3.6.15 Parashat Ki Tisa

Parashat Ki Tisa

Exodus 30:11-34:35

RECAP:

Moshe is up on Mt Sinai.

God is reciting the commandments that Moshe will teach to the people.  The Israelites couldn't wait any longer.

Aaron instructs them to bring all of their gold (which, FYI: they looted from Egyptian homes as they fled from Egypt) and he fashions a Golden Calf.

Moshe and God are furious and Moshe shatters the tablets.
Moshe melts the calf and forces the Israelites to drink it.
Moshe commands Levites to kill their brother and over 3000 men are slain.
God strikes the Israelites with a plague as punishment for the Golden Calf.
Moshe goes up a second time to get a second set of tablets.
This time Moshe writes them.
Moshe asks to see God's face.
God passes His goodness before Moshe.

Take a breath!  This is a lot to digest. I have tried to make sense of this parasha for over a decade.  I don't get it.  Where is God's compassion?  Where is Moshe's?  The people, who until a short time ago, only knew slavery, only knew Pharaoh.  They freak out when they think Moshe, their new Pharaoh, has abandoned them.  Probably, in an effort to distract them, Aaron gives them what they ask for, a new god, one they can see and touch.  The People didn't come up with the idea and yet they are forced to drink the melted gold.  Aaron isn't punished by Moshe or God.  Commanding the Levites to kill their brothers and then striking the people with a plague is harsh and cruel.  Moshe and God seem completely out of control. What if that's what happened?  What if Moshe and God simply lost it and are out of control? I have certainly had moments when I have reacted harshly and/or hastily to a situation.  I imagine all of us have and if someone were to evaluate the scene, he/she would conclude that we were out of control. And then, an incredibly intimate scene occurs between God and Moshe.  Moshe finally, after all this time of obeying and doing whatever God commands, Moshe finally asks for something in return. Moshe wants to see God's face. God doesn't give Moshe exactly what he wants but offers as much as He can.  God reveals His backside, all of the goodness as a way of thanking Moshe for all of his effort and commitment to Him and the People. Both Moshe and God eventually calm down and leave the reader with a sense of tenderness and closeness. Maybe the point of this parasha is accepting that there will be times when we are out of control.  There will be times when our reactions are harsh and hasty.  There will be times when we just can't believe what has happened and our reaction is over the top.  When this happens, and it will, and it will happen again, we need to be mindful to eventually calm down and end by passing our goodness before the other. Mekor Ha'Chayiim, Source of Life, as we move into Shabbat, may we be mindful of leaving our goodness at the end of all of our interactions with the other. Shabbat shalom u'mevorach, Laurie