It is so easy to lose faith. And so difficult to maintain it, to keep steady in the face of difficulty and overwhelming negativity, to believe in God and basic goodness even when the world seems to be moving in the wrong direction.
Faithlessness and a lack of steadfastness. That is what sparked the first act of idolatry in history, the Golden Calf of this week’s parsha. The people had waited their time and Moshe was late. Had they been able to wait just one more day, they would not have sinned. But they lost faith. They could not remain steady in the face of uncertainty and a seemingly negative turn of events. They may have had some faith but their faith did not have strength or discipline. It was not a strong enough muscle to rely on.
The contrast to this faithlessness is Avraham. God promised Avraham that his descendants would be like the stars of the sky. But then he remained childless for many, many years, and finally, after having the promised child with Sarah, he was commanded to sacrifice him, yet another obstacle to the fulfillment of the promise. Like the children of Israel at Sinai after 40 days of waiting, Avraham should have lost faith; he should have given in to despair and impatience and given up on the God project entirely. Enough! The facts pointed in the direction of negativity and chaos. But Avraham, if nothing else, was steadfast and unbreakable in his faith. No matter the wait, not matter the delay, he trusted in God’s plan.
Things often seem contrary to a divine plan in our lives. The fall to despair in the face of a negative turn of events, the inability to stand strong and steadfast in our faith, this is indeed the first step to idolatry as it is an abandonment of God, an abandonment of the very basic belief that God runs this world with overflowing hesed or love.
Can we be adopt the stance of Avraham, to be patient and long-suffering no matter what comes our way? Can we develop this muscle of faith so that even when the road seems twisted, we walk confidently and with trust?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I once heard Rabbi Akiva Tatz say that Emunah doesn't mean "faith", but "faithfulness". That this is a grand test hidden in life's many other tests. This is great food for though this morning. Todah.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Rachel, for such a beautiful post. I love what you say about faith being like a muscle; what a perfect depiction! I think so many attributes are muscles which we need to keep taut. It takes work - and constant time - but is so worth it.
ReplyDeleteGreat, thanks.
ReplyDeleteThe core of the problem is that these slaves came out of Egypt after 100s of yrs of worshipping the sun, the Nile and animal gods. The women would have taken their fertility idols with them. You cannot impose a new religion in 40 days. They simply did not understand the concept of an abstract god.Amos centuries later admonished the people of Israel for worshipping idols.
ReplyDeleteThe time factor.
If I have to make a golden calf I have to set up a furnace in the heat of the sinai to a temp.of 1040 degrees C. I would have to collect huge stones and wood. I would have to fashion a large crucible to pour the gold. Then I would have to fashion a golden calf from the molten gold. This process would take weeks. Aaron understood the problem not Moses nor God.The commandments of Moses was only applicable in the Holy land not the desert.
Our numbers .We are now about 12 million Jews after the holocaust.We are easy to count. We lost 3 temples. We were murdered in Spain and Portugal,. Then 10 tribes of Israel are gone about 80% of our numbers and the holocaust again.
We are a nation that lives apart.
Best regards, Hessel Meilech