of the
sea followed immediately by the war against Amalek. The Ten Plagues and the
Exodus had apparently not been sufficiently impressive to make Jethro leave
the comforts and privileges of Midian.
The commentators explain that the splitting of the sea was a most phenomenal
miracle. Our Sages tell us that the spectacles witnessed by a maidservant at
the sea were greater than the visions of the exalted prophet Ezekiel. It is,
thus, quite understandable that hearing of this miracle would motivate
Jethro to join the Jewish people. But what was so inspiring about the war
against Amalek? Was the victory in this war more miraculous than the Ten
Plagues and the Exodus?
In actuality, however, the stunning miracles of the Ten Plagues and the
Exodus had indeed engendered in Jethro's heart a profound belief in Hashem
and recognition of His mastery of the world. But they did not motivate him
to uproot himself and seek an inspired life. Despite his newfound
understanding of divinity, he was content to live as a "righteous gentile"
in Midian for the rest of his life. But the unprovoked attack by Amalek,
coming as it did immediately after the splitting of the sea, shook him to
his very core.
How could such a thing happen? How could the tremendous miracles Hashem
performed for the Jewish people have has so little effect on Amalek? The
prophet (Joshua 5:1) assures us that the surrounding nations had heard about
the splitting of the sea. Surely, Amalek had not missed this major news
event. And yet, for no logical reason but pure malice, they chose to attack
the Jewish people in the desert. Clearly, the overwhelming evidence of
miracles was not enough to transform people and turn them away from evil. If
there was a will to deny the miracles, a way would always be found.
Barbarism and immorality would continue to exist despite the revelation of
the awesome power of Hashem.
The war with Amalek had shown Jethro that the discovery of the existence of
the Creator could not be expected to have a lasting effect - if any effect
at all. Only by translating that discovery, and the accompanying thrill of
inspiration, into a concrete commitment could he transform his life. Only
breaking with the familiar patterns of his life and going into the desert to
join the Jewish people could guarantee a transformation. The forfeiture of
his royal privileges in Midian was but a small price to pay.
A king summoned the two finest painters in the realm. "I want a
portrait of my son," he said. "This will be a contest. The winner receives
wealth beyond his wildest dreams, the other nothing." The king then gave a
passionate description of the prince's wonderful qualities. "Come back in a
week!" he concluded.
A week later, they returned with the portraits, and to the king's
astonishment, one was far superior to the other. "How can this be," he asked
the winner, "if the two of you are equally talented?"
"It is really quite simple, your majesty. The moment you finished giving us
that inspiring description, I ran to paint the portrait immediately. My
friend waited two days. By then, the inspiration was gone."
In our own lives, we encounter moments of inspiration that lift us above the
mundane routine of our everyday lives, moments when we experience a mystical
joy that changes our entire perspective. But how do we capture that
momentary feeling? How can we make it a permanent part of our lives? Only by
concrete commitment. Only by taking a step forward can we anchor these
transcendent feelings in our hearts and enrich our lives forever.
Text Copyright © 2010 by Rabbi Naftali Reich and Torah.org.
Rabbi Reich is on the faculty of the Ohr Somayach Tanenbaum Education Center.